Hello, you guys have some good advice!

Ok, well Hi. I had only been lurking for a couple of weeks before signing up, but the reason I found you guys was because I was searching for ways to get my dreams back. And it all started with someone telling me that possibly it could be the tobacco that is causing the lack of dreaming (I know I must have been dreaming, just dull), and lack of the ability to remember any of them, for years, like 15+ years. I am 31 now, married, two kids, crappy job, very very crappy job, and stressed out most of the time, which is completely opposite of my 20's.

I quit chewing tobacco, and almost killed my boss in the process (he should have shut his mouth and my foot might not have fit), and luckily kept my really crappy job, and it didn't seem to fix the issue. I have not picked up the habit since, yay right? Still no dreams. I was not discouraged, so I quit smoking pot (yeah I know, I'm a real winner), and quit drinking caffeine. Nada, but I figure this could be taking long to come out of my system since I'd been chewing, smoking, and caffeinating up for so long. So I bumped into an article here that lemmie know I should be feeding my brain some better stuff, such as Spirulina and Chlorella, so the Mrs. and I went down to the herb lady (herbalist) and loaded up with some of the aforementioned stuff, along with some Essiac (total liver flusher blaster) and some mega vitamins, and some Yerba Mate to curb the caffeine withdraws.

Got one!! Now I'm not sure what it was that caused the positive results, and it was a very minimal result, I only remember a small portion of the dream... but its a start right? Who knows, it could be that I was just trying so hard to remember them that I did.... but I have a feeling that my really bad diet and habits were having something to do with it. Now I'm on number 2 dream recall.... I have written them both down as best I could recall them.

So thanks! I'll keep you update when I think I'm ready for this Lucid stuff... But I'm just happy to remember a single dream at all. :panic:

I've heard weed keeps you from remembering dreams, but start a dream journal and write EVERYTHING you remember from dreams. all of it. You can resume smoking bud if you want, in a few months, after dream recall has improved. I'm 14, but i've studied dreams and the unconscious mind quite a lot, and i smoke weed regularly. I remember a few dreams a week though, and they are almost ALL lucid. Just wait until you remember at least 3 dreams a week xD, and remember it probably wasn't just one thing. you can have a cup of joe or take a bong rip whenever, but your first step is a dream journal. :D keep me updated on your progress, and good luck!

Tobacco, marajuana, alcohol, caffine, etc. All of those things are chemicals added to your body, so they are probably all responsible for your lack of recall, compounded if taken all together.

How long have you been trying to regain your dream recall? It probably will take a little while for your body to readjust to not having all of those things, but eventually you'll normal out. Do you get enough sleep? That will definitely affect your ability to remember your dreams, as you spend more time dreaming towards the morning than you do when you first fall asleep.

Lastly, if you're stressed out, that's going to kill your recall. A great deal of people, myself included, have found that if we go to sleep stressed and worried and anxious, it can be difficult to sleep and we'll be so focused on the worries of the day that when we wake up the thoughts of our dreams are immediately replaced by thoughts of what we have to do that day. Practicing relaxation techniques such as progressive relaxation or meditation or just taking some time to calm down before bed can help with that. When you go to sleep, forget about the job and the people who are making you upset and all of that. There's nothing you can do until the morning when you get up.

You'll get your recall back in time :) Don't give up! Let us know if there's any way we can help you.

-Amé

The combination of chemicals had to play a major factor in my loss of recall, it really has been about 15 years since the last I remember getting good sleep and having good dreams. Not only that, but I believe it was contributing heavily to the amount of stress in my life and/or the ability to deal with it subconsciously.

And to Sheeps: I never thought I would say this, but... There will be no more bud smoking for me. Trying to do without adding anything to my diet,

I would like to get to eating only whole foods and stay that way. Your perspective will be that of a different angle, and that is completely reasonable... but just imagine the high you would get if you cut out all the toxins from your diet. This pretty much means that you have to grow and cook all of your own food. The idea sounds awesome to me... but difficult to achieve nowadays unless you are a vertical garden guru.

So over the past 5 days, I have remember dreams for 4 of them! The only caffeine I am getting is from the green tea (with Yerba Mate) and it seems to be a huge difference! Caffeine is some potent stuff. I decided not to try and quit the caffeine cold turkey like I did the tobacco, so as not to kill anyone. I have written down every single one of these dreams, and geez are they wild!

The stress thing is huge and I am doing all that is possible to relieve the issue, though I know some of it is mental... most of it is this place of work. I'm finding a new job. In the meanwhile, learning how to meditate and trying to be coolguy again instead of jerkface. We'll see how it goes. I will need help, and I'm not so proud that I can't ask.

hi government, good for you. thats a cracking change about. i find that if you go to sleep just sort of tired but not exhausted its best for a l.d and thats where the weed will stop you. i try to float and when i feel that im usually there. ive heard spinnings good. but either way you going to be a lot healthier. all the best.

OK just a little update here. Fell right off the wagon for the tobacco thing, but kinda a good thing... I noticed the dreams started getting harder to recall, so in my case I was able to isolate the immediate issue. The caffeine and alcohol are still out of my life, and the weed is also a thing of the past. There are co-workers who report having all kinds of freaky dreams and they are chain smokers.... so I'm guessing that it is a thing related to my particular body chemistry that prevents me from having easy dream recall and being a tobacco user. I'm working on cutting it back out, now that I'm not dropping so many habits at one time it should be a little easier.

Just hoping to help others who may possibly be having the same issue. Hope it helps. I know it will help me when I'm finally done with tobacco :)