HELLO hello HeLlo - new and exited

Hi All

New here and I am very exited to start learning my own Lucid Dreaming techniques. I used to do it a lot when I was younger but as i grew up I lost my connection with my dreams. Maybe its from all the stress and work that when I hit the bed i was OUT or maybe its just cuz I recently felt that dreams are not important to remember(without realizing it ofcourse - bad habbits). But I long for that feeling and would love to get back into it. So therefore I am here.

I started yesterday and did the technique of drawing a "A" on my hand and every now and then to look at my hand and when I see the "A" i have to remind myself that I am awake and try and push my finger into the palm of my hand. hoping this will carry through to my dreams but incase it does not I also have a ring that I spin every now and then and if it stops, I know im awake. But ive never had it stop spinning so I dunno if it will or wont stop in my dreams. Would anybody say that maybe im trying too many techniques at once? I know its only been one day so I cant exactly expect the best results but thats why I am here...interest and guidance. any help would be much appreciated.

Looking forward for all the new experiences that await me

Kindest regards
Mr Dee

Hi MrDee,
Welcome to the forums, I am also a newbie here, and I understand what you are saying, Just three days ago, when I finally realized it was time for me to master LD, I felt a rush, the possibility of me taking over my dreams made me really excited, restless, very eager and anxious, and I did the same mistake of trying too many things in a single day, expecting them to work or atleast show a hint of improvement. Please do not be caught in this web of experience as I had to, now I realized, I have my whole life ahead of me, to make this Journey, there is no need to rush or feel hurried, it only caused me more anxiety, but Now, I remember I need to hold my composure and go with the flow, I tried to incorporate the various facets of LD Training into my daily life like I had done with Brushing my teeth or bathing. The results will definitely show. So I suggest you to get organized. This forum is very welcoming for beginners, try to go here

Quote:

---

dreamviews.com/welcome/142178-where-start.html

---

and get educated on the various techniques and Abbreviations in the DV Dictionary here

Quote:

---

dreamviews.com/wiki/Category:DV-Dictionary

---

also consider Joining the Intro class for beginners like us, if you like. Remember, you are trying to explore another dimension of your life, with absolute practice, you will simply get there in no time.

Happy Dreaming.

Welcome to DV, Mr. Dee!
I noticed a potential issue in your technique you described.
You write

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MrDee

remind myself that I am awake

---

That won't work. See the problem is not that we do not remember enough that we are awake, but rather that we assume we are awake even when we are asleep. By reminding yourself that you are awake, you are reinforcing that, making lucidity perhaps even less likely. In reality checks expectations matter, if you perform a reality check expecting it to confirm awakeness, it most likely will, even when you are actually asleep. So instead, it is important to approach a reality check seriously questioning the reality of the moment: ask yourself, could this be a dream? Be open to the very real possibility that you could be dreaming right now. Expect your finger to go through that palm, and even if it does not, remind yourself that if this were a dream your finger would go through. If you have any doubt as to whether a reality check would work differently in a dream, such as your spinning ring, then that is not a good reality check. You need a reality check that you are confident in, and you need to seriously expect it to show you that this is a dream right now. Start questioning reality - it is better to think for a moment that waking life is a dream, then to just assume it is waking reality, because that breaks your habit of assuming that you are awake.

Hey and welcome.
I totally agree with JoannaB. Drawing an 'A' on your hand is indeed a good reminder (I put on a friendship bracelet every morning which by now I always associate with lucid dreaming whenever I see or notice it). So it seems that you have got the 'reminding part' all set. You might also put paper slips around your room/home which look appealing to you and have something written on them like 'Am I dreaming?' or just 'Lucid Dream'...

BUT as Joanna said, never remind yourself that you are awake. Always question everything around you instead of already assuming something that you can never be sure of without actually proving it. If you didn't do that then every of your efforts would be useless considering that you already answer your own question: 'Oh, yes of course I am awake. Let's do a Reality CHeck to prove that' and then of course the Reality Check will show that you are awake.
So my suggestion: While improving your dream recall and analysing your dreams you should work on your AWARENESS which is the most important part in noticing that you are dreaming. Basically awareness helps you telling the difference between dream and reality by noticing all the subtle things in life that most people simply take for granted without ever thinking about and hence doing the same in your dreams.

Awareness helps telling what reality is like and analysing your dreams helps telling what your dreams are like. And if you now combine those 2... BAM: You have now trained your awareness and know what your dreams are like so it shouldn't be a problem telling reality and dream apart :) Just keep training your awareness. You might want to have a look at techniques like WBTB, ADA or MILD. As a beginner I am making a lot of use of those ones. I find them really handy and effective.
I hope I was able to help.

- Benni

Thanks much for the response Kamskun, JoannaB and Benni. It is much appreciated and I now realize my mistakes and that would have probably taken me months to learn if not for you guys. I will question my reality and looking for proof starting right this minute. and thanks for the links and the paperclip idea. Going to take some colorful paperclips home today and see whether that helps. Have an awesum day all

Thanks again
Cheerz