Thread: My reality check did not work, missed lucidity

I recently had a dream that I suspected of being a dream....? Anyway, I did a reality check and tried to stick my finger through my hand. This had worked before but this time it would not go through. I was sure it was a dream and I kept trying over and over but it would not work. After a while, I gave up and lost what I thought of as the beggining of a lucid dream. Any thoughts as to why my reality check did not work?

Don't worry about it, the finger through palm thing hasn't worked for me either. Just grab your nose, and breathe, it's worked everytime for me

I was sure it was a dream and I kept trying over and over[/b]

it sounds like you allready thought you where in adream.If you have allready realised you are dreaming then why bother with reality checks.

reality checks aren't guaranteed, they sometimes just fail for no reason. for instance, In a dream I had a while back, I questioned whether or not it was a dream. to test it, I looked at my watch. all was normal. I looked at my hands. all was there. I flipped a light-switch on, and it was slow on the uptake, but it still worked. so I missed my chance to be lucid that night. I dunno what to tell you except don't worry about it, it happens to everyone

Yeah bro, it sucks. Not too long ago I had a dream which I was positive was a dream, did the nose check a few times and it didn't work...I have no clue why... But I lost that lucid chance

Originally posted by gjridenhour
I recently had a dream that I suspected of being a dream....? Anyway, I did a reality check and tried to stick my finger through my hand. This had worked before but this time it would not go through. I was sure it was a dream and I kept trying over and over but it would not work. After a while, I gave up and lost what I thought of as the beggining of a lucid dream. Any thoughts as to why my reality check did not work?

leo says:
"that RC did not work because you are not spiritually ready for it to work yet!!!!!!1!!!!!!!!"

Originally posted by andorf

I was sure it was a dream and I kept trying over and over

it sounds like you allready thought you where in adream.If you have allready realised you are dreaming then why bother with reality checks.[/b]

This is a very good point - which I think is too often overlooked. If you're overcome with the feeling that you might be dreaming, then consider yourself dreaming and move on from there.

It's not very often that RC's done during the day are prompted by an overwhelming feeling or inclination that you might be dreaming. They're prompted by the need to practice RC's for use in dreaming. Keep that in mind if you once again believe you are, indeed, in a dream.

Having the thought that you might be dreaming is actually a leap forward, regardless of the efficacy of the finger-in-palm RC.

Deja

Hey thanks for the thoughts, I appreciate all the input.

I still like the pinch-nose-breathe scenario.

So - does that mean your reality check bounced?

check bounced?[/b]

lol, you've come up with a new term. Bouncing of a 'reality cheque' hehe

A while ago before I knew anything about LDs I did some of the reality checks and got confused. I think I was trying to read something or look at myself in the mirror but I couldn't see clearly so I thought there was something wrong with my eyes and tried to open them more but then they just closed shut and I couldnt see anything at all.

Eventually I got my eyes slightly opened but I could see some of the real world and my dream at the same time.

I would not worry of course! This has definitely happened to me before. Eventually, you would be able to Lucid without a reality Check =) ! Like, Just know its a dream. Good Luck for further tries !

Check bounced! What a hoot ROFL !!!!


Yes it did, but I am now checking all day long and using a variety of methods. Does anyone else do a combination of reality checks or is it better to focus on one at a time?

No, I always do 2-3.
- finger number counting
- finger through palm
- pinched nose breathing or (if i dont want others to think that they smell)
- closed mouth breathing
- text reading
- at the same time look for dreamsigns, where i am, does it make sense etc.

Im a little new and I have a question about this.. The other night I was positive I was dreaming, but I forget to do a reality check and lost my thought. Can that happen or could it have just been part of my dream, where i think im lucid? I have been looking for an answer on this, and havent found anything.

Originally posted by jay dawg
leo says:
\"that RC did not work because you are not spiritually ready for it to work yet!!!!!!1!!!!!!!!\"

That's funny as hell!

I have a clear memory of failing a reality check once... in the fourth grade! Obviously, I didn't know anything about lucid dreaming or think of what I was doing as a "reality check," but that's essentially what it was.

I was in my 4th grade classroom, the details are a bit hazy as it was nearly a decade ago, but for some reason I was suspecting that I was dreaming. But I couldn't tell. So I decided that I should test myself somehow. My reasoning was, "okay, if this is a dream, then that means that I'm not really here, which means that I shouldn't be able to really feel anything if I touch it!" It made perfect sense to my eleven-year-old mind. So, I reached down and felt one of the desks in my classroom, but alas, it felt like a desk. So I figured it must be real, and I sat down in my desk and started listening to what my teacher was saying, like a good little boy I don't remember what happened after that, I just remember waking up the next day and I was like "crap, that WAS a dream! I KNEW it!!" I know now that it's because my method of checking reality wasn't a good one, but I find it amusing that I even thought to do so when I was so young.

Originally posted by WindsOfPlague
Im a little new and I have a question about this.. The other night I was positive I was dreaming, but I forget to do a reality check and lost my thought. Can that happen or could it have just been part of my dream, where i think im lucid? I have been looking for an answer on this, and havent found anything.

WindsOf Plague,

Yes, that can happen. You can be dreaming, forget to do a reality check, and still become Lucid.

Deja