Thread: New to Lucid Dreaming

I spoke with my Doctor and he has said that I can continue my Practice of Lucid Dreaming and also wished me Good Luck.

I have a few Questions.

Do people dream almost every day?
I had short dreams early in the morning when I was napping after waking up but since they were very short dreams I did not write it down in my dream Journal, but I still remember what I dreamt.
So do I have to also write down short dreams in my dream journal.
Sometimes I get dreams about unpleasant people, and I do not like to write down about the dream I had about those unpleasant people. So is it a must to write down all my dreams weather I like the dream or not?

I have not been able to write down my dreams every day. Is that normal?
I wrote down my dreams on 14th June, 19th June, 22nd June, 25th June,28th June, 2nd July. After 2nd July I had 2 short dreams on 4th July morning and an unpleasant dream on 5th morning which I did not write down.

Based on this within how many days or months will I be able to become a frequent Lucid Dreamer ?

Eagerly waiting for your reply...

Originally Posted by devotee013

I spoke with my Doctor and he has said that I can continue my Practice of Lucid Dreaming and also wished me Good Luck.

I have a few Questions.

Do people dream almost every day?
I had short dreams early in the morning when I was napping after waking up but since they were very short dreams I did not write it down in my dream Journal, but I still remember what I dreamt.
So do I have to also write down short dreams in my dream journal.
Sometimes I get dreams about unpleasant people, and I do not like to write down about the dream I had about those unpleasant people. So is it a must to write down all my dreams weather I like the dream or not?

I have not been able to write down my dreams every day. Is that normal?
I wrote down my dreams on 14th June, 19th June, 22nd June, 25th June,28th June, 2nd July. After 2nd July I had 2 short dreams on 4th July morning and an unpleasant dream on 5th morning which I did not write down.

Based on this within how many days or months will I be able to become a frequent Lucid Dreamer ?

Eagerly waiting for your reply...

Some of these questions are quite difficult to answer. But I'll give you my answers, so far as I have them. Please note, I have not followed this thread from the start.

> Do people dream almost every day?

They probably do, but most people forget most of their dreams very rapidly after waking up.

> So do I have to also write down short dreams in my dream journal.

The more, the merrier.

> So is it a must to write down all my dreams weather I like the dream or not?

Good question! My instincts tell me that not writing them down would be wrong. But you might spell the bad ones out in less detail than the pleasant ones.

> I have not been able to write down my dreams every day. Is that normal?

Yes, very normal.

> Based on this within how many days or months will I be able to become a frequent Lucid Dreamer ?

That question still has far too many variables to answer with any kind of certainty. But my guess is that such commitment would lead to some sort of lucidity within weeks, maybe two-three months at most. But it still depends a lot on your intentions. The more lucid dreaming is on your mind, and the more intensely so, the sooner - and the more frequently - lucidity should pop up.

Originally Posted by Voldmer

But it still depends a lot on your intentions. The more lucid dreaming is on your mind, and the more intensely so, the sooner - and the more frequently - lucidity should pop up.

I wish it felt that simple for me.

Originally Posted by devotee013

Sometimes I get dreams about unpleasant people, and I do not like to write down about the dream I had about those unpleasant people. So is it a must to write down all my dreams weather I like the dream or not?

Since Voldmer already gave you quite decent replies on each of your questions, I will only address this question above.

I personally don't think you have to write down dreams that you find distressing to have good dreaming practise, but I do feel there is some value in writing them down.

Especially for people with recurring themes/nightmares, the value of writing down distressing dreams and their elements can be that it lets you confront any issues presented by those dreams. When you have a dream with distressing elements, in reality you're not in any danger, even if it can feel like you are, and writing down these dreams also lets you feel like there can be some closure and control over dream content that you might otherwise be afraid of. You are also free to reimagine those dreams and write your own altered versions of the dreams, if that was something you might like doing.

One way or another, I feel that if you don't deal with your "bad" dreams, you will run into those topics sooner or later in your dreaming journey, possibly even while lucid, because lucidity alone does not keep out intruding thoughts, worries or fears.

For me, it was only because of bad dreams/nightmares and my intents around them that I was able to deal with some of my own fears, so I'd say that the practical usefulness of dealing with bad dreams goes beyond just keeping a record of them.

If you feel uncomfortable about writing them down in detail, then I would suggest that you try to write down what you do feel able to, and leave the rest out if you really don't feel able to handle it in that moment. If you choose to not write them down, you're not making a mistake or wasting an opportunity, feeling comfortable about these parts of the process can also be important.

Originally Posted by devotee013

Do people dream almost every day?
I had short dreams early in the morning when I was napping after waking up but since they were very short dreams I did not write it down in my dream Journal, but I still remember what I dreamt.
So do I have to also write down short dreams in my dream journal.
Sometimes I get dreams about unpleasant people, and I do not like to write down about the dream I had about those unpleasant people. So is it a must to write down all my dreams weather I like the dream or not?

I have not been able to write down my dreams every day. Is that normal?
I wrote down my dreams on 14th June, 19th June, 22nd June, 25th June,28th June, 2nd July. After 2nd July I had 2 short dreams on 4th July morning and an unpleasant dream on 5th morning which I did not write down.

Based on this within how many days or months will I be able to become a frequent Lucid Dreamer ?

Yes, people dream every night. Not always during a nap, depends on how sleep deprived you are. Even if you don't remember your dreams at night, you still have them.

About journaling short dreams: what you give is what you get. If you write down your dreams, including short ones that you can remember, you are setting a stronger intention. That will help you improve recall further. I recommend writing short dreams down. If you really don't want to, an alternative is typing them in your dream journal the next day. That will still help build intention.

If it is a particularly unpleasant dream, I do not write it down. That's OK. Although sometimes you can gain some insight if you type them out.