Wake Back to Bed Technique

Preface: I have no experience with lucid dreaming, and I looking to start trying to have lucid dreams.

The wake back to bed technique is where you go to bed at regular time, wake up one hour and do dream recall practice, then go back to bed. Now, the flaw with this is I have to get up at a certain time usually, hence I set my clock for that time. I'm fine waking up an hour early, but then I have to go back to bed after that hour. So in essence I will be late for school, right?!?

Normal wake - 5:00, hour earlier - 4:00, back to bed - 5:00, wake - Past 5:00

I don't get it...I'm screwed if I don't get up at my designated time. So you might think, logically, to get up 2 hours earlier...but then I'm tired throughout the day. Am I missing something to this technique? Thanks.

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Originally Posted by doc_rice

Preface: I have no experience with lucid dreaming, and I looking to start trying to have lucid dreams.

The wake back to bed technique is where you go to bed at regular time, wake up one hour and do dream recall practice, then go back to bed. Now, the flaw with this is I have to get up at a certain time usually, hence I set my clock for that time. I'm fine waking up an hour early, but then I have to go back to bed after that hour. So in essence I will be late for school, right?!?

Normal wake - 5:00, hour earlier - 4:00, back to bed - 5:00, wake - Past 5:00

I don't get it...I'm screwed if I don't get up at my designated time. So you might think, logically, to get up 2 hours earlier...but then I'm tired throughout the day. Am I missing something to this technique? Thanks.

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You don't have to stay up for an hour.
In the experiments by the Lucidity institute they found the best duration to stay awake was between 30-60 minutes.
In my personal experience I think it depends very much on the individual. For me 15 minutes is fine.
So try experimenting with it.

This is the link the to research from the lucidity institute:

http://www.lucidity.com/NL63.RU.Naps.html

Okay. Thanks, mate.

I tend to wake up many times during the night. If I wake up and find it's been over 4 hours since I went to bed then at that point I'll WBTB. I usually get up and grab something to drink and then browse the Internet for a bit. I usually only stay up 15-30 minutes. Then I usually try to WILD or just do MILD. I've had a very high success rate doing this when I actually put my mind to it.

Welcome to DV by the way!

For me personally i've found it to be better for me to try and lucid dream right after i wake up.

I lay back down right away, unless i have to pee. I Just make sure to stay aware and don't fall back to sleep. I lay in a position uncomfortable to me that way i don't go back to sleep.

Normally when i do this, my body goes right into Sleep Paralysis, and i'm able to start lucid dreaming. Once i start lucid dreaming, after the first one fades i continue to lay there and try and look inside my mind to where the images come from.

Doing this allows me to lucid dream 10 - 20 times in a row. :)

I dont wait long at all when I wbtb. I get up at around 3:30 or 4:00 and go to the bathroom and go back to my room and try to wild. When it works it's really easy and quick, and I have long lucids. but about 70 percent of the time I just fall asleep. :(

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Originally Posted by [user-name]

I dont wait long at all when I wbtb. I get up at around 3:30 or 4:00 and go to the bathroom and go back to my room and try to wild. When it works it's really easy and quick, and I have long lucids. but about 70 percent of the time I just fall asleep. :(

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that sucks :(
but for me, i just set my alarm for 5 hours AFTER i go to bed, and i wake up, and go back to bed lol! I have had 2 lucids like thatso far, i have only done it for a week.:)

Thanks for the replies, they are very helpful.

Doc_rice,
Firstly - 4.5-5hours of the first stage sleep responds to the time when the majority starts to have the longest REM cycle - so you do not need to wait long when it occurs (in theory). This is just an average time. REM cycles are not static, they vary much. I have REM Dreamer and measured mine so I could see - no clear pattern so far. I suggest that you can check shorter times how they work for you. I usually WBTB after 4-4.5 hours.
Secondly, work out how long staying awake works the best for you. If you fall asleep to easy after immediate WBTB try to stay on 15min or longer. WBTB times are not fixed.