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Naiya's MILD Technique

Introduction

Most of my lucids are MILDs. Even though it is probably one of the less popular methods, in my opinion it is one of the most reliable and versatile things you can do. The great thing about MILD is that you don't need to remember to RC or build up daytime awareness, and it doesn't require you to lose any sleep. All you need is a few minutes before bedtime. MILD is also complimented by WBTB and reality checking, but it can do very well as a stand alone method.

A lot of people who are new to LDing ask what the easiest induction method is. It's hard to answer that question because different methods work for different people. Having said that, I have always thought that MILD is the perfect method for beginners. It is much more forgiving than, say, WILD, because as long as you keep trying, there really is no wrong way to do it and you will eventually succeed.

A word about consistency: one of the biggest pitfalls I see is when a person tries one method for a week or two, then decides it's not working, and switches to another method. They jump from one method to the next and believe that nothing is working for them. It's very important to understand that lucid dreaming is a skill. While some people might start out with a talent for it, the rest of us have to build up from being beginners. So switching methods would be akin to trying to learn piano one week and then trumpet the next. You never give yourself the chance to master any of them. The mind needs time to internalize what you are trying to learn before it can give you good results. With lucid dreaming, even though you may not have lucid for the first few weeks, just affirm to yourself that you ARE making progress.

Practice and consistency are extremely important with MILD. To get the best results, you should be doing it every single night. If you wake up in the morning with no lucids, don't think of it as a failure. If you did the MILD before bed, then consider it a success because you got your practice done. Your lucids will come when your mind has begun internalizing your practice.

Preparation

Before you begin, it's best to make your environment conducive to MILDing. For starters, you will need to set aside at least 5 minutes just before bedtime for the MILD. If you want the best results, I recommend a little more time, maybe 10-20 minutes total.

It's important to make your attempt when you feel relaxed and your mind is free of daily worries and nagging thoughts. Spend a minute or so (or more if you are a meditator) letting go of any thoughts and worries. Make it an ironclad rule to not worry about your daily life when it's bedtime. If you need to, jot down your worries and thoughts (i.e. "I need to get gas tomorrow") in your dream journal so you can read any reminders or worries in the morning. You might try imagining that you are throwing your troubles and your thoughts away in a well or a box near your bed. If you are still being plagued by worries and thoughts, affirm to yourself that the best thing you can do for yourself and everyone around you at this moment is to get a good night's sleep and be relaxed and happy in the morning.

The next part depends on how easily you fall asleep. If it takes you a long time to fall asleep (10+ minutes), then you may lie down and get comfortable as usual, and do the MILD as you fall asleep. Don't worry about trying to keep it up to the very last moment you fall asleep, because that will keep you awake. But try to make sure you keep your mind on it for at least 5 minutes before letting your mind wander or dropping off.

If you are the type who falls asleep within a few minutes of hitting the pillow, you may not want to lie down for the MILD. Instead, turn off the lights, sit comfortably on your bed, and after at least 5 minutes, go ahead and lie down to sleep, keeping the MILD going as you fall asleep.


On WBTBs: If you wake up naturally during the night, it would increase your chances of getting lucid if you repeat the MILD when you go back to sleep. If you have the need or want to, you can set an alarm or two at night to increase your chances. It's not necessary, but it can help a great deal. Don't worry about being consistent in the number of MILD attempts per night--it only matters that you do at least once per night total.


It's very important to keep a dream journal for MILDing, especially if you are coupling it with reality checking. When you keep a dream journal, your recall gets better, and with that, it will be easier to MILD.

The Method

Once you have settled down your mind and you're comfortable, turn your attention to lucid dreaming. Recall your most recent dream, in as much detail as you possibly can. Imagine yourself exploring the dream as if you had been lucid in it. Believe that you are back in the dream again, only lucid. Believe that, in only a few minutes, you will soon be dreaming again, and imagine yourself knowing it's a dream, doing whatever you want. You can come up with any scenario you wish for this. It may be helpful to imagine yourself completing whatever tasks or goals you have. If you can't recall a recent dream, you can use any other dream you had, as long as it was vivid enough to remember it with a good amount of detail. This can be really helpful if you want to go back to a certain dreamscape.

