false awakening

This was my second time testing out the Galantamine/Choline combo. The first time, a week ago, I took 500 mg Choline and 4 mg Galantamine. I definitely noticed a difference in the vividness and memory retention of my dreams, and I had a short DILD after being inside a dream for some time. I woke almost as soon as I got lucid, though.

This morning, when I did my WBTB at 6 a.m., I decided to try 8 mg. of Galantamine, keeping the Choline dose the same.

I had a pretty long and vivid non-lucid dream, which I won't go into because it's superfluous.

I woke in bed and immediately tried a nose pinch reality check. Nope, couldn't breathe through my nose. But somehow I was sure that this was a false awakening, so I got up and tried a finger-stretching reality check. It didn't stretch. This was rather odd, because I was certain I was dreaming, but my reality checks kept trying to tell me I was awake. So I tried my third usual reality check, which never fails if I'm really paying attention-- a gravity check. I jumped up and down a few times, feeling the buoyancy of a dream, and finally confirmed that I was definitely not awake.

I had been wanting to do some sensory observation exercises when I became lucid, but I really, really wanted to leave the house first, so I went downstairs and out the front door. It was quiet in the house, nobody up yet.

Once outside, I decided to try to find an object that I could use as a sensory focus. "I will find a beautiful rock over there," I said, and pointed to the far corner of my front yard, near the street. On my hands and knees, I felt around in the grass where I had intended the rock, and found it quickly. It was a chunk of rock threaded with red quartz-- not very pretty, but visually and texturally interesting enough that I decided to use it. Standing up, I held it in my hand and studied it, touching it. It was smooth in places and had a rough, coarse, almost spiky texture in others. After I finished looking at it, I put it in my pocket.

I began to levitate in preparation to fly, and decided to continue my sensory exercises by engaging my sense of taste. I searched my pockets for a piece of candy, and felt around a bunch of different objects until I found a mint. I unwrapped it and put it in my mouth, but then decided that something fruity might be a better choice, so I decided that I would find a Jolly Rancher in my pocket. I did so, unwrapped it, and popped it in my mouth along with the mint. Then I realized that the two of them didn't really work together, so I spit out the mint. The Jolly Rancher was slightly fruity, but was kind of small and thin, as if it had already been shrunk down. I began to fly.

I began to wake up, my vision going dark. I could still vaguely feel myself flying through the air, rather like a vivid daydream, and I wanted to stay in the dream so I focused on the sensation of soaring through the air. I gained altitude as I flew down my street, and my vision slowly faded back in.

Ahead of me, hovering in the sky, I saw something remarkable: an enormous, antique book, its pages yellowing vellum, filled with elegant lettering and gold leaf illumination. The book gave off a sense that reminded me of the Arabian Nights, though I wasn't sure what the actual book was. It was as big as a small house.

I decided to try flying into its pages as a way to enter its world.

I flew forward, reached the book, and there was a sort of soft, golden sensation as I passed into the page. I found myself in a labyrinthine, walled garden, flying low over a cobbled walkway, peering through tiny, open-air windows set in ancient stone walls. Around me grew an Eden of green, luscious plants. By this time, I forgot to really engage my senses, and was caught up in the idea that if I got out of this enclosure, I'd be in the book's world. But I couldn't find a window large enough to pass through.

I flew around the labyrinth for several minutes until I woke up, discovering my right arm was hurting from lying on it. I rolled over and tried to re-enter the dream again, but by then I was too far awake, so I got up.