How does LD affect happiness?

[Fashionista]

Hey I'm new to the whole idea of Lucid Dreaming. It sounds intriguing, but it scares me a little bit. Does having so much fun and freedom in a dream keep you from feeling satisfied in your real life, where you dont have as much control? I'm afraid I will start having this wildly enjoyable lucid dreams and that my everyday life will be inferior in comparison. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this.

[paragon]

In order to be happy, we need to have the right balance between satisfaction and dissatisfaction. If you are satisfied all the time, your satisfaction becomes worthless. A practical example is "if you don't work, you don't appreciate time off". That is what real life is all about - it is a glorious struggle. A life without struggle nor consequences would be like watching a movie without drama - meaningless and boring. That is why I am glad that lucid dreaming is not a replacement for real life, but a mere adjunct to it. Besides, the most important and meaningful thing anyone will ever experience is their relationships with others. Whilst you can be friends with dream characters, it's never the same as sharing true friendship with a real, living human being. Doesn't mean I don't get pissed off when a dreadlocked greenie asks me for money IRL and I can't shoot laser beams out of my eyes or set my pet T-Rex onto him.

[rahim9876]

yep i agree with paragon from my experience it did make me happy. i started lucid dreaming like a week ago and before that i will be honest i was not feeling good about life. i even considered to commit suicide often times and i've been like this for a long time. like we're talking years. after i started to get into this topic, i've noticed that i dont feel that way anymore and i look forward to every new day. thats my experience and btw good luck

[eppy]

I am happier and I always have something to look forward to in the future.

[BigFan]

In order to be happy, we need to have the right balance between satisfaction and dissatisfaction. If you are satisfied all the time, your satisfaction becomes worthless. A practical example is "if you don't work, you don't appreciate time off". That is what real life is all about - it is a glorious struggle. A life without struggle nor consequences would be like watching a movie without drama - meaningless and boring. That is why I am glad that lucid dreaming is not a replacement for real life, but a mere adjunct to it. Besides, the most important and meaningful thing anyone will ever experience is their relationships with others. Whilst you can be friends with dream characters, it's never the same as sharing true friendship with a real, living human being. Doesn't mean I don't get pissed off when a dreadlocked greenie asks me for money IRL and I can't shoot laser beams out of my eyes or set my pet T-Rex onto him. Well put and exactly what I would have said for the most part yep i agree with paragon from my experience it did make me happy. i started lucid dreaming like a week ago and before that i will be honest i was not feeling good about life. i even considered to commit suicide often times and i've been like this for a long time. like we're talking years. after i started to get into this topic, i've noticed that i dont feel that way anymore and i look forward to every new day. thats my experience and btw good luck You should get that suicide feeling checked out, could be some other problem that requires med, but, its great to hear that you're feeling better due to lucid dreaming. @OP While I have the same concerns as you do, finding the right balance is the key. Its not like you'll be able to LD every night and even if you are able to, it still shouldn't distract you from your everyday life, because, its all in your head

[hellohihello]

When I have a lucid dream, I am quite happy throughout the whole day. It's amazing and I am glad I can do it.

[Shift]

I am absolutely happier. I think the more likely occurrence is people who are depressed, but then find lucid dreaming and it manages to brighten their lives a tad. If you are already living a decent life, lucid dreaming can add to it just like any other awesome hobby would. If you're saying you're already unsatisfied with life, and think lucid dreaming would make that worse, well then I'd say it just really depends on the circumstances but I think the majority of the time it increases quality of life, not takes away from it. Some people may make RL worse if they are doing things like mourning a lost relative or friend during their dreams instead of moving on. But overall I think it helps, not hurts.