new Dreamer checking in! (my experience and ramblings)

[DreamerDad]

Hello all, I've recently begun my quest for lucidity and have had some success. I've been at it for about two months on and off. I used to haunt the Lucid4all forum but i find the community there to be not as vibrant as here, so I have registered here and plan on seeing how it goes. There seems to be a lot more activity here in terms of replies and discussion. One user in particular db_fts was very helpful on the other forum, I hoped to open a larger discussion there but it didn't transpire. I'm not sure if posting that discussion breaks forum rules, but i'll add the disclaimer that I only seek to enlighten readers of this thread to said discussion, with a view to continuing it here. (apparently it is against the rules and I have removed the discussion) Basically I just want to be part of the community and use your wealth and experience to assist my own quest for lucid dreams. I had primarily been attempting to use MILD, as written in La Berge's ETWOLD. I have compiled a dream journal of at least 30 dreams, some vivid some not, and have categories the dreams and was working on prospective memory exercises. This went on for the best part of a month with the only tangible success in that sometimes, my dreams are more vivid, and I am making a conscious effort to remember them. I decided to use MILD due to the fact that I have a very hectic life, I am a father of two and work days, my son wakes frequently in the night. Then I found a great blog by Jamie Alexander Lucid Dreaming Experiments where he talks about using meditation to help raise awareness, something that I sorely lack. I have thus far day dreamed through my life, and in my dreams this is evident as I stubbornly refuse to entertain the fact I am dreaming, even in the face of complete absurdity. This was really my first (excluding la berge) introduction to WILD, being used in the WILD so to speak. So I decided to maintain my DJ, and meditate every night at bedtime to raise my awareness. One night, I sporadically got my first lucid dream after the baby had woke, I went back to bed and within a couple of seconds of repeating my mantra, I was in a dream. But the dream is foggy, faded, not clear, no sound, but I definitely had awareness, because I knew I was dreaming and I was in control of my actions in that context. I tried again for a week or so but could not replicate the Lucid Dream. I then discovered a tutorial on here that actually resulted in my second lucid dream. As explained in the other thread, it was the CANWILD method. I set my alarm to go off at 90 minute intervals, and at the second alarm the same thing happened, I was whisked into the dream world, attempted some stabilization techniques, but still, the reports of LD being as reall as real life are not reflected in my dreams as yet. Funnily enough, I seem to have a vivid Normal Dream following every lucid dream, where the details are much clearer than my lucid dreams. So thats where im up to, I try the CANWILD attempts wherever possible (my wife works nights and sometimes the baby sleeps more than 3 hours), i'm yet to have a MILD or DILD, which is very frustrating, although last night, I had a dream where my son was running, and I knew he is unable to walk, and I did sense an inkling that that wasn't right, but I couldn't make the connection. I remember thinking something along the lines of, "is this real? my son is unable to walk, perhaps ill wake up and he can walk." Hopefully this is a sign of my awareness being slightly raised after all this time. So that's me anyway, if you read this far then thank you, I welcome any discussion on how I can improve, particularly from people with busy hectic lives, that found a way to make lucid dreaming a regularity. Cheers! DD.

[JadeGreen]

Well if you're looking for an active community of lucid dreamers, look no further. This site is very much alive and active. As for lucid dreaming with a hectic schedule, MILD is a good choice. Don't forget reality checking can be good too. Although it sounds like you have a little bit of experience, I generally recommend that novice lucid dreamers to not focus on WILD technique. Though that doesn't mean you can't give it a go when the right moment presents itself. Also, if you can, try to go to bed and wake up at a regular time, particularly if you have a hectic or stressful schedule. It works wonders for lucid dreaming.

[cooleymd]

Sometimes my lucid dreams go a bit blurry but I use my hand to stabilize them I once emerged from the void to a similar dreamscape to the one I had just lost but it was dark and blurry. I closed my eyes (probably a mistake since opening them again could have woken me) and commanded "GET CLEARER" when I opened my dream eyes it was razor sharp but also near pitch black. I closed my eyes again and said "GET BRIGHTER", when I opened my eyes I had a nice clear evening (Oh well) I head off thinking this would do, it got much brighter quickly Only once have I had a dreamscape that just refused to be reasonable, even then it looked pretty good, it was a stupid surreal dreamscape, but I was able to paint decorations on it by waving my hands about Sometimes when my dream characters don't look to good (like becoming a bit plastic) I command them to "LOOK BETTER" it usually works (not in the surreal dreamscape above tho)

[ThreeCat]

Hi, DreamerDad--welcome to DV! Concerning your original discussion--I do not know why you became angry. It could be that you were experiencing the beginnings of dream emotions, though it's odd that you were still awake. Are you sure you were awake (did a reality check?). It's possible you were already dreaming, but simply thought you were awake. Posting a link to ld4all is definitely against the rules; I would remove it and repost the original discussion as a quote. Dream vividness, lucid or not, varies; I would not be concerned. If, after 10 or 20 dreams, they are still vague or hazy, then you can have a proper freak out I would check out Sageous's WILD class: WILD I would also check out the DILD class as well: DILD

[DreamerDad]

