Thread: Hello all

Welcome to Dreamviews!

It could be, that in such a short nap, you don't fall asleep deep enough. Especially, if you are used to alarm waking you up just 5 min from time you get lucid. Feeling your real body also happens when you not in a deep sleep, but when you just falling asleep or waking up. If you can, set your alarm at 30 min, so your mind knows, it doesn't have to rush and wake you up.

The image of a drawing board was something called hypnagogic hallucination. We get these when our mind stays aware while body is already falling asleep. Those images are actually dreams starting to form. It's a good sign that you are near a lucid dream. If you have held that little longer, a full dream would have developed and you could have entered it. That would be a induction technique called WILD. WILD (sageous) tutorial.

Rest of your lucid dreams you had were DILD. happy dreams

20 minutes is about the max I can squeeze out of the lunch break, lol. I've never been one to really wake up before the alarm goes off, but for some reason, my body has decided to start doing it. I usually wake up because of the dream and having to lick to make my mouth not dry. I have complete control over my body, but know that the moment I move something, I shift into completely awake, but if I don't, I'm still barely on the sleep side.

The general pattern is, set alarm for 20-25 minutes, lay down, probably takes me a few minutes to fall asleep. I've gotten to where all I can think about is dreaming since I almost know it's going to happen. I fall asleep, and then start having a dream and then realize it is one, and everything kind of stops and fades. The drawing board, or whatever it was, is the first time I've had a decent idea on how to continue the dream, but I don't remember thinking about it, I just drew on it since it seemed like the next logical step (what else do you do with a drawing board, lol.) I think I usually gain lucidity about the time the dream freezes, but it's never due to something wrong or anything, I just realize it. If I decide to wake up and check the alarm, it's almost always 5 minutes until it should go off. If I try to calm down and force my way back in the dream, I usually just fall asleep. Oh, and I can feel my heart beating in my ears and chest, but I don't usually notice once I wake up fully.

Part of the problem is, if I get to sleep a little longer, I don't remember anything and wake up to the alarm for some reason. I get the feeling that if I keep doing this everyday, I'll start having more control. The drawing board was a big improvement over everything simply stopping. And, since I have probably a more like 75% chance of ending up in a dream, then hopefully I can have a lot of lucid dreams and have better odds of experiencing control in them.

I just re-read some of the WILD posts, and some of it makes sense.
"in reality it is by far the most difficult. This is because WILD demands that you do something literally unnatural -- stay awake while falling asleep, and also because, unlike DILD and MILD, there is no dream on hand to be lucid in; you have to do all the work."

I guess, with all of my day dreaming, and since almost every night, I spend so much time trying not to fall asleep while thinking about something, that I've maybe become proficient with it, without knowing. That's the reason it seems like I know I'm in a dream as soon as it starts. The only problem is that it seems to stop immediately too.

Oh, and I've tried several times at night, but for some reason, I can never get it to work. I wonder if it is because I'm too comfortable, and pass out too quickly.

Can you clarify what exactly you mean by "everything stops".

Sometimes, when your dream fades to black, or you just see your room (with eyes closed) you are actually in a lucid dream already. Try a motionless RC. Think to yourself "If this was a dream, I would be floating". See what happens.

Or, just get up from the sofa, or roll out. It will take some leap of faith, because often you are sure you are still awake, but you in a dream, without noticing the transition. Sensations and types of entry into WILD.

Ok, I've read some more about WILD's. I think I ignored it mostly when I did most of my reading a while ago since I thought the other types would be more likely, and I think I answered a lot of my own questions and ramblings.

I'm not really sure what really happens. It just stops. Usually there is just nothing around me. I'm present, and I get the feeling of at least two vague walls, but nothing else. There's nothing to touch, and nothing to touch with. I can also feel my dry mouth, and usually feel/hear my heart. I am completely aware that I'm laying on the couch, but still feel like I'm asleep too, and think that anything could happen at any moment, but usually nothing does, until the drawing board incident. I know that the moment I lick my lips in RL (usual way I end it), I step out of the dream. Sometimes I get really focused on figuring out exactly how I'm laying and everything, but when I do move, or even choose to change my breathing, I don't have to immediately open my eyes like when I normally wake up. I get the feeling that I could lay in that state indefinitely, and everything just waiting for me to get up, drift back deeper in sleep, or somehow make something happen. I know I can get up, I jumped off the couch once just to do it. Almost fell on my face since it took a second for everything to adjust to awake and standing.

I have tried to imagine a lot of stuff, but it's almost like I'm too far awake to do anything like floating. I haven't actually thought "If this was a dream, I would be floating." so I might actually try that, rather than just imagining myself floating. When the drawing board appeared, I think I knew that whatever I drew on it would happen, so I expected it to when I did, so maybe changing from trying to imagining stuff, and just deciding it is there might work.

Try to get up from sofa or roll out. If you in a dream, you will move your dream body and you will be in a LD.

I'll try today to roll off of the couch and see what happens, if the "If this was a dream, I would be floating" doesn't work. If I can remember to try it in the dream. Sometimes I know I want to make things happen, and try to think of things, but I can't seem to remember to try to look at my hand or spin or stuff like that.

