good news/bad news about my lucid attempts

[DorjeDarby]

First, the bad news. It seems that when I try to enter sleep paralysis, I always fall asleep before anything significant happens. I can't remember falling asleep; it seems that I'm awake, and the I wake up in the morning. My (possible) good news, is that I think I've found some sort of cycle, but I'm not sure. I went to bed at 1130ish, and then woke up at 3ish, 6ish, and 9ish. Is that some sort of cycle that could be helpful for me? Regardless, I see no improvement in recognizing dream signs, or doing a reality check while dreaming.

[cygnus]

i definitely think it's good to wake up a few times in the early morning - it gives you more opportunities to observe yourself falling asleep. i'm always happy when i wake up naturally around 3, but this doesn't always happen... if you're having trouble with falling asleep before you're aware of it, maybe try to keep your attention fixed on something, like a simple visualization.

[Lucidbulbs]

Cycles are good, and maybe you're focusing too hard at first--which causes lack of progress--and then grow too mentally idle/tired to see the SP move on? Or mental exhuastion, it's so much harder to progress consciously when you are mentally drained.

[DorjeDarby]

how long does it sometimes take for SP? It's hard to tell, but I think I fall asleep within at least 30 minutes...