Thread: How Long Did it Take to Have Your First Lucid Dream?

I had my first lucid by accident, but from the moment I began actively trying to lucid dream it took me about three weeks.

Took me 2 days after discovering LDing through DV. I was so excited about it I was reality checking so much and constantly thinking about lucid dreaming. Boom, second night I RC in a dream.

After I learned Lucid Dreaming was scientific fact and not New Agey BS, it took me a month to have 1, where I lost lucidity after like 1 min. Which was like 3 years ago.

I generally have around 2-4 LDs a month, now, mostly just from reality checks. Though, no matter how hard I try, it seems my dream recall only seems good enough during 1.5-3 hour naps. No matter when I wake up after the long sleep. If I sleep longer, I don't recall much of the dreams and never remember LDs. I can only typically recall 1 dream, in that case. Frustrating. Such a transcedental and profound part of life, and I can barely tap into it.

About 1 year, kinda sick lol

My first lucid dream after I learned about lucid dream was very vivid, lasted quite long, and when it collapsed I was able to chain and continue the dream lucidly. Other than reading books about lucid dreaming and casually doing reality checks when I felt it necessary I didn't do much else other than improve my dream recall via keeping a dream journal and meditate whenever I got the chance. I took a casual approach which I do to this day. My significant other and I always had trouble sleeping, I didn't want this to become an added burden. Unlike me my significant other had been a natural lucid dreamer since childhood and had incredible dream recall even without keeping a dream journal. She could have lucid dreams any day just by intention alone. Anyway, to answer how long... I think probably between 1 to 3 months. I hardly slept and was too busy everyday working to pay bills on top of studies. Not a healthy way to live nor an ideal lifestyle for lucids. I didn't burden myself with methods and techniques, I just kept an open mind.

It took a few weeks from my memory. I found out about it here on dream views and immediately started improving my dream recall and doing reality checks. I'm fairly sure that my eventual success was caused by my excitement and determination, like others have stated. It was a pretty uneventful dream, but the fact that I had had a lucid dream was so exciting!

Most people's "first" lucid dream tend to be short and uneventful, but mine wasn't and I'm sure I'm not alone. The more I think about it more I'm sure it's because of a casual mindset that lets us experience a longer and more eventful lucid dream. Wanting something but not wanting too much to the point of getting worked up sort of thing. ^^

I'm not sure..but if the average person has five or more dreams every night and usually only remember one (unless someone's purposefully keeping track of dreams,journal,ect) wouldn't it be logical to assume we don't remember 100% of our lucid dreams?

I got my first one after 4 days, because I did lots of reality checks. I had a good dream memory (I could remember 1 dream per night, almost every night). Now I can remember 3 dreams in one night.

I got lucky and did it on my first night of seriously attempting it. I always wanted to do it because I was always very fascinated with my dreams as a kid. But illogically I thought it must not be possible since I never heard of anyone doing it. As a kid I just thought if it was possible why wouldn't everyone be doing it and talking about it all the time... lol. Didn't realize everyone didn't find dreams as fascinating as I did.

Anyways, I had just seen the movie "Dreamscape" in the theater. 1984. Jeez, really. I am getting old lol. After the movie I was so pumped and wanted to realize I was dreaming while in a dream so badly that I made the decision right then and there. I didn't care if it was possible or not, I was going to make it happen.


I went to sleep with such a strong intention to realize I was dreaming that I became lucid spontaneously in the middle of a dream. And even in the dream I was so shocked that I actually did it. And I remember what I wanted to try, something from the movie. Where the villain says to the hero something like. . "You don't get it do you? You can do anything you want here." And the villain then makes little blades come out of his fingertips, and then spawns some glowing nunchucks. I looked at my hand and tried to make blades grow out of my fingertips. I didn't get the exact result I was intended, but my entire hand morphed into a monster claw lol. I just looked at it in awe at and woke up stunned at what I had just done.

Then I knew it was possible, and started my own reality checking because it seems the obvious logical way to induce lucidity to question reality a lot and do tests to see. Eventually I came across "Exploring The World Of Lucid Dreaming" That book helped me a lot just because of it's existence. Reading about scientists in dream laboratories experimenting with this like a science fiction movie. And knowing it wasn't just me doing it.

Here it is. The trailer for the movie that inspired me to induce my first lucid dream in 1984. A classic.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ybHzYtF3ZM

It took me about a week and a half to have my first intentional LD. I had a passive interest in LDing for some years but had never taken the dive. It sure is an exciting feeling when you find yourself lucid and is probably what caused me to wake so soon. I've had a couple of spontaneous LDs as a kid and in my early teens, but the seemed to stop in time.

Oh cool, Dreamscape! I read about that last night while reading Laberge's Lucid Dreaming. I thought maybe I should check it out. I'll go ahead and click on the trailer.