Another variation of this is to use a movie, video game or book. You can make up a completely imaginary environment, perhaps something from your daydreams. Imagine yourself lucid in the environment, doing whatever you want to do. It helps if you see yourself doing fun or interesting things, because it keeps you motivated.

You don't have to imagine the same thing in every MILD attempt. If you did, things might get boring and your mind will not be in an active state. So don't be afraid to change it up, use a different dream memory, or imagine new things.

If you have time during the day and you want to give your MILD a boost, you can practice it in the middle of the day. Simply daydream yourself into a lucid daydream. It will help build up your visualization and creative skills, which are useful for not only MILDs, but dream control.

Using Autosuggestion

Using autosuggestion or mantras, either alone or with the visualization, will help you MILD. Remember that the mind ignores negation when you are coming up with mantras to use.

For example, if you use this mantra:

"I will not fail to lucid dream tonight"

Your mind will perceive it as:

"I will fail to lucid dream tonight."


One of my mantras used to be "I will have a lucid dream tonight." I was confused when I starting having only one lucid per night, when I normally have a few. Then I changed it to "I will have many lucid dreams tonight," and I began having more lucid per night again.

Some of my favorite mantras:

"I'm dreaming" --> the best for coupling with visualization, really drives it home.
"This is a dream"
"I will wake up in a dream" --> to promote FA's. Remember to couple with RCs every time you wake!
"I'll be dreaming soon."
"I will have lucid dreams tonight."

Conclusion

This method is pretty simple, but it can be powerful once it's mastered. Anyone can master it if they put in the time to practice it. You can do MILD while you're exploring other methods, so that if the other methods don't work well for you, there's always that guarantee of getting lucid eventually from your MILDs. Typically I recommend doing MILD for at least 2 months to give it sufficient time to work, but for some it may take more time. Sooner or later it will work--it's just that for whatever reason it takes longer for some people.

Good luck and happy lucids!

I had a long and vivid dream that I was in a mysterious snowy town, that soon turned out to be christmas town, Where santa and his elves lived. Also, the grinch was trying to kill off christmas , aswell as a man in pajamas. Anywho, I explore the town and I'm immediately invited and taken to a very christmassy room where santa gives me a book. He says "here, take this book. it is special". It could change pages and showed me info magically. When I returned home, I found out that whenever someone other than me touches it, It begins to set on fire to make the person leave it alone. It protected itself from others.

I also had a dream that I went practicing my acrobatics in a strange straight foward dome.

I had a dream yesterday that I was in a very large, bright, sunny garden with light green grass, Forest trees in the distances, a tower near the center, and... Birds and flowers.. I was walking around the garden with my mother.... I felt slightly lucid in a way, or atleast, the dream felt different,... Felt different to every other dream. It felt Incredible.

I saw the trees in the distance, And I saw that they ended, So... I said "I want the trees to keep going. More trees, more trees.." and... suddenly, more and more trees began to manifest in the distance, in the back of the forest..

I really wish for my magic dreams to continue...

I dreamed that there was some new gameplay/trailer footage for Tomb raider 2012. Lara was walking along a rocky beach heading for a cave.

I had a dream last night.... I dreamed....

I dreamed that I... was taken. Kidnapped, By a mysterious force. It felt like a serpent or monster being.... Anyway, It for some reason puked me up inside this strange portal... I woke up In a cavern... I got up and gained consciousness of my surroundings, So I pressed on, I explored and ventured into the caves, Searching for a way out, Searching for light... I then somehow am equipped with a torch, the ones that you turn on and off?... I use it as a useful light source and fire source... I then pick up a wooden torch, and light that on fire too, Then I find my brother, Tied up, almost like he was ready for a Sacrifice or something... I set his restraints on fire and free him, We both run out, looking for a way to escape the caves, We come to light. I see it. I see light up ahead... We leave the caves... Only to be greeted by a giant beach like landscape... A dark beach, an ugly beach.. The burnt down white branches and white sand all over the place, The wind blowing slightly... I examine the beach, And tell my brother to gather some branches, and begin crafting weapons,... Because by the looks of what was happening, ...We would need them..

