Thread: Improving your waking life while lucid

What could you do while lucid in a dream, to help change and improve your waking life?

I believe that the very process of exploring your consciousness while learning and practicing LDing is helpful to our waking life, but what could be done while in the dream, that would have the biggest effect on our waking life?

Whether taken from a scientific standpoint or a spiritual one, its clear that being lucid in our dreams provides us with an opportunity to not only experience wonderful things, but also to learn and grow from our experiences. LaBerge theorized that LDing could act as a form of therapy for confronting internal issues, and also as a form of stress relief, both of which could benefit our waking lives. But what else can be done that would have the greatest impact when we wake up?

I think for example, that autosuggestion is even more powerful in our dreams than while were awake or falling asleep. Im sure I'm not the first one to theorize this.

What else do you think can be done while lucid that would have a positive impact on our lives?

Fighting your fears. Instead of running away from your nightmares, becoming lucid and standing up to them can be a valuable learning experience. Problem solving. Self-confidence. Rehearsal, decision making, etc.

I believe the best one is to have fun.

I agree with TruMotion. There were so many things I was afraid of like snakes, aquatic creatures, speaking in public. When I'm lucid I summon them, and even though it took a lot of lucids, I eventually got over them.

Basically what TruMotion and Paigeyemps say above; but including the ability to use an LD for creative or spiritual development.
Or (as Dutch points out) have a bit of (harmless) fun, in my case on Mufty Days!

robstar

I am in love with radiohead. I know this is off topic but i read your signature and melted! I cover a lot of their music!

I want to auto suggest while dreaming! Thats my next goal. I just made a dreammachine light. Im hoping it helPs with hypnogogia.

Originally Posted by TheNightFlier

robstar

I am in love with radiohead. I know this is off topic but i read your signature and melted! I cover a lot of their music!

Thanks. Yeah Radiohead are really cool. I have got a few of their albums inc. 'My Computer'. I saw them live back in 1995 when they supported REM. Yes supported back in the day!

Originally Posted by TheNightFlier

I want to auto suggest while dreaming! Thats my next goal. I just made a dreammachine light. Im hoping it helPs with hypnogogia.

Yes a dream machine should help with HI, especially if it operates in the 'Alpha' (brain) frequencies between 8 to 12 Hz. (10 Hz nominal.) Dreamachine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Just make sure you are not over sensitive to flashing or strobing lights!

I think there are quite a few designs around on the Internet, (instructables) etc. inc. some with flashing LED's, etc. (N.B: Try to steer clear of using the strong 'white' LED's and use the standard red ones.)
I'm thinking of building one myself, more as a piece of working 'art', and experiment with it as I love hypnagogia.
Good luck with your design and the music BTW.

(P.S: My apologies to the OP, and anyone else for going off on a slight (off topic) tangent. A dream machine should improve your life however?)

Also, RobStar, you mentioned spiritual development. This is something i have always been interested in and have definitely attempted it in my lucids, although theres a lot of different ideas about how to go about this.
I have meditated in my dreams, asked my dream for advice or help (sometimes i have gotten responses, other times yelling up to the sky hasnt done anything and just left me feeling stupid) and have also attempted to learn from my dream guides, although i have found three so far and not once have i found the same one again lol.

How do you believe we can develop ourselves spiritually while lucid?

Perhaps, with a proper training and if used in conjunction with other psycho-therapies it could help to more easily overcome disturbing life experiences, anxiety issues, lack of motivation, panic disorders, etc.
I think, those treated with EMDR therapy basically.

LDs improve my waking life by making me happier. No stress, no society or government telling me what to do. Real freedom.

They reduce depression for sure! I'm hoping to improve my creativity with composing music in a lucid dream... I'm having a dry spell though (someone halp me out of it!)

Originally Posted by ADEzor

They reduce depression for sure! I'm hoping to improve my creativity with composing music in a lucid dream... I'm having a dry spell though (someone halp me out of it!)

I think that would be extremely helpful. Being an artist myself, I have been experimenting a lot with painting in my LDs. While it never goes quite the way i expect it to, it does seem to help.

I think it just really makes you feel good in life, even at the crappiest points. There's something about having a wierd and wonderful lucid or non-lucid that I can remember that makes me feel all warm and gooey inside. When I've gone through a tough day at school and I'm sat on the bus home I like to think about some of my dreams and what I've learnt from them. Of course I never want to get carried away and just get obsessed with my fantasies as I don't want to waste my real life, but a healthy and balanced dose of Reality and Fantasy is what makes me happy

I'm making a modification for the game skyrim and I get all my ideas from dreams. Here's a portal I made after seeing it in one of my dreams.

Hah no reason to apologize RobStar, im glad there is still discussion here. Thank you all for your responses!

lucidboy, those three dream guides are one single dream guide in different forms.

I have wondered if thats the case... I have heard of others saying they have more than one dream guide, and if this were true how am i to tell if i have multiple dream guides or if everyone just has dream guides that come in different forms?

Each experience finding the dream guides were extremely unique. However what they all had in common was that as soon as they told me they were my dream guide, the dream would end before i had a chance to talk to them.
One was a horse with wood grains for skin, another was a really pretty young girl and the third was this sweet older woman in a rocking chair.

Another example of improving walking life through dreams:
Yesterday my brother (who is really into nature and reading conservationists etc) was lying down at a river, he decided to try draw it but just couldn't get the water right so he took a little nap. He told me that in the dream he saw a green grid which rippled just like water and showed him exactly how to draw it. He showed me the artwork and it's looks very realistic.
I thought this was awesome I hope I get some good ones like this.

I think I am going to try auto suggesting. If it is more powerful in lucid dreams, then I should auto suggest for more lucid dreams. I'll have to think of a way to word. It is basically like wishing for more wishes.