What is the point of Lucid Dreaming?

[dreamship]

This is my second try to get this thread to post. I'd signed in but by the time I finished typing and clicked the post thing dreamviews told me I wasn't signed in. At any rate, this is a serious post and so I should like some serious and thoughtful responses please. I just woke a while ago from another UNSUCCESSFUL and rather BORING night of dreams. Though I can recall them enough to write the dreams down I just don't see the point since they are not really all that great or even worth having or writing. I go through cycles of bad recall, very dark, hard to recall hard to dream dreams and then I can recall some stuff at least enough to have something to write should I choose to do so. The reason for this post is to ask a question I have also asked concerning life: what is the point? I started lucid dreaming studies years and years ago, was a member of LaBerge's Lucidity Institute and still have the original printed newsletters, to have a fantasy world to play in. I used to fantasize constantly as a kid and young adult. Mostly concerning vampires and sex, but I had some creativity now it appears at almost 40 I have none. I cannot even make myself paint and it is a struggle to try to read a novel. The only novels I seem to still have a love for and can read are the Discworld ones. At any rate, I am not sure how much of a role your hormones play or not and that might be my problem since I have better recall and some creativity sometimes, not all the time anymore, a week or so before my period. Now, I am lucky if I can just get recall. I've had a lot of lucid dreams and have walked through walls, flown, sword fought, and so on and I guess I have become rather bored or jaded or whatever. I just don't see the point in Lucid Dreaming if it isn't for fantasy and I no longer care. So, before I get unsigned on by dreamviews again, what is your point to lucid dreaming. Why do you do it and how much of a role does fantasy life play in them and what would be a new reason to LD for me if my fantasy life is really over? Thank You.

[luv2dream]

I try to lucid dream mostly for the fun of it (I haven't done it enough times to even get bored of it) but I've been trying to find my dreamguide... which is supposed to help you with problems in real life. I dont know how, I've never met mine yet, but sometimes I wonder what the point of anything is. I know how you feel, maybe you should just lucid dream for the fun of it and try to do something different every time. try to make dream friends or meet your dreamguide... but these are just suggestions, i hope they were at least a little bit of help to you.

[dreamship]

Thank You for your reply. I guess lucid dreaming, I don't recall having one for years or at least a year, would be easier if we could have real person groups that would meet on a regular basis. At least the competition would be some point to having a dream :-) Seriously though, I'd thought of trying to start a local group but the only people that might be joining are the really wierd yoga people who are new agers. I love doing yoga for exorcise but don't believe in that new age crap. Loggin off for a while now. NASA is launching the shuttle today and I want to watch NASATV and do some other stuff. Might try to meditate or just free paint or free draw. I feel like I died a long time ago and am just floating around. Might have to give up on dreaming and artistic creativity and do public service like working for animal rights or whatever since that really does stir me and might give meaning to this exsistance. Cheers.

[Mes Tarrant]

do public service like working for animal rights Hey, I LIKE that!! Some people take lucid dreaming very seriously which I don't particularly understand... it's not supposed to be your life, it's just supposed to enhance it, if anything. Maybe you can experiment with different techniques to increase your recall. Try some B6! Or mental suggestions! I don't know what you've been doing actually... could you share some of your techniques that don't seem to be working?

[RooJ]

When i started out it was mostly fantasy and escapism (to a certain extent thats still true).. But ive also always been interested in psychology, and one of the aspects im motivated to explore is the power of dreams on the mind and body. An example is that when im lucid dreaming i can orgasm at will, in only a few seconds..(not just a dream orgasm either, the pleasure continues as i wake, the body's really going through it..... without the need for cleanup afterwards ).. this is a skill i lack while awake (thankfully ) , but it makes me wonder how the relationship between the dreaming me and my body, and the waking me and my body differs, and how i could maybe use this to my advantage. I think there's still lots to learn about lucid dreaming and its potential uses that we're yet to discover, and so for me its an area of research Im interested in pursuing.

[Eonnn]

1. For fun. 2. To meet and talk with your subconscious, DC's, dream guide and spirit guide. 3. To experience strange things which can never be achieved in normal life, and sometimes never in a normal dream. 4. Overcome nightmares. 5. Now this is the biggy, the sort of theraputic reason... To recreate a problem you are experiencing in life and learn to deal with it in your dream. If you are having troubles in social situations for example, you could practice in your dream. Or if you want to ask a girl out that you really like, you can practice doing it in your dream. Or if you have a phobia, you can generally overcome it in your dream.

[RooJ]

I feel like I died a long time ago and am just floating around. I've had that feeling in the past, when Ive just felt passionless and bored with life, but its always a temporary thing. If you feel this way about dreaming then I would agree that you should forget about lucid dreaming for a while and go do something that takes your interest. Im sure the lucid dream hook will catch you again and drag you back here when you're ready. Maybe go somewhere you've always wanted to go or as you say, put some time into working for a cause like animal rights. What usually gets me on the right track is weekends away with friends or generally just getting away from everyday monotinous activities and habits for a while.

