Gender Switch & Shapeshifting

Hi, First post here, long time lurker, and experienced lucid dreamer.

Anyways, I'm looking for some advice/help with a particular dream control problem I've been having. Of course, just stories of lucids where you've done this before are welcome too, that can always help inspire a way to do it in my own dreams. But I'm hoping someone might be able to provide some specific, tangible (in a manner of speaking) ways to accomplish this.

Basically, I've been trying to switch my sex (male to female) in my lucid dreams for a long time with varying degrees of success. It's always been a goal of mine and something I've really wanted to do. I have been successful, but for literal seconds before the dream ends. I've tried multiple techniques but can never seem to get any to really work.

So, one of the main methods I've used is transforming myself in a mirror. Doing this, I can generally transform specific parts of my body, but if I change one, the rest seem to snap back to their original form and/or something weird (like an arm that looks like spaghetti). Lately, I've masted the ability to simply will my appearance to become feminine when looking in a mirror, which basically means I can get my face to look female, along with being slightly thinner/less muscular. I can do the breasts pretty well, but they have a tendency to snap back to normal or look extremely deformed after a couple seconds. The biggest problem with using the mirror is that I don't end up really changing my dream body, but rather the reflection of me in the mirror. Something I haven't tried yet is trying to possess my mirror image, however I'm pretty sure that won't work for me, and because of that belief, it probably won't work.

When not using a mirror, I can create breasts pretty easily by simply putting my hands to my chest and pulling outwards. Suffers from the same flaw as when I do it in the mirror, but I can actually feel these and they appear on my dream body (unlike everything in the mirror, which only appears in the reflection and which I can't feel). I also have the ability to remove my man parts, at least sometimes, by having my hand hover over that area and slowly willing it to be so; however, I'm unable to actually form the proper female parts down there (I'm trying to not be NSFW or anything here, and if I am, I apologize; let me know if I am).

These are not the only techniques I've tried, but they are the most consistent in garnering results. I've asked DCs to change me, I've tried switching and/or possessing a DC, but neither have worked really well. Closing my eyes and spinning have actually been some of my most successful endeavors, but my dreams tend to end soon after. The mirror has gotten me results once or twice on my dream body as well. Not to mention various other techniques.

In relation to this, I have similar issues with any sort of shapeshifting. It's rather embarrassing, but I seem to get very sexually aroused when doing any sort of shapeshifting in a lucid dream. However, it's not as prevalent throughout most of my transformations and I can usually get by it without an issue. It happens virtually every time I try to do a gender switch (sex isn't even part of the goal) and it seems like it's blocking me from actually transforming. Most of the time it will wake me up because I can't seem to control it, unlike normal.

As far as shapeshifting goes, I have a hard time getting anything that doesn't look human to appear on me. If you have any tips when it comes to that, I'd appreciate that as well. I've really wanted to grow wings for awhile; I think I've been successful before, but I can't easily do it.

So yeah, those are my goals and my issues with achieving them. I'm hoping someone may be able to help me or give me some advice. Shapeshifting, and especially gender swapping, are things I really like to do and something I've been trying to be good at for a long time. After a couple years, I've grown a bit tired of constantly trying (which certainly isn't helping me), and I'm hoping someone might have an awesome idea or technique or something. My final notes would be that I suck at Summoning & my DCs are often jerks, so I tend to avoid them (though occasionally I do stuff with them). Also, like I've said, I'm an experienced lucid dreamer, I understand dream control pretty well, and I've read up on a lot of this.

Also, feel free to discuss times when you've swapped gender in your lucids. It could help spark an idea or something.

What I would suggest is to incorporate more context into the experiment, beyond the visual and physical. Specifically, I mean to build a character and scenario for what you want to experience. By inhabiting a character and playing out a scenario, it will appease your unconscious by providing enough context to sustain the transformed state. Does that make sense?

Let me offer a personal example. Gender-switching isn't something I've done, but I do have a recurring game where I become a genie and offer to grant wishes to my DCs. The visuals and mannerisms of the genie are clear and inspired by media like Disney's Aladdin (actually, I call myself "The Djinni"). The scenario is also clear. I engage with a DC and offer them wishes. But my secret motive is to find some ironic twist to their wish and grant it in a way that defies their intent. So all those elements are well established in my mind, while also allowing for an open-ended storyline. To me, the essence of the Djinni game is not so much how it looks but rather to engage in mischief. A bit of mystery or mischief can go a long way toward making a scenario interesting, and thus more attractive to your unconscious.

