My mind needs to wander to fall asleep

Hi. Before I saw this site, I was able recall my dreams about 4 times a month. This was without me attempting to use dream recall, it just... happened.

Anyway, I here I am a week after first seeing this site (and attempting dream recall). I just registered today.

I always wanted to learn how to control my dreams. In fact, I actually DO NOT want anything more (well...except maybe to have my dreams come true in real life :wink: ) However, I am currently stuck on step 1..... dream recall. I've tried it every night of this week. I have not remembered any dreams at all, or even came close. When I wake up in the morning, even if I lay still and try to remember my dreams, I can't.

Why?

Well, it's because I need to have my mind wander for me to be able to fall asleep. What I mean is, I think about one thing, then go offtopic and think about another thing, and it will continue until I fall asleep. I almost do it unconciously in a way. Lucky for me, when I'm tired, my mind almost always wanders. If I'm tired and I fight my mind, preventing it from wandering, I remain tired but can't fall asleep until I give in. THAT is where my problem lies. :? Since I need to say and focus my intent on recalling my dreams on the boderline of being asleep, I can't do it. By speaking out lines, I am focusing my mind, and not letting it wander. Becuase of this, I can't sleep until I give in.

Please, do you have any suggestions for this? Thank you.

it's a normal thing for your mind to wander as you fall asleep--that's something that happens to everyone during the hypnagogic imagery stage of falling asleep. the best possible thing you can do to increase your recall is to keep a dream journal. you need to cement the idea in your mind that you intend to recall dreams every night and write them down as soon as you wake up. trying to "focus your intent" right before going to sleep is, in my opinion, not the best way to do it. i think you need to focus that intent all day long, everyday, constantly. if dreaming is exciting to you, the best thing you can do is think about it, daydream about it, etc. the more thought you put into it, the more successful you'll be.

Thanks! :D I'll definetly try it... Hopefully when I fall asleep tonight I will have more luck :D

Quote:

---

Originally posted by megabenman
Thanks! :D I'll definetly try it... Hopefully when I fall asleep tonight I will have more luck :D

---

As mongrel stated in an indirect way: intent is what matters.
Thus, don't "hope" - do!
The power of intent is something far beyond any other, it's the very foundation of action. Don't expect to recall dreams due to certain actions, instead commit those actions (constantly thinking about dreams, etc.) by will and they will happen.

.... Oh yeah... I remember now. Let me rephrase that.

Thanks :D I will definetly do it... When I fall asleep tonight I will recall my dreams :D

As an update.... I didn't remember my dreams last night (I woke up well over 11 hours ago though) but I did vaugly remember something about 3 hours after I woke up... It was about.... dream recall lmao.

Maybe it's a coincidence, maybe it's because I slept into night, or maybe it's because of the help I got, but I remembered 2 dreams last night! They were both very long dreams. The first was crystal clear, I remember almost EVERYTHING about it, and it's not vivid at all. The second one is more vague and odd. I can't remember much of it, only the basic parts.
At about the 1/2 marker of the first dream I realized I was in a dream. I don't know how, I didn't RC or anything, suddenly I just said to myself "Hey! I'm in a dream!" I attempted to do something cool. As a test, I imagined a bed, and verbally stated "Change the background to a bed!" What happened: My head went wobbly, my dream became vivid, and I saw a bed.... but it looked more like a 4 cornered blue and red blanket. Then, I woke up (in my dream) and forgot that I was dreaming, and went along with the rest of the dream.
I'm not going to tell you all of my dreams, because it's very long.... in fact they took up 2 and a half pages in my dream journal. But I think I have figured out a few new dream signs (depends if they recur in future dreams). Currently, I only have one, which is when in a dream I pinch myself, I barely feel it, and my arm feels bloated, fat, and almost like I have gotten one of those numbing needles you would use on your mouth before getting a tooth pulled/drilled.
-Characters popping out of nowhere
-Seeing people I have not seen for years
-Being resistant to cold
-Suddenly getting a clothes change and not realizing it
-Having one part of where I am have a different weather than the other

Well I will have more luck later :D

The same thing is true for me; I have to let my mind take its course or I can't fall asleep. I can lie still in a bed for an hour hoping to go into a WILD, but it won't work. As has been said, just take some time before you go to bed and (forcefully) remind yourself to write your dreams down in the morning and whatever else you hope to accomplish during the night. Once you have done that, don't worry about it and know that it will happen because you want it to.

Also, when you wake up in the morning, do you move very much? Any movement when you awaken will cause you to start forgetting the dream. Rather, just lie still with your eyes closed and try to think of the last thing that you can recall. Then once you've remembered something, work backwards and try to see how much you can recall. Once you've got as much as you can in your head, then reach for your journal and write it down. Usually I do a brief summary of the main points and then fill in the details afterwards, but everyone does it a little differently.

The biggest thing,also, is to be consistent. It may take a little while, but eventually your mind will realize that this is something important and you will be more apt to remember your dreams. Just give it time and be diligent. :) I mean, those two you had are proof that that's already happening.

-Amé

Well, because I didn't go to my school's end of the year trip, I had Tues-Friday off (and of course the weekends). So I was able to sleep in, and I almost always remember at least one dream when sleeping in.

Last night, I was suprised, I remembered 3! I don't know how, all of them were vague in some parts, clear in others, and sometimes I totally forgot a part. But anyway, on Sunday night I'll see if I can remember a dream on a school night.

Also, when I wake up, most of the time I am confused, and will roll around. I think I might have a solution to this problem. If I use my iPod and listen to that mp3, if I'm lucky enough to still have my earbuds in my ear when I wake up, then I should hear the sounds and realize "hey, maybe I shouldn't move."