Hello all! Thanks for your replies. As for lucid dreaming with a hectic schedule, MILD is a good choice. Thanks for the advice, and for replying! I have been trying to LD using MILD in ETWOLD by La Berge for over two months now, more on this below! My WILD attempts happen at the weekend when my wife goes on nights and I have the room to myself. I once emerged from the void to a similar dreamscape to the one I had just lost but it was dark and blurry. I closed my eyes (probably a mistake since opening them again could have woken me) and commanded "GET CLEARER" when I opened my dream eyes it was razor sharp but also near pitch black. I closed my eyes again and said "GET BRIGHTER", when I opened my eyes I had a nice clear evening (Oh well) I head off thinking this would do, it got much brighter quickly Only once have I had a dreamscape that just refused to be reasonable, even then it looked pretty good, it was a stupid surreal dreamscape, but I was able to paint decorations on it by waving my hands about Sometimes when my dream characters don't look to good (like becoming a bit plastic) I command them to "LOOK BETTER" it usually works (not in the surreal dreamscape above tho) Thanks for your reply! I've only had a few Lucid Dreams to date, I think the vividness is becoming better, which in turn, hopefully means I am raising my self awareness. But my dreamscapes appear to shift in and out of existence, I can see details, but if I really focus on something, like a DC for example, it tends to break down or become blurred. I can't even describe what it becomes, blurred is the closest word I can find to describe it. it fades in and out of existence and morphs into different things. Like a women with blonde hair becomes a man in a suit, becomes a women with a different face, with no body, all in the blink of an eye. I wish I could focus on a DC and it was just a single thing or person, and I could see detail, hear detail, feel detail. etc. Does this come with practice? Concerning your original discussion--I do not know why you became angry. It could be that you were experiencing the beginnings of dream emotions, though it's odd that you were still awake. Are you sure you were awake (did a reality check?). It's possible you were already dreaming, but simply thought you were awake. Hey ThreeCat, thanks for replying! Perhaps you were right, at that point maybe I didn't have the insight to perform a test at that moment. It felt like a build up of anger and frustration at the fact nothing was happening. I expected something tangible to happen. People say during WILD the dream forms in their vision. For me its not been like that at all and my expectations were off. The 2 times I've managed a WILD from a WBTB or CANWILD, I have just felt sensations, and imagined rolling out of bed, I emerge in a foggy mess of a dream, I try to stabilize, but I get carried away trying to do mad dream stuff In the week, I try using MILD to induce a lucid dream, due to my hectic life, as some of you have noted. I set my intention and go to sleep, I usually wake a few times a night, due to the baby waking, and try to WILD or meditate. Last night, there was so much background noise, coughing, snoring etc, I just set my intention, and went to sleep. I'm a gamer (when I have the time) so I tend to imagine the words "loading dream" or "Entering Dream" as I imagine an old dream scene where I should have done a reality check. I was having a normal dream last night, it was a bit weird, my sister was in a hotel room introducing me to her friend, we were going somewhere and getting ready. Then, I turned around and back again and they had gone and a man in a suit was there. I was startled and asked the man how he got here, I cant remember what he said.. But a feeling waved over me that this was not right, suddenly, I just knew I was dreaming, everything stopped and slowed down into slow motion and a wave of energy flew over me and rippled the entire scene. Then I walked outside and started to shout, "focus, stablise, focus focus", and everything began coming into focus, more so than before, but the scene was already quite sharp due to the fact I was in a normal dream to begin with, rather than enter through a WILD to a foggy mess. I forgot to use my other senses, like rubbing my hands and listening and touching things, which I wish I could remember to do. Satisfied this time that I had stablised the dream, it was more vivid than before, I began to do the things I had done in my previous dreams. Why do I do this! i have no self control. There is always this mystery person with me, who I accept as normal, I don't realise he is a dream character, asking me things, telling me i'm not dreaming. I say I am and I try to fly but I cant, and everyone is laughing at me. Undeterred, I fly through a window smashing it to smithereens, but the environment beyond the window is just empty green space, like in the game, The Stanley Parable. I fly back through the window and am in a room, I come across a mannequin and just as last time, decide this is a good time to conjure a DC. I face away from the mannequin, and reach my hand out behind me. Someone reaches in and takes my hand. I turn around and there is a beautiful woman standing there, quite startled. Obviously emotions take over and I find myself back in my bed in short order! Now here comes the part where I am a little sad. The moment I wake up, try as I might, the dream memory, and the tangible fabric, the "real time memory" of the dream, begins to fade into obscurity. The dream doesn't feel real anymore, it feels like I watched the entire thing from the third person, it becomes, a figment of my imagination, and not a real experience. I've been advised by others to appreciate progress, even if it is a little progress, well, after two months, I had my first MILD! The dream was more vivid! Progress! But, do you find that it took a while for your dreams to become real in terms of engaging all your senses and emotions? Do your lucid dreams carry over as real memories when you wake? Or do they feel false, like they never happened at all? Thanks again for all your replies and for taking the time to read my posts. DD

[cooleymd]

As to clarity, what time of night were your lucid dreams all my dreams seem to become clearer towards the end of sleep (I wake after all dreams, but I mean when I get up in the morning) false awakenings are supposedly some of the most vivid. I should point out that I sometimes take 5HTP and then after sleeping and waking from a short lame so-so dream, I switch to a ton of Melatonin sometimes taking both fast and slow acting, each and every time I wake up for the rest of the night (every cycle) and this in my opinion makes my dreams more vivid. (I keep taking more because it is only at the end of the last cycle and only on weekends that I seem to become lucid, I'm up to better than 50% success on last dream of the night on a weekend. so about 5-6 per month I give much credit to waking after every dream and writing something, and even more credit to the Melatonin. It helps to make the dream vivid and outrageous (I love when I begin to see visions even before falling asleep, and that doesn't happen when I don't mega dose on Melatonin) making it easier to trigger. Tho I'll never understand why I only trigger off seeing dead people about 1/3 of the time, If its near dawn and the dead are walking in my dreams, I'm a gonna go lucid, but if its midnight, it's Hi there welcome back from the dead.