I hope to continue this dream later..

Anyone who has been reading my posts /replies in this forum knows I advocate visualization to induce lucid dreaming. I thought some of you might get a kick out of an article I wrote sometime back about hypnosis in general. Hopefully, some of you will come away from the article with a better understanding on how the sleeping brain works and think of creative ways to visualize yourself into a lucid dream experience.

Hypnotism Revealed

"People have been using hypnosis for about 230 years to reveal lost memories or make suggestions to the subconscious mind. Franz Mesmer stumbled upon the technique in the 1700's (mesmerizing, animal magnetism) but proceeded to completely miss the point. James Braid, taking a more scientific approach, coined the term hypnotism in 1841. We all have the image in our collective conscious of the exotic gentleman with the swinging pendulum inducing a hypnotic state. He seemed to know something we didn't. Read on and that will no longer be the case.

The human race experiences self-hypnosis every day. We don't think of it as self-hypnosis, however. We think of it as falling asleep. When we are awake and active our brains are in what has been termed the Beta brainwave state. When we are relaxed, watching television or looking at the ocean, our conscious mind slows down and enters the Alpha brainwave state. In the processes of falling asleep, meditation and hypnosis the subsequent state; the Theta brainwave state, is where all the magic happens. If the Theta brainwave state is allowed to occur then the Delta brainwave state (deep sleep) soon follows. If one accepts this scientifically proven brainwave transition to sleep then I suggest that this is knowledge we can use. In the Theta brainwave state one is neither asleep nor awake. The Theta state is a different level of awareness as our conscious mind has loosened it's control of the thought process. It is the inability to reach the Theta brainwave state that is the root of most sleep issues.

Simple Hypnotism

To hypnotize someone (or yourself) one must induce the Theta brainwave state. This requires that you relax the subject and apply one simple technique. You must get them to visualize, via the mind's eye, something. One could hold up a non-threatening object; lets say a coin or marble, in front of the relaxed subject's eyes and suggest that they close their eyes and imagine the object in their mind. Have the subject then imagine a series of non-threatening objects... all while speaking in an unemotional tone. This monotone speech pattern is important as you do not want emotion to play a part in the hypnosis induction as it is counter-productive. If the subject is too relaxed (i.e. laying down on a bed) they might fall asleep so you must continually gage where they are at in the sleep process. Let me state, once again, that hypnosis and falling asleep are part of the same process.

Once the subject is in the Theta brainwave state you can begin making suggestions. Common uses for hypnosis are smoking cessation, weight loss and anxiety reduction.

A brief theory about a more effective hypnosis technique:

If one accepts modern sleep and dream theory then the induction of sleep after a hypnosis session could greatly enhance the effectiveness of the procedure. Modern sleep theory suggests that the human brain crunches data, during sleeping and dreaming, from our day's experiences; discarding unneeded information and assimilating important experiences. In theory, suggestions from a hypnotic session could take on greater significance if sleep were allowed to happen, even for a short duration, directly after the hypnosis.

A word about why visualizing induces the Theta brainwave state and, therefore, the hypnotic state. In the rear of our big human brain there exists a smallish chunk of gray matter called the Occipital lobe. This area contains the Primary Visual Cortex and the Secondary Visual Cortices. The combination of the Secondary Visual Cortices is generally referred to as the Secondary Visual Cortex. When you visualize you are stimulating the Secondary Visual Cortex. Why is this important? Because this is the same area that is active in dreaming and dreaming is one of the first things our brains do when in the Delta(sleep) brainwave state. Visualization is part of the brain's process to deep sleep. To hypnotize someone, or yourself, you must willfully simulate the process of falling asleep without allowing deep sleep to occur.

About Mass Hypnosis

Lastly, when our minds wander we are in a form of self-hypnosis. Falling asleep during a lecture has as much to do with daydreaming as the subject matter of the speech. A daydreamer is stimulating the Secondary Visual Cortex and unknowingly beginning the process of falling asleep. If you do not want listeners to fall asleep then continually stimulate their Primary Visual Cortex with visual aids.( i.e. powerpoint presentations). The primary visual cortex is humming when we are in the Beta (alert and aware) brainwave state and processing the things we see with our eyes open. This also works in reverse. To attempt a mass hypnosis of an audience you must first relax them and then stimulate their collective visual imagination without external visual stimulation.