[FishtankHank]

Well if you can master the art of Lucid Dreaming and live in a fantasy world of you're own creation, my suggestion is to do whatever you feel like doing at the moment in your lucid dreams. It could be anything from grocery shopping to living as another animal or species or whatever you want to do at the moment. Lucid dreaming is a method of exploration and relaxation. It's not necessarily a way to escape, but a way to unwind at the end of the day. Another idea would be to pick up a hobby and try to improve your skills through lucid dreaming by practicing in your dreams. Pit yourself against the best and see how your fare. I don't know I just think the possibilities are really endless if you are experienced enough. This is the reason I choose to LD.

[Howie]

I suggest looking through the Forum 'Lucid experiences' and you would derive an answer pretty quickly.

[dreamship]

but it makes me wonder how the relationship between the dreaming me and my body, and the waking me and my body differs, and how i could maybe use this to my advantage. You should read Patricia Garfield's Women's Bodies Women's Dreams and also they have a good section on the body and dream body relationship in LaBerge's Lucid dreaming books. Buy the LaBerge books second hand though as there are researchers doing animal research in the sleep lab at stanford where LaBerge is or was so in order to avoid any money getting to animal researchers get his books second hand at amazon or ebay or at your local used bookstore. I thought it might be neat to see if you could actually heal yourself or contribute in a really large way to recovery through lucid dreaming. Though, I ain't sick like with cancer or anything. And to your post on orgasms, I've had so many it isn't even fun any more. I guess it would do me good to concentrate on other things.

[dreamship]

Maybe you can experiment with different techniques to increase your recall. Try some B6! Or mental suggestions! I don't know what you've been doing actually... could you share some of your techniques that don't seem to be working? I've been doing those 'the next time I am dreaming I'll remember to know it is a dream' affirmations before bed and I had been, though I stopped for a while, using LaBerge's lucid dream induction audio cassette. I am bored and get extreemly anxious and get annoyed listening to it so many times now. I wanted to try a few nights listening to it in the middle of the night but I have trouble sleeping again if my sleep is disrupted as I do have problems with anxiety and though I can wake several times during the night which seems to help me recall dreams if I try to do any activity I do not always have success sleeping again and I do have things in reality that I need rest to accomplish. I think I am just trying harder than I should and building a block of frustration between me and my goal. It used to be fairly easy to get lucid in my younger days that is why I thought it might have something to do with hormones and actual changes in brain phisiology or however you spell it or say it. Whatever.

[thekroc]

Yep, that feeling of life being useless, boring, meaningless. But if you're still alive it's probably because there's something about life that you enjoy. That animal rights idea sounds great, and I'd love to do something like that sometime. Me, I stay alive because, even though there's no real reason to, there are things I enjoy. I love music, friends, love, food, sex, sleep, and countless other pleasures. They're useless, yes, but you might as well enjoy this life. Lucid Dreaming, for me (although I've never had one - yet) is just another of these pleasures. AND, like Eonnn said, I think they're fun in various ways, and useful too, to solve problems in real life, relieve stress, etc.

[Mes Tarrant]

Well then I say just forget about dreaming and focus on waking life. There's nothing wrong with that. In fact it's what most people do. Yeah so you can't fly in waking life. So what. What you can do is interact with people and make a huge difference in others' lives. You can't do that with even the best lucid dreams (arguably).

[SEBSTER]

WEll u see Lucid Dreaming to alot of people is a great way to edit your subconcuous and make something of your life and self within the limits of your body. you see i take it very seriously because dreaming is a natural habit we as humans have and if one gains control of that habit WHAT CAN'T ONE DO???? the mind is the most powerful tool and dreams are it's biggest misteries...also they're one of life's biggest paradoxes...so if you dont take it seriously its cool cuz there are reasons for not taking it seriously but when you do you wont back out....its like christians when you ask one "what if god dont exist?" they get defensive and no matter what you cant get them out of their religion. Same with a dedicated oneironaut, we take it seriously because we see a cause, course and consequence in LDs that just make too much sense to back off.

[Goldney]

Maybe you need some time away from lucid dreaming as others had mentioned. If you want to come back to it after a while then you obviously enjoy doing it, if not then you still win. As to the whole bored-with-life thing, I don't know. That's another matter entirely.

[TalkingHead]

Thank You for your reply. I guess lucid dreaming, I don't recall having one for years or at least a year, would be easier if we could have real person groups that would meet on a regular basis. At least the competition would be some point to having a dream :-) Seriously though, I'd thought of trying to start a local group but the only people that might be joining are the really wierd yoga people who are new agers. I love doing yoga for exorcise but don't believe in that new age crap. Loggin off for a while now. NASA is launching the shuttle today and I want to watch NASATV and do some other stuff. Might try to meditate or just free paint or free draw. I feel like I died a long time ago and am just floating around. Might have to give up on dreaming and artistic creativity and do public service like working for animal rights or whatever since that really does stir me and might give meaning to this exsistance. Cheers. Why not try and meditate and paint in your dreams? I plan on doing the same, and when I meditate within a dream I usually am able to retain much of that feeling for the rest of the day. I don't go for the New Age business either, but it does sound like you have some negative patterns of energy that you need to break. Why not try devoting your lucid dreaming to these activities you are struggling with during the day and see if you can break through. It's possible that your decreasing enthusiasm for fantasy could be a need for more concrete focus. And of course, if you're starting to have less LD's, why not try a new induction method (unless you've done them all.) I'm in the process of working on an alternative version of "FILD" and if you'd like me to send it to you when I'm finished please PM me. Cheers

