Thread: What are different types of ways to lucid dream?

You have your pick of the three, with all others being variations of these.

First, MILD or mnemonic induction of lucid dreams. Effectively, you're performing mantras, doing reality checks and improving your memory with the goal of remembering whatever your intention is within the dream world and, thereby, becoming lucid within the dream.

Second, DILD or dream induced lucid dream. This is very similar to MILD, but has a bigger emphasis on reality checking, as opposed to mantras. Essentially, you're trying to make the art of reality checking routine enough that your dream self follows the practice and makes you lucid half way through the dream, but not so routine that its a simple as breathing and just as mindless. This is usually accomplished by changing the trigger for your reality checks.

Last, but not least, we have WILD or wake induced lucid dreams. My personal favorite method, this has you maintaining waking awareness from actually being awake, all the way through to the dream itself. Repeating a mantra can help with keeping yourself aware throughout the process of dream formation or, if you're more visually inclined, a repetitive image, such as a man climbing an infinite staircase. Personally, I prefer mantras, but I can say from experience that visualizing also works. All that said, it is a bad idea to WILD immediately upon going to bed. You are best waiting 5 or 6 hours after you first drop off and trying it then. This is because dreams mostly occur during the REM period of sleep, which can be up to 90 minutes away when you first go down. 5-6 hours later, however, not only have the REM periods much closer and sooner, but are also longer, often upwards of an hour.

I hope this was helpful as a basic overview and if you've got any questions about any of these methods, don't hesitate to ask.

I would suggest doing FILD (Finger Induced Lucid Dream) to start out. What FILD is, is when you go to sleep like normal then wake up during the REM stage which is about 5 hours after sleep. Once awake and you feel like you're about to fall back asleep which will be very quickly, you need to start moving your index and middle finger like playing the piano, except they wont move so drastically, in fact they will barely move at all. After 30 seconds or so it will feel like you are still moving those 2 fingers, though there is a high percent that you will be in a false awakening. What you need to do is slowly open your eyes and do an RC such as holding your nose and trying to breathe. If you can breathe with your nose held, then congratulations! You are lucid dreaming.

Have Fun!