Typical Dream Recall vs. Lucid Dreams

Hello DV community,

Because of the movie Inception I have become interested in lucid dreams. Per the instructions on this website as well as the Lucidity Institute, I am working on my dream recall and doing quite well I might add. Before I started working on dream recall, I rarely, if ever, remembered my dreams unless they were disturbing or extremely vivid.

Since I've been working on dream recall, I have been able to remember my dreams in the morning pretty frequently. However, I don't often have vivid dreams. I often just wake up and can go through my dreams from the end to the beginning and trace the story backwards. I remember what happened, who was involved and other strange occurrences. But I don't wake up feeling like my dream was reality.

I'm wondering what my first Lucid Dream will be like...

When I become Lucid for the first time, based on what I've read on this site and at the Lucidity Institute, I'll feel like I'm in reality but I'm in the dream world - i.e. it will feel like a vivid dream except I'm conscious.

Anyone have an a good example of what the difference is like between simply waking up and remembering your dreams and having a lucid dream?

Thanks!

When I had my first LD it was unmistakable! I was completely aware that I was in a dream. I just posted in the newbie section with a little about what it was like. I had a tremendous amount of control. Sometimes in the past I would wake up and remember that I did something to control the situation in the dream, but it wasn't anything extraordinary. I think the main thing that was different than a normal dream was that when I awoke, I knew that I was aware I was in a dream during the actual dream.

I didn't know what it would feel like either and I had the same question as you.
When i had my first LD, i was blown away of how real it felt, lol. What an experience..
To your question..
In a Lucid dream, it feels like you're actually awake rather than a regular dream where it only feels like a "memory" after you wake up.
It's hard to explain. :P anyway
Its super awesome, don't give up! :D

At aLucidSkater - Thanks for the post! That's exactly what I wanted to know. Based on all of the information I've gathered from the Internet, I was certain that having a lucid dream was nothing less than awesome. Just curious what it was like when you woke up! :)

My guess is that it's so essential to have excellent dream recall because you definitely want to remember as much as you can about your lucid dreams. :)

waking up? I felt awesome after experiencing something so unreal.. My first thoughts were "whoa, did that just happen..." lol
Waking up was weird B/c its happened so quickly.. At one point I was talking with a friend in the LD than a second later I was looking around my room awake. I felt like i wasn't asleep at all.

I bet. I've been tempted many times to just start in on reality checks, and go for the lucid dreams. But I'm determined to get very good at dream recall first.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by beaconfield

I bet. I've been tempted many times to just start in on reality checks, and go for the lucid dreams. But I'm determined to get very good at dream recall first.

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You can do both at the same time! Doing RCs throughout the day won't hurt your dream recall at all, and it will help increase your chance at becoming lucid! The only way to hurt your dream recall is to take certain types of drugs the night before, or stop keeping a DJ.

I've had my first four lucids during the last two months. The first one came spontaneously after a dramatic change in sleeping schedule led to a spike in my (previously nil) dream recall. When I did start remembering them, I was able to have some pretty vivid non-lucids. In fact, part of my decision to pursue this and keep a DJ is that I found the non-lucids can actually be fun to recall, even if they aren't lucid...

Anyway, my first three lucids were very low quality, compared to some of the non-lucids. On my first one, I could actually feel my body in bed, and even move a finger. It felt almost like I was just visualizing it in my mind's eye, and it didn't last very long. If I hadn't remembered part of the dream before I became lucid, I'm not sure I would have realized it was a dream. The second lucid I really concentrated on trying to stabilize the dream, but I'm not sure it was all that much better -- I still felt like I was mostly visualizing things (although again, I could remember an earlier part of the dream where that wasn't the case). The third I think was better still, but still somewhat short.

Last night was my fourth, and it was very different. Where before I felt very much in charge of everything I was visualizing, in this dream, I kinda just followed the "plot" and observed things as I went along. It was fairly long, and I actually don't remember the point at which I became lucid, or most of the early part of the dream. But I do remember from later in the dream it was realistic enough that I was amazed to see buttons on an elevator panel change sizes, layout, numbering, and font when I looked away and looked back -- it was kinda freaky. Then, just before waking, I thought about jumping off a balcony to try flying, but the grass below looked too real, and my rational brain chickened out. I even decided to try another RC, just to really make sure I was dreaming. I pinched my nose, and the feeling of breathing through a plugged nose for the first time was so bizarre that I just kept holding my nose and breathing for a few seconds until I became aware my real body lying in bed, and I woke up.

So I would say that your first couple of LDs might be low quality (although others have reported differently so YMMV). But keep at it, because mine have only gotten progressively better.

At voidptr - Wow, sounds like you've had some very cool experiences lately with lucid dreams. I have been steeped with anticipation for my first lucid dream. I find this whole arena of the mind infinitely interesting!

At burke - So you're saying that it's fine to start in on the reality checks while you work on your dream recall? All of the info. I've read said you should work on your dream recall first, but maybe that doesn't matter?

Where did you read that?
You can practice both at the same time if you wish.

I've read that you should work on dream recall first both here at Dream Views as well as on the Lucidity Institude's website. They say that dream recall is absolutely essential to having lucid dreams because otherwise you won't remember them. But maybe I can work on having lucid dreams while I work on my dream recall.

Yeah, that would be good. :)