Now let me offer a example for you. Suppose you have some concept of the feminine image you want to embody (say, Marilyn Monroe) and a scenario (say, a magazine photo shoot). When you become lucid, remind yourself of those goals and allow those ideas to fill your conscious and unconscious motivation. Start with that, and play with the scenario a bit. If you really want to see yourself in a mirror, delay that part a while until you've really inhabited the character.

I hope the idea of inhabiting a character doesn't seem disingenuous. You can create your own character. But it can be instructive to practice with a well-formed existing character borrowed from fiction or pop culture. As for the tendency for the experience to sway toward sexuality, you can steer that with the choice of scenario. A good scenario will create a general expectation of what should happen, but still allow for open-endedness.

Although not the exact same, I have tried to possess a DC that was a character of a tv show. I think I've tried that a few times, but like I said, I'm not too successful with DC possession while lucid (though I kind of did it the other night whilst non-lucid).

I get what you're saying. It's actually a really good idea and something I haven't really tried. Do you have any tips on how to build a scenario? Like, ways to really get it to sink into my subconscious and stuff?

The genie thing sounds awesome and if I ever get decent DCs, I'll definitely be playing out that scenario. It sounds like so much fun! Especially because DCs say the weirdest things, their wishes must be anywhere from amazing to utterly dull.

Also, as far as mirrors go, I usually use mirrors because I'm good with them, and there is almost always a mirror wherever I am in the dream world. I don't care that much about seeing myself in a mirror.

Hey LucidRanma, I can offer my experience as someone who switches gender frequently in dreams. My focus has never been on shapeshifting piece by piece (or shapeshifting at all, really); it's more similar to what sisyphus described. I'll simply BE another character, because it fits the story. I do this by default, both with fictional characters and my own dream-self archetypes, which tend to be androgynous.

I suspect that this might be where some of your problems are occurring: you're focused on specific body parts, so 1) you snap back because you're not focused on the whole experience of being a different character and you revert to a "default" and 2) you're focused on body parts that are highly sexualized in our culture (and may or may not be attractive to you) so your thoughts turn to sexual ones, distracting you from your goal.

I'd pick a fictional character that you identify with (preferably from a visual medium) for your next try at this goal: put yourself in their shoes and go through a dream plot as the character. If they hunt ghosts, hunt ghosts. If they lawyer, go lawyer. Don't concentrate on specific body parts, just embody the character as they are as a whole.

Well, I was going to write something like this:

A good scenario starts with some pre-planned elements and then opens up to some exploration or play. The pre-planned part should be something that helps you inhabit the character. For example, imagine Superman tearing open his shirt to reveal his suit, or Princess Leia putting her hair in those iconic curls. Then you start a sequence of action or dialogue that gets the plot rolling. Like meeting another character and starting a conversation, or making a phone call, or searching the rooms of a building. But always, the plot should be progressing forward. You can of course stop to smell the roses, but there should be some anticipation or mystery about what might happen next.

But, after writing that, I was reminded of that other thread where we were talking about male gaze. And it got me thinking how this kind of scenario of a "quest" to find something or resolve some conflict is a very male-gaze-y kind of thing. If the goal is to engage with one's female self, then maybe my template isn't the ideal.

Anyway, that male gaze stuff was kind of an aside. I hope it doesn't derail the basic strategy for dream incubation. The scenario should borrow elements of things you are already familiar with, like movie characters or your own personal experience. Pick a few key cues to help you inhabit the character. Like clothing, an accent, an attitude, a mannerism, a catchphrase. You can rehearse parts of the scenario beforehand with daydreaming. Or drawing, journaling, mindmaps, or whatever technique helps get your creativity flowing. But equally important is, when actually in the dream, just roll with what happens, even if it's not like what you planned.

Thanks for all the tips everyone.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sisyphus

But equally important is, when actually in the dream, just roll with what happens, even if it's not like what you planned.

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After many lucid dreams, I've learned that lesson at least. Usually that's where the dream really gets interesting though, at least in my opinion. Some of my best ones have been when the dream takes an unexpected turn.

Yeah, scenarios aren't my strongsuit. I almost always just go in a dream and tell things what to do, and I've never been much of an incubator. Guess I'll have to practice with all this and get better at it. I'd lost motivation to lucid dream for awhile anyways, so this gives me something to focus on. Now I just have to find a scenario I like.

I did actually have semi-success the other night with building a scenario, but unfortunately I was more concerned with the monthly task. In all fairness, I thought I had completed it, only to wake up and realize that my dream memory wasn't all too accurate and I did something that wasn't part of the task (I thought I was supposed to have a meaningful conversation with a DC). Anyways, point being as I ramble on, I was starting to set up a scenario before I woke up. Progress :)