Hello! Newbie here...

**Brigid** · 02-11-2012 04:08 AM

Hi guys. As the title indicates, I am new here. I found this site because it was mentioned in a YouTube video I was watching, and now I've been snooping around for about an hour.

So, I haven't had a lucid dream in a long time. When I was a little kid I used to almost always be aware when I was dreaming––but usually I would just be scared that I was dreaming rather than happy about it. But I do remember being able to control my dreams to a certain extent, particularly being able to sort of "blink" and change my surroundings.

Anyway, I'm 19 now and I'm not so good at it anymore. I can usually remember my dreams pretty clearly, but when I'm within the dream I don't typically realize I'm dreaming. Occasionally I realize it toward the very end of the dream, but then I wake up (maybe because I get too excited about it or something). I also have a lot of false awakenings in my dreams, and I usually wake up paralyzed from my dreams... I don't know if these things are necessarily important to lucid dreaming, but they happen to me a lot.

So, recently I've been trying to work towards lucid dreaming, astral projection, etc. I've started by keeping a dream journal and trying to figure out the patterns in my dreams. And I'm also trying to remember to do reality checks and whatnot. Hopefully I'll learn some more useful techniques here.

Okay, I'll stop ranting now. In conclusion ... I'm very glad I found this site and I look forward to meeting new people and learning new things. If you have any advice, questions, etc. feel free to let me know.

~Brigid

**OctoberWind** · 02-11-2012 04:41 AM

Welcome to DV!
Waking up from a dream and not being able to move is called sleep paralysis, you can actually use that to get another dream (and most likely be lucid)
Becoming lucid near the end of a dream is perfectly normal, when your dreams are about to end, that's when your body is starting to wake up, therefore you're more aware.
Anyways, good luck and happy dreaming!
If you ever have a question, feel free to ask. ^__^

**Desert Claw** · 02-11-2012 04:52 AM

Hi brigid! Welcome to dreamviews!

I would ask some questions and give advice but you seem to be on the right track at the moment. and when you have trouble understanding something you know where to go for help, so you are doing very well haha ;D

See you around

**Brigid** · 02-11-2012 05:44 AM

Thanks OwO! Yeah, I've heard of sleep paralysis before and that's probably what it is. And that makes sense, about becoming more aware towards the end of dreams.

**Brigid** · 02-11-2012 05:45 AM

Thank you for the welcome, Desert Claw! I will certainly stick around and ask questions if need be.

**Choi** · 02-11-2012 06:11 PM

Welcome =D

Allways happy to see more people getting interested in their dreams!
Here is a video serie with all the things you need to know as a newbie, it helped me alot when I started out ^-^: Learn lucid dreaming: part 1 - YouTube

Good luck!

**Brigid** · 02-11-2012 06:21 PM

Hi Choi! Thanks for the welcome and for the video link!

**fOrceez** · 02-12-2012 11:13 AM

Hey and welcome, Brigid!
Sounds like you've already got a head start to most people here- heh! To counter your premature awakenings, try to practice this exercise in waking life whenever you remember it. Stop what you're doing and simply question reality, look at the details of things, observe how people react, etc. Then consider the thought "If i'm dreaming then.." and follow that up with what you'd like to do in the lucid dreams.

Good luck with your lucid dreaming journey and don't hesitate to send me a personal message or post on the boards

**fly** · 02-12-2012 12:46 PM

hi. at the moment i'm more interested in recurring themes and analysis than honing my lucid skills. this is my first post. my dreamlife is enormously pertinent to my waking life. i have multiple epic dreams every night and i remember them all. most of them are pleasant and most of them leave me deeply impressed with the level of creativity my subconscious has. i wish my waking mind was so creative.