DILD Recall

Hello all!

In recent nights, I have been having trouble recalling my DILD dream(s).
I've made it a habit of drinking large amounts of water before bed so that I may wake up at the end of a dream; however, this really isn't working.

Is there something I can do, such as setting my alarm at a certain time after I go to bed, that will help with my DILD recall?

Thanks!

There are things people to do help increase dream vividness (how memorable the dream is after waking), such as drinking a glass of apple juice before bed, taking vitamin B6 supplements, or even eating some chocolate.

If you're the type of person who wakes up naturally in the middle of the night, try staying in bed with your eyes closed, trying to think of stuff that you may have dreamt about. You can even try thinking about past dreams, and see if anything comes to mind.

You could try setting your alarm clock to wake you up during the night. Most people set theirs for 4-6 hours after falling asleep (approximately), so you might have to fiddle with the exact time to see what will wake you up after REM. I wouldn't set it for less than 4 hours, as before then time spent in REM is shorter than after that 4-hour mark. You may find yourself eventually waking up on your own if you practice long enough. It all depends on how persistent you are and it helps if you keep a regular schedule.

Personally, if I take B6 before going to bed I'll wake up 4 hours later and be unable to fall back to sleep, but it helps other people. So if you want to try a supplement, start small. I wouldn't completely rely on it, though. The most important thing is to be persistent. Don't give up writing in your DJ. Write in it every morning.

And as Puffin said, it does help to not move after you wake up. Just lay there for a little while and try to think about the last thing you can recall about your dream (characters, places, emotions, colors, etc.) and then work backwards. Don't lay there too long, but when you think you have a grasp on your memory of the dream, then grab your journal and start writing.