my experience

I've been lucid dreaming for a long time, and I usually have them a few times a week. I established dream signs a long time ago on my own as I was trying to increase the number of lucid dreams I had (this was before I knew the term "lucid dream"). I quickly discovered that going to sleep and trying to reason through whether I was dreaming or not didn't work too well; I'd remember to reality check while dreaming but didn't carry it off successfully. So I decided to tell my subconscious to skip the reasoning and just assume that I was dreaming by default, which works for me.

As far as controlling my dreams, I've only had complete control a few times, although I can often control them to some degree. I'm frequently able to jump long distances, glide, and occasionally fly.

My main problem is retaining lucidity for long periods of time and avoiding distractions. Sometimes I'll become lucid and quickly forget, while other times I'll become lucid enough to change the direction dream, and then spend the rest of the night flying in circles but not lucid enough to get any farther than that.

I'm able to remember my dreams fairly well when I make the effort; if I can remember any one part of a recent dream I can usually remember the rest of that dream and all related dreams (this branches out like a fractal until I've remembered the major parts of every dream I've had for weeks when I try hard enough).

As I mentioned, I retain a level of lucidity but become distracted by trivial tasks. I'll know I'm dreaming but somehow get distracted by moving a pile of rocks, trying to land on a particular part of a wall, repeating the same few events over and over again, et cetera. I'll know I'm dreaming, I'll be able to control the dream, but I won't have the presence of mind to utilize that control.

A significant problem:
I'm not what you'd call the most emotionally stable individual, and thus I often end up killing myself in lucid dreams (which tends to make them stop being lucid as the dream immediately changes). Control this impulse and make my dreams more fun how?

I find that autosuggestion before I fall asleep helps me stay focused when I gain lucidity. Especially if you wake up after a lucid dream, and try to reenter it.

As for the 'problem', if you can't stop yourself from doing it, try to control it so that it is fun. Jump off a cliff(and fly when you get close to the bottom), dive in deep water(explore while still being able to breathe), allow a dream character to attack you(nothing beats an epic fight :rolleyes:). There's plenty of ways you can turn this impulse into something enjoyable.

:content: