Lucid Dream States

[Agamemnon]

On the subject of lucid dreaming, which is what brought me to this forum, I would discuss a number of matters in this regard. This is a subject most intriguing to me and I would know more about it. For me a lucid dream is something quite rare in occurrence, but also very interesting. Most often they do not start out in this fashion. They seemingly take place without rhyme or reason. I will be going about my business and without warning something will happen within the recesses of my mind, I will stop, look around, and realize everything I behold is in fact a dream. This particular realization is also most peculiar. At this point I will often do just about anything I desire because I know none of it is real. There will be no consequences to my actions and I often act in a manner I most certainly would not in the waking world. There is also something else in regards to lucid dreaming that I have come across that I would discuss as well. I do not know if this description is particularly accurate, or if a proper term applies. There are times when I dream that seem... almost lucid. I will be in a dream state and while moving about I realize something isn't right. It is one of those situations where your surroundings do not seem proper, however I cannot specifically pin point why that is. At this stage I am also not entirely conscious as it were, but there is a part of my mind that knows everything is not as it should be.

[Rothgar]

For me I call these "almost lucids". Typically they are very vivid and I feel present in the moment but dont quite connect the dots and realize it is a dream. Often there is a dream sign or a weird situation I should have realized

[madmagus]

I look at almost lucids as good signs. I think it shows that your awareness may be increasing in general which should lead to a higher lucid count.

[AstroFlyer]

On the subject of lucid dreaming, which is what brought me to this forum, I would discuss a number of matters in this regard. This is a subject most intriguing to me and I would know more about it. For me a lucid dream is something quite rare in occurrence, but also very interesting. Most often they do not start out in this fashion. They seemingly take place without rhyme or reason. I will be going about my business and without warning something will happen within the recesses of my mind, I will stop, look around, and realize everything I behold is in fact a dream. This particular realization is also most peculiar. At this point I will often do just about anything I desire because I know none of it is real. There will be no consequences to my actions and I often act in a manner I most certainly would not in the waking world. There is also something else in regards to lucid dreaming that I have come across that I would discuss as well. I do not know if this description is particularly accurate, or if a proper term applies. There are times when I dream that seem... almost lucid. I will be in a dream state and while moving about I realize something isn't right. It is one of those situations where your surroundings do not seem proper, however I cannot specifically pin point why that is. At this stage I am also not entirely conscious as it were, but there is a part of my mind that knows everything is not as it should be. What you are describing are DILDs (dream induced lucid dreams). They are not "almost lucids", they are LDs with a low level of awareness and control. If you are having these without a lot effort ( DJ, RCs, mantras, ect...) you are a natural lucid dreamer. People have tried to get where you are at for months and years in some cases. This is how I started out. I would have these random dreams where I knew I was dreaming, but didnt know what it meant. Good luck !

[Intet]

If you're aware that something is off but don't make the realization that you're in a dream, then you're having a semi-lucid dream. As you continue your lucid dreaming practice you will become more likely to go from semi-lucid to lucid, since you will become more familiar with the characteristics of your dreams and will be thinking more about dreams when you're awake.

[Redrivertears]

Hey there, I don't consider lucidity to be an all or nothing thing. Rather, I think of it as a continuous scale, ranging from no awareness to full awareness. In that light, it's quite normal to have lucid dreams in which your awareness seems "less" or "more". As others have said, with practice you should be able to get more and more aware, and thus on average get better lucidity, but even then there's likely still going to be dreams where you're aware of dreaming, but don't fully take advantage of that knowledge (in fact, as your amount of lucid dreams increases, these semi lucid dreams are likely to increase as well, because your overall dream awareness is improving). Just my 2 cents, -Redrivertears-