Thread: Is it bad to stay in bed and NOT try to sleep?

Okay, so (before I heard about lucid dreaming) I used to do all kinds of different things while lying down in my bed. Things like reading a book, playing gameboy, or just thinking. Is this bad?
What got me concerned about this is because I once tried to get SP by lying still in bed and not moving. This didn't work though...
So, I'm willing to stop if it prevents SP. Does it?

Hello wilford111, welcome to DV!

I can't really relate, since I don't do things at bed. All I do in it is sleep and use it as a chair to be in computer

First of all, and talking about this in a very non-dreaming lvl, playing gameboy/reading in bed doesn't sound like a good position. It can make your members a bit more tired from supporting your weight (depending on position). The deal is, it won't be that that will stop you from having sleep paralysis. Personally, whenever I think on bed, means I'm going to sleep=dream=lucid dream, but that doesn't mean you won't lucid dream.

About sleep paralysis, it's not as simple as you may think. WILD is somewhat a hard technique that many good lucid dreamers have troubles mastering, so you shouldn't base your judgments on it solely by one attempt It's perfectly possible to do it, but it requires a complete relax from your part. Other than that, it's a kind of balance: being as relaxed as possible (just like you normally are when you're trying to fall asleep normally) and at the same time, keeping a small trace of awareness. It's like driving a car at 5Km/h if you get me.

Now, the set time for performing WILD plays a huge role on the success of it. You should be experiencing after 4.5 to 6 hours of sleep. This is because in these later sleep cycles, you reach the REM stage (thus, the SP) much faster. But this doesn't mean it's something like "lay there, wait 15minutes, and you're in". It's more like "relax, feel your body relaxing, feel your mind clearing from anything". At some point, you're body will begin to shut down. You will hardly feel it, because what you want is to distract yourself from the physical world, so your brain actually thinks you've felt asleep. It's actually more a sense of numbness and grogginess that prologues until you start reaching full sp and entering the dream.

Good luck on lucid dreaming!

Can I have some more information about your attempt, how long did you lay still, what problems did you have, what sensations did you feel.
I can provide a better answer with that information!

Thanks Zoth
To Arch, the first time I ever attempted a WILD was the same day I even heard about Lucid Dreaming. I read that if you lay completely still, ignoring all urges to move your body (whatever they might be), and wait, you will start to hear noises and see hallucinations if you open your eyes. I didn't want to see the hallucinations though, I just wanted to get a lucid dream. So, I waited to hear the noises, didn't hear them at all, and then just decided to start thinking about what a lucid dream would be like (in attempt to hopefully go into an actual LD)
The result was basically something like a day-dream, only a lot more vivid and random (and a little chaotic even). I knew this wasn't really what an LD was like, so I stopped and sat up in bed. I looked at the clock and found out that I had been at it for nearly two hours. I was confused at why I couldn't go into SP. Then the next morning, I read a little more about SP and LDing and found out what I was doing wrong.
However, I still don't know why I didn't at least enter into sleep paralyses. I had full control over my body during the whole two hours. I didn't hear anything strange either. That's why I started this thread.
SOOOOO... do you have an answer for me?

I can't see any reason laying in bed would be a problem. What differece does it make if you are laying in bed as appose to siting in a chair or laying on a couch. Some people are sick and have to lay in bed for weeks. Also theres nothing bad or dangerous about sleep paralysis, it just can be scary if it sets in while you are still awake and you don't know what it is. Since you know what it is if it ever does happen just enjoy it. Your not going to get SP from laying in bed and playing a game boy. Why is it that you think simply laying in bed would be dangerous?

Originally Posted by MadMonkey

Why is it that you think simply laying in bed would be dangerous?

It's not that I think it would be dangerous, I just think it would effect my ability to go into SP. Here's what I think: If I'm laying in bed reading or playing game boy all the time, then my body will get used to it, and will not know the difference between me doing those things or actually trying to sleep. So it puts off sleep paralysis, until it knows I am asleep, by some other sign rather than just my body lying still.
Does that make sense? Or do I still have nothing to worry about?

Originally Posted by Wilford111

It's not that I think it would be dangerous, I just think it would effect my ability to go into SP. Here's what I think: If I'm laying in bed reading or playing game boy all the time, then my body will get used to it, and will not know the difference between me doing those things or actually trying to sleep. So it puts off sleep paralysis, until it knows I am asleep, by some other sign rather than just my body lying still.
Does that make sense? Or do I still have nothing to worry about?

I believe this is true, and I learned the hard way. I always used to do homework and play games on my bed, and kept having a hard time falling asleep. I stopped doing this and within a week, I fell asleep much faster.

Don't let a one-time failure and possibly the issue with doing other things on your bed scare you away from WILD, though. Many factors including tiredness, attention to your physical body, and mental alertness can all play a role in WILD attempts. Playing your game boy shouldn't stop SP though; you'd be sleepwalking all the time, then! You may have to stay still a bit more, but you'll be able to reach SP with the right mindset and when you're relaxed enough.

Originally Posted by Wilford111

It's not that I think it would be dangerous, I just think it would effect my ability to go into SP. Here's what I think: If I'm laying in bed reading or playing game boy all the time, then my body will get used to it, and will not know the difference between me doing those things or actually trying to sleep. So it puts off sleep paralysis, until it knows I am asleep, by some other sign rather than just my body lying still.
Does that make sense? Or do I still have nothing to worry about?

Ahh I see. Ya it probably could make it harder, espeiclay video games. You probably won't be able to get sleep paraylisis before getting any sleep though regardless. You should try and wake up after a couple of hours of sleep and then try to get sp and WILD. Otherwise you will be wasting your time.

Originally Posted by MadMonkey

You should try and wake up after a couple of hours of sleep and then try to get sp and WILD. Otherwise you will be wasting your time.

And that's what I did, the next night, and it worked!

Only the dream lasted about a minute or so... I've still got to practice dream stabilization...

If I lay in bed for a while (listening to music, reading a book) I do have trouble falling asleep afterwards.

No, I don't think so, I've always done it, my mind wanders off and stuff so, no, it isn't.