Laberge and dream "schema"

Well,
I am about a month into dream journalling and my exploration of Lucidity now. Experiencing frustration at lack of early results but i am still determined. I feel the vast majority of people (and i am surely one of them), have a very high resistance to attaining lucidity due to the psychological function dreams must somehow have for us. Here is a segment of my latest journal entry exploring this concept for any who are intereted in my thought process and may be experiencing the same lack of results as me:

Brief dream fragment from last night: (Saturday, November 9) I meet Dan at the west door of Sportsman’s bowling lanes where I worked as a teenager. (An interesting and notable dreamsign this location is, it has appeared a statistically significant number of times over the last month. I have driven by it often lately on trips to Hamilton, it is no longer a bowling alley , but rather partitioned into an auto parts store and a cab company. It always elicits some sort of memory which I do not follow up, but rebury in my subconscious, that period is “over” now. Dan and I proceed west down the path talking and I after a short distance, walking a dog, (it may be my old dog JJ) . The path becomes much longer than in reality, but there is still a slope up to the right of us, we realize a massive amount of construction is going on, (this schema likely was brought about by the massive highway construction I passed last night going east on the 401 to Dufferin, significantly said construction appeared on my right side as in the dream. ) The dog gets on a large platform and before Dan and I realize the platform rises at least 100 meters in the air on a large central hydraulic column. We are afraid the dog(s), (there seem to be 3 or 4 up there now, none of which at this point are recognizable to me as my dog, Dan’s dog or any other I know specifically, nevertheless we are still worried for them.) will jump off the platform, and sure enough in dream schema fulfillment fashion, they do. As they race to the ground I find myself wishing they will land unharmed and again, one after the other they land without injury and continue about their business. This dream is a powerful illustration for me of the section of LaBerge’s book I am reading now on the power of the dream schema and the unconscious mind’s collaboration and fulfillment of it. This is the very stuff of dream construction. To recognize this process in action is the key to lucidity. To wish for something or vaguely expect a development and then to watch it happen, to “will it”. The brain does a dance with itself and weaves the dream narrative. This last passage is a very impossible situation and an obvious dream sign. In reality the 100 m drop would have killed the animals for certain. BUT, it is also a very accurate reconstruction of how the dreaming mind rationalizes and reinforces its own inability to recognize the dream as non-reality. Perhaps i miss my old dog and would rather allow the dream to continue to unfold undisturbed so that i can prolong interacting with the dogs, to become lucid might interrupt or end the dream abrupty and the dreaming mind therefore disables crtical thought. This is the mechanism of the dreaming mind that perpetuates the dream by disabling any critical thinking about events that happen. A way to achieve lucidity at this point would be instead of just wishing or vaguely hoping the dogs will be ok, I could raise my hand like a Jedi and guide them to the ground slowly and safely. Perhaps, (stress on this word) I would then recognize my dreaming state. I could turn and say to Dan, “I am dreaming now.” How will I be able to recognize these signs? They pass me by every night. The problem is emotional investment in the dream schema that develops, and a lack of critical thinking. I must develop much more rigorous critical thinking habits during the day.

Any thoughts, or am i just stating the obvious?

I think you need to suggest more critical thinking habits as you suggest, but that is half the story. I would usggest doing WILDs, as the mind is more laert. I have rarely had a lucid dream in the middle of night. I believe the critical thinking part of our mind is really sleeping for much of the night, and it is only in the late dreams that one can really be critical. One is just more passive in the early night.

My lucid dreams tend to occur spontaneously, and almost always after 5 A.M. The happen most frequntly if I wake up, stay in bed thinking so as to awaken, and then return to sleep. It's often a quiet relaization that I am in dream state and thus gain lucidity.

You can also try meditation to gain greater focus while your body relaxes

For me its the other way around,it always seems to work in the middle of the night.You know I have this weird habit of always waking up after a few hours of sleep like at 2-3am, I make a journal entry and stay up for awhile.(if you cant automaticly wake up set the alarm). For me using MILDs seems to be effective,as most of my lucid dreams are DILDS cuz i suck at WILD. The weird thing Laberge suggests 6 hours of sleep before using MILD and then staying for at least 60 minutes..for me 20 minutes and 3 hours of sleep seems to work just fine..

ALso doing reality checks all day long seems to work for me,everytime I enter a room I double check the clock to see if the times changes,if it does your dreaming(digitals seem to mess up even on first look) ,you should especially do alot of RCs like the last hour before you go to sleep(like double check ur watch every 5 mins,it doesnt take up aytime but its a nasty habit though )

thanks for the advice folks, i'll try these things out. I know i have to do more RC's during the day, your adviceabout checking the clock every time you enter a new room is a good one...