Dreaming Awake - Creating the Bridge
In order to stay conscious between waking and sleeping realities, one must create a bridge.
Choose any object in your room. Something without a lot of meaning is best. Focus on this object before you go to sleep for about ten minutes. Look at it in detail. Memorize it in from all angles until you can visualize it fairly easily in your mind.
Now return to bed and focus on the object. It will be your bridge, your path from waking to sleeping realities. While you are focusing your mind on the object you will go through stages. Be sure your bladder is empty and your stomach content, but not overly full.
1) Take a comfortable position in your bed. Sink into it. Reassure your body that you will not fall, that you cannot be harmed.
2) Relax your muscles. Focus primarily on the calves, shoulders, hands, and jaw muscles. Let them go, even if this means letting your mouth hang open. This leads into #3.
3) Focus on your breathing. Breath lightly, making little to no noise, but breath deeply so that your stomach moves, and not your cheast. Allow the breath to enter both the nose and your mouth, which should be slightly open if your jaw is relaxed completely. Relax and resist the urge to swallow. Your mouth may get dry, but that's what happens when you sleep. Do not worry. No harm will come to your mouth or throat.
4) Allow your tounge to lay comfortably in your mouth. Reassure your body that your tounge will not obstruct your airway during sleep.
5) Your perception will now fade off in the following order:
1st - Body
2nd - Breathing
3rd - Heartbeat
At this point you should still be retaining the image of your bridge. Follow it until you reach the state of Dreaming Awake.
~LucidOne