Hi there everyone. I have just joined this fantastic website and I look forward to sharing and talking about lucid dreaming on here!
I first learnt about lucid dreaming a couple of months ago but didn't really understand it. But On Sunday 24th March 2013 I found out about it again and became so interested in it all. I started learning about the DILD and MILD techniques and methods and began on that sunday night. That first night I dreamt I was talking to someone about lucid dreaming but never became lucid so I think I am off to not a bad start. Obviously only 5 days in I have yet to have a lucid dream but the techniques I have been attempting are reality checks throughout the day, started my dream journal on monday morning and use the MILD technique before I go to sleep (I need to improve on my MILD though). I think my dream recall is okay as I can usually remember one dream per night (usually a lot of parts from it) and usually remember it throughout the whole day. The last 2 days I started the WBTB technique (for DILD). This is where I could use some advice from someone. My sleep patterns are usually mixed as I don't have a set time to go to bed. The first night I tried WBTB I went to bed at about 12 and set my alarm for 6am. I actually naturally woke at 5.30am which was really unusual for me to do that and then I went back to sleep for another 30 minutes till 6 am. I got up (did not wake up straight from a dream) and just visualized what I wanted my dream to be and after 20 minutes went back to sleep using MILD. That morning I actually remembered that I had quite a vivid dream and wrote it in my journal. I tried WBTB again the following night but instead I went bed at 1.30am and this time got up 5 hours from going to sleep (when the alarm woke me, I did not wake up straight from a dream again). I then for about 30 minutes went on my iPhone and just researched lucid dreaming and read people's experiences. I then went back to bed and because I am on holiday now I did not wake till 11.10am (Lazy I know!) I had a couple of pretty vivid dreams and for the first time, I remembered more than one dream (not everything about them though) but the parts I remembered were vivid and wrote them in my journal. So should I continue using WBTB technique and should I keep trying different times so I can wake straight from REM? Or keep at WBTB but just keep one constant time to get up regardless of if I wake up straight from REM or not? And I know It is still early days but I cant help feeling a wave of disappointment swoop over me when I wake up because I did not have a lucid dream. This is probably because I get so excited at night and during the day believing I will have one! So could anyone give me any advice about dealing with disappointment and about my WBTB technique? And I have yet to spot any dreamsigns yet but I do feel my recall is better with WBTB. Thank you if you read through the whole of this!! and a big thanks if anyone replies!

Many thanks, Marcus