How Should I Work Around A Busy Schedule?

So I am about to enter school and will have quite a busy schedule. I had pretty much forgotten about lucid dreaming or anything like that for years until recently a friend mentioned it. I have never succeeded with lucid dreaming but now, being older and more focused, I would like to give it another go. The only issue is that I have to wake up at 6am every day, and assuming I have the time to dream journal, I am pretty much going to be busy until 4pm with no time for dream-related mental exercises, and unfortunately I often don't get a full 8 hours of sleep. What do you guys recommend for the best way to achieve lucid dreams?

Side note: In the past I have done an RC in a dream, said to myself "oh it's a dream" and still not become lucid, and I often am aware I am dreaming but somehow not lucid. Does this mean I am like resistant to lucid dreams or something?

It sounds like you're often partially lucid already. Lucidity is awareness that you're dreaming and you say you're often aware that you're dreaming. What you need to become fully lucid is have more access to waking life memory once you're lucid. Doing this is simple: you just give yourself something from waking life to remember upon becoming lucid.

Before you fall asleep, think of a dream goal that you intend to remember and do once you're aware you're dreaming. That way once you become aware that you're dreaming, you will be more likely remember your dream goal. Remembering your dream goal will give you the access to waking life memory you need to become fully lucid.

Personally, I think you would be better off if you focus your time on school until you can get used to your school and sleep routine. You probably need to work on getting sleep habits established and recall built back up before you can make the lucid leap. But, that's just me. That said, Lucidity is pretty much about being aware of being in a dream. It sounds like you have been lucid in the past already. Controlling your dream comes with practice. You also probably need to do all day awareness too. For example, you can use something like 11:11 as your reminder for your waking life Reality Checks and such.
Before you fall asleep at night, you could try to use sticky notes to remind you of your dream goals.
Also, I know if you are busy in the morning you can buy yourself an auto recorder which can let you multitask in the morning. I've heard that there are members here that have been doing that for years. :) What have you been doing when you were dreaming now in the summer? How is your RC and such?

You guys are saying I have been partially lucid, which may be true, but it seems more to me like I am observing a dream character that represents myself become aware that he is in a dream. Not really sure, just speculation. And ya I started doing the pinched nose RC today - every time I check the time through any device. This summer I have not been doing anything regarding dreaming. I would wake up and sometimes try to remember my dreams. It's a real shame because I got a very regular schedule going for a whole month where I had natural periodic wakeups in the middle of the night once or twice, at dawn, and then an hour or so before waking up. I could have probably used those to lucid dream fairly easily but it did not occur to me.

When you don't expect something, you tend to turn down evidence that goes against your expectations. This is called confirmation bias. Not expecting yourself to be able to lucid dream can make you turn down evidence that you are having one. This results in the limited lucidity of the dreams you describe. Get rid of the notion that you can't already lucid dream to get rid of the barrier that's holding you back. When you become aware you are dreaming do a pinched nose RC. You can do it! You already have the ability to do it because you're already have the ability to lucid dream.

Yes, I agree with Dolphin! Yes, don't fall victim to any negativity but, at the same time don't over think it. Don't forget to have some discipline too, you know? You may also have to use multiple RCs to stabilize your dream. Sometimes, Plugging your nose is not always good enough.

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Originally Posted by Avian

This summer I have not been doing anything regarding dreaming. I would wake up and sometimes try to remember my dreams. It's a real shame because I got a very regular schedule going for a whole month where I had natural periodic wakeups in the middle of the night once or twice, at dawn, and then an hour or so before waking up. I could have probably used those to lucid dream fairly easily but it did not occur to me.

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Well, maybe you can incorporate the "WBTB" or the dreams stuff into that regular schedule for now. Do you have a DJ? A dream journal would help you with dream recall and with achieving lucidity.

Actually Avian, my hours are pretty similar to yours. I'll share what I've adapted to. What I've noticed is that I tend to get lucid more often on workdays. I'm even lucid a more frequently during the year than during my break in the summer. Hopefully some of these practices may fit well into your schedule! :
-I voice record all dreams during all of my micro-awakenings, trying to get as much jam packed into it.
-I do a 10 min WBTB with SSILD which is very time efficient for me, and gives me a lot more lucidity
-I get up at 6:10 or 6:20 and *immediately nose-plug RC every time I'm transition out of bed. I go right to jump in a cold shower
(see sivason's Dream Yoga Course: Immunity to Shock & Energy Flow Simulation). I do 7 mins of yoga balance poses with my eyes closed (building vestbular sense & field independence). I focus a lot on 'Illusory Form' throughout my whole morning routine.
- I discuss my dreams and lucids with my fiance during breakfast. I eat most of my calories for breakfast and smaller meal for lunch and notice I don't need as much deep sleep. I make sure I'm getting a lot of B vitamins, choline, and overall healthy diet).
-I listen to all my dream recordings as soon as I start driving, then switch to any LDing podcasts/audio I'm into. Get to work and really practice awareness and scrutinizing everything as I enter. I practice awareness and Illusory Form throughout the day, and do many 'clock' rcs, as well as hand RCs, and noseplugs during anything 'weird' or anytime I enter a bathroom.
-LDing audio on car ride home
- DJ every night, Dream Yoga meditations every night with emphasis on vippasana or mindfulness meditations. Some time browsing DVs usually and occasionally sublims in the background.
- I do a 10 min visual/tactile/mantra incubation meditation right before bed with a lot of positive emotion for LDing. I also do along with a LD goals journal and gratitutde journal in which I always make sure to incorporate things about LDing.

At this point, I feel like most of this doesn't really take much additional effort during my day, aside from the Dream Yoga exercises and sometimes a lot of DJing.

This seems pretty useful, thank you very much! Another problem for me though is that I find it difficult to focus my energy on both daylight hours and sleeping hours. The goal here is not for me to shift focus and energy from waking to sleeping, it is to expand focus and energy to the night time hours. The issue is that I have a lot of trouble keeping up a routine like that unless it is one of the top things on my mind, and my mind is very occupied with other things so that is not entirely possible. It could just be getting into the groove and incorporating it into my daily routine. I will certainly give it a shot.