Thread: I'm scared to try lucid dreaming

Hey everyone, I'm been interested in lucid dreaming for some time now, but I always chicken out when I'm about do the wbtb technique or go to sleep because I feel like I might create something terrifying in my dreams, I have also read up about sleep paralysis AND IT FREAKS ME OUT, although I've never had a problem with sleep paralysis, should I be worried about it? Also people say to not worry about scary stuff on lucid dreams but when trying to do stuff like this I am very unsure about my self. Any help is appreciated thanks!

It's not that you are scared of lucid dreams. Because you cant be scared of something you dont even experienced yet. You are scared about what you BELIEVE about lucid dreams, and that your thoughts might come to be true.

I was also scared of trying to lucid dreaming and of sleep paralysis in the beginning. But that fear has really weared of by now. And the fear runs out rather quickly when you realize that you need to put all your focus on actually having a lucid dream to begin with, before there is any chance/risk for there to be something to MAYBE scare you at all.

When you put alot of effort into getting some where, and you notice that it isn't that easy that you tought it would be. You then start to notice that when you cant even have the scary dreams you worried so much about, not even THAT.. Then you will find that you dont even have that extra energy to worry about any scary experience to begin with, you will be happy with any experience of lucidity at all.

So when you actually have your first lucid dream, then you will much likely appriciate any kind of experience that you get from it, just to find out what it was all about. Try to allow your self to feel what ever is comming in your way, and take notice of what is good for yourself even in the scary experiences if you by any chance even get to experience that.

Good luck and Good night to you!

If you have a lucid nightmare, remind yourself that it's just a dream. If you find yourself paralyzed upon waking up, remind yourself that it's just sleep paralysis and that it will go away in just a minute. Take calm in the fact that you are safe when experiencing these things. This is easy to do if you know what's happening.

Sleep paralysis is relatively rare. I've experienced it about 3 or 4 times in my 4+ years of trying to lucid dream.

Remember...a lucid dream is simply a dream where you realize you are dreaming. You dream 6 times a night at least...the only difference is you think the dreams are real in a non-LD!. so which is better? Although, granted you dont remember most of your non-LD dreams. My first lucid dream (before I knew what they were) I was about to be mugged by thugs and was really scared. But then I realized it was a dream, and I laughed and said "boy are YOU guys in trouble" and I beat the tar out of them. Dont fear what you've already experienced every night of your life.

Thanks guys for the replys, I understand what your saying. I'll try the wbtb technique tonight

Originally Posted by Rothgar

Remember...a lucid dream is simply a dream where you realize you are dreaming. You dream 6 times a night at least...the only difference is you think the dreams are real in a non-LD!. so which is better? Although, granted you dont remember most of your non-LD dreams. My first lucid dream (before I knew what they were) I was about to be mugged by thugs and was really scared. But then I realized it was a dream, and I laughed and said "boy are YOU guys in trouble" and I beat the tar out of them. Dont fear what you've already experienced every night of your life.

Yeah I guess when I dream every night regardless I might as well be lucid, funny story btw

I've been having lucid dreams for more than 10 years now and I don't remember ever having sleep paralysis. At least not consciously; we are paralyzed every night so we don't act out our dreams. As far as I know, practicing lucid dreaming and experiencing sleep paralysis are completely unrelated and they are actually just seperate topics. So don't worry about sleep paralysis! If it really scares you, you can look at tips for what to do when it happens to you so you can have some confidence that you'll be able to deal with.

About scary lucid dreams.. They are so rare! I don't remember ever having them and I get scared pretty easily AND I often think about many scenarios, including scary ones: a bad combination. I don't watch scary movies and before turning off the light in my room I grab my phone so I can have some light before I get into my bed. So don't worry about scary dreams. Also I think that what causes nightmares is strong negative emotions in waking life. But even if you have nightmares, becoming lucid has in my case always been positive, because I'll know I'm dreaming and I can wake up whenever I want and I am safe and I can affect the dream. Did you know, btw, that the vast majority of natural lucid dreamers (who found out about it by themselves) discover their ability (sometimes not knowing it is a special ability) by facing nightmares and realizing they are dreaming and then turning the dream into a positive one? As a kid, I was only waking myself up from the nightmares but later on I could do different things to fight or escape the bad guys. Lucid dreaming is for many people a natural weapon against nightmares. So don't worry. And to further increase confidence, repeat this a few times every time you go to sleep: "I'll have a fun dream tonight and hopefully I will become lucid to make it even more fun" or something positive like that. Happy dreaming!

Originally Posted by Ginsan

I've been having lucid dreams for more than 10 years now and I don't remember ever having sleep paralysis. At least not consciously; we are paralyzed every night so we don't act out our dreams. As far as I know, practicing lucid dreaming and experiencing sleep paralysis are completely unrelated and they are actually just seperate topics. So don't worry about sleep paralysis! If it really scares you, you can look at tips for what to do when it happens to you so you can have some confidence that you'll be able to deal with.

About scary lucid dreams.. They are so rare! I don't remember ever having them and I get scared pretty easily AND I often think about many scenarios, including scary ones: a bad combination. I don't watch scary movies and before turning off the light in my room I grab my phone so I can have some light before I get into my bed. So don't worry about scary dreams. Also I think that what causes nightmares is strong negative emotions in waking life. But even if you have nightmares, becoming lucid has in my case always been positive, because I'll know I'm dreaming and I can wake up whenever I want and I am safe and I can affect the dream. Did you know, btw, that the vast majority of natural lucid dreamers (who found out about it by themselves) discover their ability (sometimes not knowing it is a special ability) by facing nightmares and realizing they are dreaming and then turning the dream into a positive one? As a kid, I was only waking myself up from the nightmares but later on I could do different things to fight or escape the bad guys. Lucid dreaming is for many people a natural weapon against nightmares. So don't worry. And to further increase confidence, repeat this a few times every time you go to sleep: "I'll have a fun dream tonight and hopefully I will become lucid to make it even more fun" or something positive like that. Happy dreaming!

Oh that's good to hear, it's nice to know that lucid dreams can have such positive vibes, and thanks I'll try repeating that to myself

Of course we all have sleep atonia every night, but are just unaware of it. I have only once experienced sleep paralysis, which is where you become aware of your atonia, but it was strangely comforting, because I knew it was related to the lucid dream I had just experienced. For me it lasted just a few seconds and then wore off. It was weird, because at first I thought, "I can just move anytime I want to", but I didn't want to because I was thinking about trying to reenter the dream, but I realised I was too awake, and then it dawned on me that I really couldn't move. Because I knew what it was, it didn't worry me at all.
You're not crazy being afraid of the unknown, but think of it a bit like a rollercoaster ride. It might be a bit scary, but it's a fun ride! (apologies if you hate rollercoasters!)