You are now a Hypnotist. Congratulations! "

Brad McBride (aka faceonmars)

This is a great idea and the reason i believe it is becuase this is actaully what happened to me 3 days ago!!

It all comes down to dedication, REALLY desiring it and making it an integral part of you daily thought process, not just an abstract wish or goal, but an important event taking place at night..

anyway, the ohter night i decided to do a survey of my dream journal to see how many lucids I'd had since i started just over 3 years back..Turns out i had 23! which is more then i thougth, granted only about 6 were pure mind blowing life chanignly amazing each one was special and i was able to harness those feelings your talking about. i was getting so excited thinking back and was able to recall all the imagery from the dreams as though they were yesterday!

now, the same night i had THE BEST lucid dream i ever had(though i must practce beleiveing i am a lucid master,i really like the sound of that!).
This seems the key because i usually have my most vivid non lucid dreams AFTER spending an hour before bed reading over my dream journal!

looks like you thoughts on this matter are true!

Ok, it's a bit difficult to explain, but here goes. It isn't exactly that simple to explain intent. Here is a quote directly from what I learned intent from, the carlos castaneda books.

"My steps and yours are guided by infinity. The circumstances that seem to be ruled by chance are in essence ruled by the active side of infinity: intent. What put you and me together was the intent of infinity. It is impossible to determine what this intent of infinity is, yet it is there, as palpable as you and I are. Sorcerers say that it is a tremor in the air. The advantage of sorcerers is to know that the tremor in the air exists, and to acquiesce to it without any further ado. For sorcerers, there's no pondering, wondering, or speculating. They know that all they have is the possibility of merging with the intent of infinity, and they just do it". -Don Juan

Intent is the force that runs and is reality itself. The easiest thing you can effect with your intent, is yourself. I learned to use my intent to become lucid in a dream. And that's exactly what happens when I dream. I don't become lucid because I noticed something was weird, I just, BECOME lucid out of no where. One way to set your intent is first shutting off your thoughts completely, at least for an instant, and feel that emotion of wanting to lucid dream.

Here's one more quote: "In the universe there is an unmeasurable, indescribable force which sorcerers call intent. Absolutely everything that exists in the entire cosmos is attached to intent by a connecting link. Sorcerers, warriors, are concerned with discussing, understanding, and employing that connecting link. They are especially concerned with cleaning it of the numbing effects brought about by the ordinary concerns of their everyday lives. Sorcery at this level could be defined as the procedure of cleaning one's connecting link to intent."

[/B]Repeat the following affirmations before bed or when you wake up from just having a dream, but plan on going back to sleep right away:

» I awaken within my dreams
» My waking consciousness goes with me into my dreams
» I am consciously aware of my dreams
» Lucid dreaming is easy for me
» When I dream, I am aware I am dreaming
» I remember my lucid dreams
» I have the power to control my dreams
» I do reality checks while dreaming
» I notice the dream signs that help me become lucid
» I become consciously aware of odd occurrences in dreams
» I am determined but detached while dreaming
» My dream intention is strong
» I visualize becoming lucid in my dreams
» Tonight I will recognize that I am dreaming
» Tonight I will have a lucid dream
» I have a greater awareness of reality
» I recognize I am dreaming while dreaming
» I remain emotionally calm when dreaming
» I check to see if I am really awake often
» I know the difference between reality and dreaming
» I do reality checks often
» I have the ability to lucid dream at will
» I am the master of my dreams
» I am a master at the art of lucid dreams

There is an excellent book, 'The Power of Your Subconscious Mind' by Joseph Murphy. The critical problem with MILD techniques is overcoming conscious resistance. The subconscious will only act upon what you consciously believe to be true. For example If you say an affirmation saying, 'Tonight I will realise that I'm dreaming' and you have a conscious arguement saying, 'No I won't because I never realise that I'm dreaming' then the subconscious will act upon what you consciously believe to be true. If you don't address your conscious resistance to change you will eventually compound the problem instead of heading towards completion of your goal. You can actually bypass this whole process and hypnotise yourself in a few minutes and Dr. Robert Anthony has an excellent online course which teaches a very clever technique on how to correctly address the subconscious when you want to make a change. The course is The Secret of Deliberate Creation.

