Thread: being a late starter

My impression, from the various books and internet posts that I've read, is that mostly the proficient and prolific lucid dreamers are the lucky people who started as children.
Either they've always had regular dreams or recurrent nightmares forced awareness of the dream state.

I'm in my early 40's, I've kept a dream journal for around 3 years now but so far have been blessed with only one brief lucid dream.
Dont get me wrong, I'm not about to give up my dream study, I find my dream life very interesting lucid or not.
My dream recall is very good, I've had some interesting hypnagogic experiences, but...maybe lucid dreaming is a new trick I wont be able to learn?

Are there other members in a similar situation?

Are you worried your mind no longer has the plasticity to learn this skill? Don't worry, one brief lucid dream is evidence enough that your mind is already equipped to have any number more. :}

The main reason we say age matters, is because children pay their dreams more attention than adults do. More children lucid dream than adults (because more children recall dreams than adults), because children give dreams more meaning, and have more time to dedicate to it. Adults are busier, more rushed in the mornings, thrusted into their daily routine.

In a way, adults have the upper hand over children. Adults have a better grip on reality and the laws of cause and effect, so we should have a better time picking out dream signs and dream oddities.

Of the middle agers on this forum, most (all?) are prolific lucid dreamers. In the end, dedication and motivation win out over biological plasticity.

Originally Posted by Abra

Are you worried your mind no longer has the plasticity to learn this skill?

in a way, or I'm wondering if the window for acquiring this skill is far more open in childhood.
Thanks for the encouragement

Originally Posted by lunar6

in a way, or I'm wondering if the window for acquiring this skill is far more open in childhood.
Thanks for the encouragement

There's no research to confirm or deny this, but our intuition would say the window is probably more open.

But in your case, I don't think this hypothetical window will be a problem.

Good to know!!! This old dinosaur might as well be a million years old ehehehe

(I am the dinosaur)







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