Just not destined to be an oneironaut...

After what seems like decades of trying (It's only been around 2-3 years but the effort put into it...)

I just plain can't do it.. It's very discouraging and depressing, I can barely remember my dreams, I have trouble waking up in the morning, my sleep schedule is outta whack, my family is interruptive and...

I just can't do it!

I recently got ETWOLD and some of the things explained in it like the relaxation techniques are a little difficult for some reason...

I really want to do it.. The only thing I can think of is i lack willpower..

Also, hitting snooze is an involuntary reflex..

Don't give up man! I gave up awhile ago and I regret it. I'm back LDing again, and I've had so much fun in the few LD's I've had so far. It's really worth it :D

Don't give up bro.

Just keep trying, and if that doesn't help try a dream herb/root like Calea Z.

Don't give up! I gave up for a long, long time and just came back with some new willpower - and had my first LD, even though it only lasted a minute or two, and it is well worth it!

Lol, don't stress about it. Just take a little break and come back to it.

Only you have the power to lucid

This power is inside each and every one of us, and always has been, since the beginning of man as we know it, and the age of 'knowing we are self aware'

It can be accessed, but like every skill in life, the mind must be trained

Success requires dedication, and in this case, if dedication is there, then success is ineviteble

Hm, stress, a big dream killer, try giving it a rest for a short while and then get back at it?
Between, 2-3 years isn't much, it took me 8 lol

That's just the thing, I've concluded that I think about lucid dreams probably 8+ times a day! I'm so obsessed!

Have you tried everything?

Have you tried meditation?

Uhm, no. How do I go about meditation? And I'm not sure, when i try to wild i sleep and for wbtb i sleep still and in the mornings, when I hit my alarm I have to do it REALLY fast causing me to forget any dreams, because it is super loud and it SHOCKS me awake so i forget dreams,, I have to turn it off fast b/c of other ppl

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Originally Posted by r2d2651

Uhm, no. How do I go about meditation? And I'm not sure, when i try to wild i sleep and for wbtb i sleep still and in the mornings, when I hit my alarm I have to do it REALLY fast causing me to forget any dreams, because it is super loud and it SHOCKS me awake so i forget dreams,, I have to turn it off fast b/c of other ppl

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What type of alarm is it? You may want to invest in some other clock, or maybe set an alarm with your phone. It'll probably be quieter.

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Originally Posted by r2d2651

Uhm, no. How do I go about meditation?

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Though there are many types of meditation, it basically consists of becoming aware of your thoughts. Once you are good at it you can go into a deep state of no-thought, but don't worry about that if you are just starting.

Just sit down and watch all your thoughts, feelings and internal daydreams. Watch them as if they were birds flying outside your window, without any attempt to control or direct them.

Now there are many benefits to this, but it applies directly to lucid dreaming. Dreams are what your thoughts become when they are projected into an internal mental realm. Take an analogy of a film strip. The film strip itself is all of your thoughts (including any belief, fear, opinion, hope, perspective, emotion, etc.) During the day they are in the form of the film strip, but at night they get run through the projector and turn into entire movies. Hence a dream.

Now if you are highly aware of your thoughts during the day, that awareness will get transferred over when your thoughts become entire dreams - therefore more likelihood that you will be aware enough to become lucid. I believe this is more important than just doing reality checks.

If you are not aware of what you are thinking while awake, how can you hope to be aware of what your thoughts become when you are asleep?

Kookyinc, it is a standard $10.00 alarm clock. It has 2 settings "beep" and "radio" the beep is unreliable and I usually sleep through it. So I set it to radio and turn it up to max volume so I am 100% sure I will wake up..

Tranquil Toad, So I find a quiet place every once in a while and just sit back and focus on what I think? And I assume if I do this in my waking life it will pass over to dreams and somehow alert me that I am dreaming?

Yes, basically. Just practice watching your thoughts. Pretend thoughts are like clouds floating by and you are the clear blue sky behind them. You don't judge them or get involved with them in any way, you are just aware of them floating by. You can google "meditation techniques" if you like and get some pointers, but the whole point is to detach your awareness from your thoughts so you are no longer bound by them.

I meditate daily and I have lucid dreams almost every night.

Alright then, thank you! I will try this!

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It's very discouraging and depressing . . . my family is interruptive

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same here bro. also, I often just stand/sit doing nothing, just thinking, is this like meditation?

Have you tried supplements? Thomas Yuschak's book Advanced Lucid Dreaming has a lot of helpful information in that area. The galantamine + choline combination that he recommends has given LDs to people who had never had them before, based on what I've read in other threads. I've had LDs naturally but never "at will" or as often as I'd like, and I also found it surprisingly effective.

"I can barely remember my dreams"

You can set up a self-fulfilling prophecy by saying negative things like that. Turn that into a positive: "I can remember a little." In your DJ write SOMETHING even if it's just a vague memory of an emotion you had in a dream. Was it a nightmare? Was it good? Can you remember someone who was in a dream?

Hey,
I agree with Walms...take a short break...we all do...
And guess what? All of us come back enlightened with willpower that helps us stride forward...
-Sam

Try one more thing. Stay up for about 3 days, untill completly burned out and then try to fall asleep while focusing on some point in mind.

Not something I intentionally practiced, but I have got results a couple times. However, never had a problem to begin with.

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Originally Posted by ultimatedood

I often just stand/sit doing nothing, just thinking, is this like meditation?

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Quite the opposite. You want to observe your thoughts objectively and slowly filter out the monkey minds mind chatter. Then as you advance get to the point of no thought, being able to hold that state for 30 mins to an hour is quite the experience. Constant thinking is an addiction and once you get to the point where you have no thoughts going, you will realize how peaceful and calming it is without the monkey mind or "ego". I've been doing this for a while now and my dream vividness and recall has increased tremendously. I practice energy work while meditating and have not been sick in over a year (I use to have to call in sick nearly every other month to work). It's really opened my eyes to the minds power.

Which leads me to what Bobblehat posted and how true it is. Thought manifests reality. By saying "negative" things like: I can barely remember my dreams. Or I just can't do it! Is setting you up for failure and you may not even know it. Use positive affirmations. I am more conscious in dreams. I can remember vivid detail. I can do it. etc. This will lead to positive thinking and manifesting your desires aka lucid dreaming. It has been working for me, it may work for you.

Just my $.02

I agree with the rest. Take a break, meditating is also a good idea. Just for a couple weeks or something try not to even think about lucid dreaming. Focus on enjoying the summer and meditation. You might find that not focusing on it so much will give you one. That's what happened to me, I was trying every night with mantras and what not. I was getting no where. Then on a 13 hour flight to Hong Kong I just fell asleep and had my first lucid without thinking about it or doing anything.

ETWOLD is a great book, another that might help with the meditation is "Mindfulness in Plain English," I'm reading that now, it's good.

Take a break. A lot of people who stress over it always tell tales of having a LD the day they give up.

Even if you progress at the slowest rate, you'll likely to eventually be able to LD. There is no time limit for LDing; you have the rest of your life to LD, so don't worry.