See, normally, when you mantra/ auto-suggest, you'd say something along the lines of 'I will lucid dream' or 'a dream character will tell me i am dreaming'. But, you could be wording the mantra to make your brain think Lding is hard. try to word it differently. Think of lucid dreaming like something as easy as eating pie, and word your mantras as if you were gonna eat pie. Say something like 'I can't wait to [insert LD goal here]' or ' My LD will be so awesome tonight'

let me know what you think

Ever wonder why you rarely get any DILD's at night?

Ever wonder why despite trying so hard to RC/raise awareness throughout the day, you always end up right where you started? Still no lucids...
Ever wonder WHY?

Cause you're not keeping a Dream Journal is why!

As I was pondering over the real reason why the time of my life where I had the most frequent lucid dreams was when I was writing an average of about a page to a page and a half in detail on my dreams every morning, I realized exactly why that was...

It wasn't the remembering that caused it.... It because telling yourself to remember something is programming your subconscious to actively record and store said subject in memory in much more detail than usual at the time it would occur and that in itself, is an awareness trigger!

If you ever bothered to remember your dreams before you ever knew about lucid dreaming, you would notice that when you compare before and after you started recording and writing about your dreams there was a definite increase in vividness -- it isnt the remembering itself that got better, it's the DREAM becoming more vivid as you consciously and subconsciously placed more importance on dreaming and being alert while experiencing the dream!

To guarantee yourself eventually having lucid dreams, all you have to do is take about five minutes every morning and write out as much as you can remember and you will quickly see how in just a few short weeks, not only will you start having lucid dreams, you will also have dreams that are longer, vivid and most importantly, awesome!


Happy dreaming!
What do you guys think of the tutorial?

(posted again due to the website data loss)

So, after much trail and error in my learning process about lucid dreaming I've come up with a much better thread than my last. This should help you with how to lucid dream the same way naturals lucid dream.

Now, I'm going to tell you that If you are the lazy kind of person who doesn't want to do reality checks, take supplements, watch for dream signs, use a dream journal, or meditate, then this technique is perfect for you. Because I don't do ANY of that stuff, and look at my lucid dream count. I started September 2010. I started like most people here, desperately wanting to lucid dream but still not even being able to remember my dreams. I started completely from scratch. Now, lets get to business. I'll try to do this in steps:

Step 1: First, you need to get rid of the idea that lucid dreaming is hard. Because it's actually VERY easy. The only thing stopping you from lucid dreaming is you. I don't like that fact that most people on this website spread the idea that lucid dreaming is hard, it's like a disease. Stop spreading it.

Step 2(this step is most important): FEEL that you were born a natural lucid dreaming master. That you are a Lucid dreamer with every cell in your body, like it's your destiny to lucid dream! Imagine that you have already attained your goal. Your subconscious doesn't know the difference between what you are imagining and what is happening.

Step 3: Do things as if you already have the "becoming aware in a dream" part down. Think about what you want to do once you are in a lucid dream. It can be anything. One good one is looking at your hands in a dream. Try to look at your hands once you are in a dream. You don't need to make a habit of looking at your hands in daily life. Just do it when you are in a dream. It may sound like this makes no sense, but it works.

Step 4(optional, but recommended): If you are lucid and the dream starts fading, remember to not move and don't open your eyes when you when you wake up. Then you can re-enter a dream quickly. You can do this many times and get many lucids. You can try this same thing with waking from non-lucid sleep, but I find it easier when you are lucid in the first place.

The reason why there isn't that many steps is because lucid dreaming is easy.
You don't need to be a rocket scientist to do it.

You can use these steps in combination with any technique you want, or no techniques at all. You can also use it for what kind of lucid you want.
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TIPS:
Now here are some important tips for you, I'm not putting them in steps because It's not necessarily in order:

*Do not stress out about lucid dreaming, if you don't have a lucid dream don't let it bring you down. Be strong and keep going.

