How do you guys STOP the dream script in order to become lucid

So my dreams are just like a movie that passes. How do you actually PAUSE the script so that you can even think about recognizing that you're dreaming.

This is what i find difficult. I've had great dreams but i cant seem to PAUSE the script. things just happen and i just do stuff , i don't have time to stop and think to see dreamsigns or look at my hands or whatever reality checks i would like to do.

For example my dream last night: i walked out of my house noticed new neighbor had abunch of big dogs..about 7. and her gate was open and the dogs would go in and out..going out in the street.. and meanwhile i was scared. but the story continues. It's not like i have any input to it.

And before i go to bed, i say the mantra "My dreams will be vivid and lucid"
I'm wondering if my brain may not be familiar with those words so it doesn't do it.
I'm a shy person and i rarely talk in real life. VIVID and LUCID.. those words i never even knew what they meant before i started learning about lucid dreaming. and since i generally don't talk to anyone.. those words, i only use when reading about lucid dreaming..aside from that, they haven't really been part of me.

So i wonder if my brain doesn't understand them completely so even though i say it before sleeping, my brain doesn't really get it. hehehe. just a thought :P

You don't need the time. When you realise something isn't right, you will stop yourself. Working on your awareness is key, not your comprehension of your manta. You understand the words as you read them and so, well, you understand them, that's that.

I got into the habit of counting my fingers in real life and that reality check kinda crossed over into my dreams. It took a bit of time but eventually I got into the habit of randomly checking my hands in dreams - instantly triggering lucidity.

Dont you keep a dream journal?

yes i do. i sitairted like 1 month + ago. I have plenty of dreams in it

So do you have any dreamsigns?

well as i said in other thread.. my dreamsign seems to be fear. many of my dreams are ones where i feel fear.

Well then, daily RC's, at random times, preferably 2-3 of them. Whenever you see something scary outside or think about it, do an RC. Use a WBTB, then use a mantra like "I will realize im dreaming if I get scared". There's alot more you can do, such as questioning reality in your waking life, keep asking yourself if you are dreaming etc..

Another thing to keep in mind is that dream habits seem to lag behind waking habits. You probably won't instantly start checking reality in your dreams after starting in real life. Stick with reality checks for a few weeks. Usually for me it takes around 7-9 days before waking habits begin filtering down into my dreams. Everyones different though I guess.

Also RC when you are about to sleep and every time you wake up. This will help against False awakenings.

Have you ever had the though that something isn't right, or that you may be dreaming, even though the script of the dream continues?

What you may need is a certain action that will break the dream plot. It can be very simple.

Next time you think something is weird, look at your hands. Keep that in mind before you go to bed. "Next time I am dreaming I will realize I am dreaming and look at my hands." By looking at your hands you are preforming a conscious action with intent, and this can be enough to take your focus away from the plot enough to make it stop. I would be like floating down a river (the stream of the dream plot) and then deciding to grab a hold of the shore (intent to look at your hands.) You need an action to preform, or you may continue to just keep going along with the plot even if you realize something might be up.

Yeah. The "script" doesnt have to stop in order for you to be lucid. Most lucids just come from awareness.

stopping the dream? use chaos control of course. :P (sonic the hedgehog, look it up.)

As others have said, the script need not stop. Practice recognising universal dream signs, such as the incorrect functionality of electrical devices. This should naturally cause awareness in dreams when such things occur. To add support to this, why are you automatically scared of those dogs in the dream? You are scared because you have been conditioned somewhere in life to be scared at their presence. That is, a particular stimulus has conditioned a response in you, and this follows into the dreamworld. Condition a reaction to dream signs, personal or universal, so that you automatically react in a beneficial way.

Light switches tend to have no effect in dreams. If you can, then in waking life remove the bulb in your room. Switch the light switch on, and observe as nothing happens. Immediately after, do a reality check. Repeat over and over, so this becomes a conditioned reaction to the presence of that anomaly. This will then automatically occur in the dreamworld.

Dreams aren't really script like for me. That would mean that things have to happen. You could really just make the conscious decision to do something else if you become lucid.

When I become lucid, I realize that something is wrong in my dream and then think that I should do a RC. Or other times, I might remember that I just feel asleep. lol

I have the same problem. Becoming actually aware enough to notice that things are weird LET ALONE speculate about them is what I'm struggling most with. It seems I'm strictly on autopilot, playing my role in the dream no matter what kind of crazy shit happens. I actually shot three people in the head a few days ago in a dream, and it went on for another 30 seconds or so before I woke up, disturbed at my subconscious, wondering what the fuck just happened, why I killed those people, and why I didn't immediately become lucid after the first shot.

Aghh...

Exactly Mathias. It's really tough