[Adrenaline Junkie]

Don't let it get you down mate, just try a new inductions technique, maybe work at your recall to improve vividness thus giving you some more DILDs, if your stuck with what to do in a dream i have an idea, it works for me, it may not work for you but you can try. Buy a video game with a really good storyline thats gripping, that makes you wish you could be in the game, this is how i come up with my goals for lucid dreams, i'm yet to try them but still its bound to be a great experience! Chin up and make a fresh start

[dreamship]

I don't play video games. I tried but in all the years I've had a computer I think I might have played 4 games. I just don't see the point in all that violence. Guess it is because I am a girl and naturally less violent. But I do really like the story world of Discworld novels so I might try to make myself a character in that world or something. I just wish I could concentrate. I feel so zoned. Everything is bright like I got glasses on with light on the rims. This is one of my figure drawings.

[MrGrEmLiN]

Make a list of all the things you'd like to do! In my list, for example I have items which are to build a dream-house in a lucid dream or to find inspiration for art or exploring my mind. These are really personal things I'd like to do, and you could just try to give some thought about what things you'd like to do. I still have most of my list to go through and that means I still have things I'd love to do before I leave this world that probably will only come true in lucid dreams. If you just don't see a point in lucid dreaming anymore, than maybe it's not for you anymore... But I think maybe you could find your lost creativity through lucid dreams!

[dreamship]

Don't know what forum would be the best but we should have a forum or a thread to post our dream world ideas or lists of stuff we want to do and get help or support or whatever.

[MrGrEmLiN]

Don't know what forum would be the best but we should have a forum or a thread to post our dream world ideas or lists of stuff we want to do and get help or support or whatever. I'm sure there probably are a few threads for that, but they're probably inactive now. But it's a really good idea, cause then we could get ideas from each other!

[Sortilegio]

Seems to me your problem isn't seeing the point to lucid dream, but seeing the point to anything. The best cure for this is reading and learning new things I'd say, widen the horizon :p.

[dreamship]

Seems to me your problem isn't seeing the point to lucid dream, but seeing the point to anything. The best cure for this is reading and learning new things I'd say, widen the horizon :p. That is a good idea. But still there is no point to anything no matter how much you learn. Simple explination of what I mean: I don't know what country you are from but I think you know what a dollar is. The reality is that a dollar bill is just a piece of paper with ink on it. The fantasy is that it is worth anything. It is not. It is just a piece of paper. We agree it has value because we need a money system. If you are not an american and reading this then the dollar bill has even less meaning for you and you readily know what I mean. That doesn't mean, however, that I would not like a lot of dollar bills Seriously though everything is like that. Once you realize this 'true nature of reality' it is very hard to be bothered with daily life. It also makes you appreciate living things and be more caring. My compassion has increased even though my lack of interest in life has also. I know that sounds contradictory or whatever. It just makes it hard to be bothered with all the petty crap like work, daily activities, and the larger possibilities like being hurt badly or whatever. I don't know. I guess I'll have to deal with it. It is hard to explain. One of the thoughts I have is 'nothing is real so it is not worth bothering with.' and I don't like other people's 'fantasy' that they build on things like my money example and that 'this pair of shoes is better because so and so made them' that is another reason I have a hard time creating art. Art is just pigment, or pencil, on paper or some surface like that. What makes Leonardo's Mona Lisa better than one I might make? The truth? There is no reason. You might like one artwork better than the other but just because Pollock can get millions for his work, which I hate his junk, does not mean that mine or your art is worth less. There is no difference. If anyone tries to tell you this or that person is a genius or an artist, it is their fantasy. I don't see genius in smearing paint on a board, I think the Mona Lisa is ugly, a lot of artwork looks like it is drawn by someone who was 2. It is all fantasy. So it is hard for me to make art because I don't see the point since it is not special. Does that make sense? I guess I just don't want to be bothered if it isn't really important possibly because I am really lazy. Sorry, it all makes more sense in my brain. I'd just like for life to be as easy to control and breeze through like a dream. I hate the thought of suffering for nothing. I think that is at the root of it all. All this nonsense for nothing.

[dreamship]

I'm sure there probably are a few threads for that, but they're probably inactive now. But it's a really good idea, cause then we could get ideas from each other! Would the Art forum be right? I don't know. Lucid Dreaming For All has a creativity forum. Wish we had one.

[Kal8]

I've hypothesised that lucid dreaming will lead to an overall better sleep, feeling more rested and stress release. I really need to start LDing to come to my conclusion, hopefully gonna get some B6 and that song that keeps saying "you are dreaming" etc... If you want purpose, have a kid. EDIT: love your sig 8)