I guess that's just the nature of dreams, if you are in complete control, then nothing happens spontaneously and it's not as fun. The art of dreaming is just a balance between control and not controlling. Too much, and it just turns into day dreaming where you have to decide every action anyone does and in dreams, it's a little more fun since you're reacting to a seemingly separate person doing unexpected things that you actually thought of but don't know it. Wow, that gets complicated pretty quick.

Thanks for the advice, hopefully with it, and just more practice, this will eventually work. The drawing board has me pretty excited. I'm also thinking that maybe if I could get a door, and open it, something might happen on the other side.

You can use a mantra "I roll out" or "I get up". There is a good chance you will still be saying it when you notice that you are in a dream and it will help you remember what you wanted to do.

Not sure if you practice RCs during day, but that would help you to look at your hands in a dream.

And yes, as you falling asleep and you start seeing things, try to reach for them with your mind (dream hands). That may help transfer you into a dream.

The "drawing board" HH, that was a sign of a WILD. Sageouse's tutorial linked above is great for understanding that.

And if you realize you dreaming when already in a regular dream, that's a DILD.
DILD
Collection of techniques for DILD.

I would definitelly explore that, since you seem to have great thing going on there. Lucky you

Well, after talking about how many times this happens, of course it doesn't happen again. Today was a whirlwind though, and kind of made up for it. I had tried rushing and had 30 minutes to sleep the past few days, and tried it, but just woke up with the alarm and not remembering any dreams. Today, I rushed, but went ahead and set the alarm for about 20 minutes, and I had about three. Usually I only have one, fall back asleep and wake up with my alarm, so today was fun.

I also learned that my sub-conscience has a sense of humor. I guess it comes with the territory since I like picking on people alot. First of all, I think you are right and I'm just having short beginnings of dreams and I'm just becoming lucid the moment they start. There usually isn't much before I realize it's a dream.

First, I had one that changed quickly a few times like my brain couldn't figure out what it wanted to do, but finally it ended up with me petting a cat. I think I realized it was a dream when I felt my real hand making the motion and tapping on my other hand, lol. I sat there for a second because it stopped, and just naturally thought I wanted to get back into a dream, so I focused on falling into a dream a little more. Suddenly I was in another dream talking to someone, and a woman was to my right. I became lucid about the same time, and my brain decided that if anything, I could control a dream by STOPPING it, and I remember thinking this, so I stopped the lady where she was when she was about to talk. Felt smart since I had found some control, but couldn't get anything started. Finally kind of focused on falling back to into a dream and making the dream continue, and something happened that I was kind of lucid in, but I can't really remember what it was. I had the feeling that the dream with the lady was going to continue and she was important, but I stopped her just to be in control. See how smart alleck my brain is sometimes, lol. There were a lot of details in the dream, but I don't know how many I'm just making up by now.

It's kind of fun, these little weird dreams. I never have a clue what's coming next, and if I could just keep having a few of these each time, I'd be satisfied for a while, lol. Now I just need to convince myself that stopping them is not the right kind of control, and see if I can get them to continue. It never even crossed my mind to actually try and control the dream, or move myself, just stopping them. This was really the first time I successfully tried slipping back into a dream. My brain somehow thought they were all connected too, but it might have just been because they were right after each other.

Well, there have been a few interesting experiences with all of this, but today was the funnest. But first, yesterday at lunch, I set my alarm and went so sleep like always, started into a dream that I don't remember, became lucid and tried the hold the dream together, but finally fell out of it. Instead of going right back to sleep, I grabbed my phone to check the time. 14 minutes, from the moment I set the alarm to the moment I looked at it again. Definitely the quickest I've ever done it. Had enough time to try it again, but nothing happened and woke up to the alarm. Second time falling a sleep doesn't seem to work as well.

Now for today's dream. First, I had a dream that kind of woke me up, but I don't remember anything of it. Fell back completely asleep and continued onto my next dream.
I was walking down what somewhat resembled an old western town - dirt road with covered boardwalks on both sides and people standing around. Most were men, but one was a lady. Not sure if it was the same in the other day's dream, but I think they both had red dresses, and they were paying attention to me unlike everyone else, so maybe I've chosen my DG. Well anyways, somewhere while walking down the road, I became lucid. Actually, I think I was in the woods, and became lucid the dream turned to the town, or something. I remember doing something before lucidity in the woods, but no details. Anyways, I noticed I could feel my hands by my side, and when I did, the dream started fading like it always does. Well, while trying to hold the dream together, I kept switching between feeling my hands by my side, and my hands on the computer keyboard where I must have fallen asleep. The dream was basically gone, but I could still feel my two sets of hands back and forth. Finally, I remembered rubbing them together, and decided to try it. Well, that woke me up, and pulled me out of two dreams. I was actually sleeping on the couch like every day, with my hands folded on my stomach, and the keyboard was a dream too and I was having FA's, lol. I never completely woke up and opened my eyes, but enough to know it wasn't another dream and made sure to repeat the whole experience in my mind so I would remember it to type. Fell back to full sleep hoping for another chance, but none came.

It's fun, even if it doesn't work completely. Maybe I can keep improving it more. It's gotten a lot better already.

On a separate note, I've been working on doing DEILD's at night. Trying to train my body to recognize it's awake between dreams to start with. Happened upon Yuppie's guide, and figured I'd just try it out at night.