Lucid Dreaming and Insomnia

**werty52** · 10-04-2014 06:28 AM

I'm very new to lucid dreaming and have managed 1 LD so far.
I have mild insomnia, where I seem to just lie awake for a few hours (on a good night 2 hours) before I managed to drift off.. Occasionally it can deprive me of sleep which I try to fix via going to sleep earlier or sleeping in on my days off.

Anyone else have this issue? I ask because I want to know if it inhibited your attempts at certain lucid induction techniques (such as WILD)
I have no way of knowing when my REM period will be because I can't tell when I'll fall asleep.

Would lucid dreaming help with a problem like this?

**Verre** · 10-04-2014 08:35 AM

Insomnia is not a bad starting point for initiating lucid dreams, since lucidity requires more than the typical degree of mental alertness and self-awareness while you're actually dreaming... but of course the trick is actually getting to sleep first! Since a number of LD techniques involve artificially creating insomnia-like conditions before falling asleep, natural insomnia can be a gift, once you learn to counter it. If your insomnia is caused by racing thoughts, basic breathing meditation augmented by counting can help you stabilize your focus. If your insomnia is caused by physical tension, you could use relaxation exercises like deliberately tensing each part of the body in turn and then releasing the tension. In the area of supplements, I've found that L-Theanine seems to help subtly counter difficulty sleeping without interfering with REM.

**FryingMan** · 10-04-2014 09:13 AM

I've often wished I was on the other side of the insomnia fence -- the grass is always greener I suppose. I wish I could fall asleep in seconds once awake, but it takes me time and concentrated effort to relax and quiet my mind once I'm awake in order to fall back asleep. Certainly, lucid dreaming is all about sleeping, so learning how to fall asleep is an integral part of this hobby. I'm proof that it *can* be learned. I can fall asleep fairly easily at initial bedtime, but almost any waking after that if I do any sort of mental activity I can be left wide awake for a long time (hours).

I did a lot of research, asked for a lot of advice, and just tried and tried different things. What I found worked for me:

1) do NOT "try" to sleep, and do NOT be anxious about not sleeping, these lead to vicious cycles of insomnia. Simply relax and enjoy drifting in relaxation without thinking you must achieve anything in particular

2) relax deeply, physically and mentally. You may be holding tension in surprising places, for me it is: cheeks [I usually smile when I think about all the awesome dreams I'm about to have, and then hold that tension there without realizing it] and eyes (and of course the jaw, that's fairly standard, though). I find backwards counting from 20 (thanks, Canis!) synchronized with deep breathing, relaxing on each breath, helps to quiet the "monkey mind" to the point where I can just continue relaxing until I fall asleep.

3) standard sleep hygiene stuff, google can lead you to many "how to sleep well" sites: get regular exercise, don't eat junk food, maintain a regular sleep schedule, etc.