*You don't need a dream journal. But keep one if you want.
I'm not telling you to NOT keep one.

*I usually use this in combination with WBTB and the modification of WILD, which works best for me, try different things and find what works best for you.

*The surroundings of the room you sleep in can greatly effect your dreams. Did you know that if you sleep in a cold room you are more likely to get nightmares? Sleep in a warm room and you're more likely to get good dreams. The light level and smell of your room also effect dreams greatly. Right now there are smells that you don't even consciously notice but are currently effecting your mood and state of mind. And usually for me if I sleep with my light off and wake up in a dream then my dream will also be dark and if its on then my dream is brighter. That's just me though. Just make yourself comfortable.

*If WBTBs work better for you then you can use an alarm to wake you up or you can trust yourself to wake up at a certain time. Like I said, you can combine this technique with many other techniques.

*Don't try so hard. You need to trust your subconscious to do this.

*Being able to sleep is your first priority. So don't get too excited or you won't even be able to fall asleep.

*I strongly advise you read Carlos Castaneda's "The Art of Dreaming" book if you already haven't. If it weren't for that book I wouldn't be the lucid dreamer I am now.

*Every little detail I've put in this tutorial is very important.

*Don't talk about it just DO IT.

This technique was proposed elsewhere on this forum, but I cannot find the original thread to give credit where credit is due. I do not claim rights to this technique.

THE INCEPTION TECHNIQUE

Having seen lots of success reports in the original thread, but not actually being able to find the original thread to provide a link, I have decided to repost this technique with a fresh title and add few details and ideas of my own.

The Prerequisites:
Learn all you possibly can about lucid dreaming and practice some of the basics. Read Wikipedia articles. Watch the Discovery Channel's clip on dreams on YouTube. Learn how sleep and sleep cycles work. Get in the habit of doing reality checks and learn to become aware of everything around you. Keep a religious dream journal and really stimulate your dream recall. Identify dream signs. I recommend at least one successful DILD before moving on to this so you know what it is like to become lucid while already in the dream state.

The Technique:
I chose to call this the Inception technique because it's cool and, like in Inception, you will use an induction device attached to your wrist. The induction device in question is a 1-inch square piece of cardboard. Make a light-fitting bracelet using this piece of cardboard as a "centerpiece" and wear it to bed.

The first picture depicts the proper way to wear your piece of cardboard. It should touch your wrist lightly but completely. From what I gathered in the original thread, this spot on the wrist is a pressure point that increases your awareness during a dream and thus increases your chance at attaining lucidity. I myself have found it very effective when worn correctly.

Yes (this position on the wrist is critical):



NO: (if you wear it like this the pressure point will not work correctly)



And that's it really... Go to sleep as normal at a reasonable time and avoid eating junk food before bed. You may find the cardboard slightly annoying but that's part of the point. Post back with your results and maybe some pictures of your Inception bracelet I personally like to attach my cardboard to a rubber band so it is easily removable in the morning. Cheers!



The Dream is Real!




Whoever first posted this technique, PM me and I'll be happy to edit the post and give you credit.

Posted a few days ago but DV went down so the thread got deleted. ill use it as an opportunity to revise some things.

Many of you have probably read the thread about how if you really believe you will get lucid you can with very little effort like natural dreamers do (if not you should).
The problem is that if you have a hard time becomeing lucid, you will probably doubt yourself a little. So i tried the same thing for something i wouldnt doubt. That night i decided to have an awesome dream, and ended up inadvertantly thinking of one of my favorite dream scenes. that night i had the dream i thought of, and upon seeing it i became lucid. So this is a variation of what i mentioned above, except for using it for something you will not doubt if you have doubts about becoming lucid. all you do is pick something you can have 100% confidence in, from seeing a certian reoccuring dreamsign, to being as general as having a fun dream. after this visualize what you want. also keep your affirmation short, i was thinking "i will dream of x" and seeing x was enough to get me lucid, and i believe "i will dream of x and x will make me lucid" is less effective since it is long and has excess parts. in all this shouldnt take more than a few seconds, but this is all just my hypothesis so if people can test it and post results i will appreciate it.