Pretty awesome you got lucid your first night from watching the film, by the way!

Originally Posted by LodeRunner13

I read about lucid dreaming all night the first night I got interested in it.I had an LD that night.First one in years.It was extremely short, though.

This happened to me twice, both when starting a new book and being very into it. I think there is something in there that is a clue on how to trigger lucid dreams in our case. Possibly conclusions drawn from it, such as:

* Lucid dreaming is possible
* Lucid dreaming has huge potential
* Lucid dreaming is important

Maybe working on these points (and possibly many more essential ones I'm missing) can help.

I had my first LD in early February of this year as a spontaneous response to a perceived threat in a non lucid dream. I suddenly found myself standing there, completely and fully lucid and aware and wondering how the heck I got there.

That next day I burned up google and found out that there was this thing called lucid dreaming. I immersed myself in it, found this amazing forum, and had three powerful lucid dream events within the first week.

I have to say that my life has changed since finding out that:

Originally Posted by gbbr

* Lucid dreaming is possible
* Lucid dreaming has huge potential
* Lucid dreaming is important

I don't remember, I had my first when I was about 5- 10. *RC after looking at the title of the pole on this thread, "View Poll Results: How Long Did it Take to Have Your Fist Lucid Dream?".*

like 6 months, MILD was fucking useless for me in general, I get legit mad at hearing people suggest it as the best technique now

This is gonna sound sad, but I seem to recall it took me about a year and a half! I think I started a little before I joined Dreamviews. I only practiced things like reality-checking when it came to mind and didn't bear down on forming good habits, and as a result it took me a very long time to experience one. I fully believed lucid dreaming was possible, but somehow it seemed so foreign as a concept to me that I simply couldn't imagine what it would be like.

Interestingly, unlike I suspect most people, my first lucid dream was a WILD. I think I woke up sleepy on the couch, and accidentally stayed conscious while falling asleep again, and was so excited by the sensation of stepping through a portal into a dream and staying there for about a minute, that I quickly woke up again with my heart racing. That was probably in 2010 somewhere.

Ever since I've usually gone for WILDs (though I get DILDs by accident sometimes). One of my favorite techniques and the most successful for me being the "FILD" (the finger induced lucid dream, lol) someone posted about on here awhile back. I sometimes tell people about that technique because it worked so well for me, hoping maybe it will get them their first, too.

Originally Posted by lifeinsteps

This is gonna sound sad, but I seem to recall it took me about a year and a half!

Wow, congrats on not giving up and finally succeeding.

Originally Posted by lifeinsteps

Interestingly, unlike I suspect most people, my first lucid dream was a WILD..

Mine too, but it was simply the first tutorial I read on here. It sounded too good to be true and I was way to curious how this would be like. The first night trying I fell asleep right away though. The next day I read about SSILD and unintentionally mixed them up - but the combination somehow worked like a charm for me. Had a very interesting transition and stayed lucid for about 20 minutes.

Still my best lucid dream to date, beginner's luck I guess. Tbh, that was a life-changing experience...

Originally Posted by CarpeNoctem144

Wow, congrats on not giving up and finally succeeding.

Oh, I'm pretty sure I didn't practice that hard and that's why it took so long, haha. I remember going through months of wearing digital watches and checking them at high-school, but I probably never dedicated myself as I should have if I wanted to have an LD right away.

Originally Posted by CarpeNoctem144

Mine too, but it was simply the first tutorial I read on here. It sounded too good to be true and I was way to curious how this would be like. The first night trying I fell asleep right away though. The next day I read about SSILD and unintentionally mixed them up - but the combination somehow worked like a charm for me. Had a very interesting transition and stayed lucid for about 20 minutes.

Still my best lucid dream to date, beginner's luck I guess. Tbh, that was a life-changing experience...

Sounds awesome. Our weird homebrewed techniques seem to always be the ones that work for us!

I had a small amount of lucid dreams when I was younger but it took me 9 days to have my first intentional one after practicing. It was a decent first one. It only lasted 2 minutes or so but I had a good amount of control and it was enough time for me to explore a bit try a few things out and enjoy the experience. I was quite happy with the amount of time it took to achieve but It took me another 14 days to have my second!

3 weeks for my first Lucid dream , realised I was dreaming and remembered I wanted to experience flying, so off I went.

My next lucid dream wasn’t until 6months later - but well worth maintaining the persistent effort.

Originally Posted by Ant101

3 weeks for my first Lucid dream, realized I was dreaming and remembered I wanted to experience flying, so off I went.

My next lucid dream wasn’t until 6months later - but well worth maintaining the persistent effort.

Welcome back! Anthony!! Congrats!! Keep up the great work! 🐜

9 Months

30 days from the day I started reading ETWOLD and setting intention to recall dreams.