New member, trying to get into lucid dreaming, some fear/anxiety issues

Hi. I am just getting into this slightly strange world of lucid dreaming.

The main problem I have is that I am just terrified of it. I am fine with it during the day, even practicing reality checks and such, but in the evenings as the prospect of getting to bed comes closer I just start getting really scared about what could happen and have to think about other things to alleviate my fear, preventing me from having a lucid dream.

The fact that there is weird shit that happens like sleepwalking and sleep paralysis just increases my anxiety. (Even though neither of these have happened to me and I know neither is associated with LD, I am still freaked out by it) Is there any way to avoid this? I am generally a fearful person who walks slowly in the dark, gets freaked out by scary stories/movies, and worries that whenever the doorbell rings it is a serial killer. I don't have any specific phobias though. Just a general very slight fear of everything. I have managed to conquer some fears, like roller coasters.

Is there any way to be less fearful, especially going into lucid dreams?

I have never had a lucid dream that I can remember, and usually only remember dreams very occasionally.

The closest I have ever come to a LD was when I was sick and lied down on the sofa and inadvertently went down the road towards a WILD, though all I remember is brighter and brighter flashes and patterns. No dream, and no vibrations either so maybe it wasn't.

Welcome!

Sleep paralysis is nothing to be afraid of. You won't even notice it - seriously. Unless you already sleepwalk, the odds of that happening are nothing to be concerned about. It's rare for someone to sleepwalk while lucid dreaming. There is not a single thing to be scared of - going into a lucid dream is a very safe procedure.

DILD would be the best route to go down - it doesn't give you the unusual entry WILD does.

It's really irrational. I know it poses no threat to me but it is still scary. I guess it is really just fear of the unknown.

What does that mostly consist of? Practicing reality checks and hoping to get lucky in a dream?

To be honest, until I read your post I thought I was the only one irrationally fearful of the experience. It is amazing and beautiful on so many levels but at the same time, just thinking about it produces illogical anxiety, even during the day. Do not fear what you don't really know…That is really hard to do in practice, but I guess you just have to take a leap of faith and try not to be scared of the unknown. If we don't explore this new aspect of consciousness, than who will?
We are here for you if you need anything at all, don't worry!

Thanks. I'll give it a shot tomorrow night, and tell you guys how it goes. I'll do the nose breathing reality test a lot tomorrow. Should I be doing it when strange things to alert myself when I'm dreaming?

Hey Hosj, welcome to DreamViews!

I'm easily scared by things too, I've literally been scared by my own shadow more than once :chuckle:

Lucid dreaming hasn't ever scared me though. There's no need to worry about sleep walking or sleep paralysis, lucid dreaming won't increase the odds of either of those happening. You could encounter both without ever having practiced lucid dreaming.

When doing reality checks remember not to do quick, effortless, thoughtless reality checks. The point of RCing in waking life is to raise awareness, so when you RC take a moment to question your reality and examine your surroundings. Ask yourself if you're dreaming, ask yourself how you got where you are, what were you doing 15 minutes ago? Reality checking when you notice something odd is good to do but that won't give you many times to RC. So perform reality checks throughout the day in addition to RCing when something strange happens.

Here are two good DILD guides:
DILD Tutorial - Lucid Dreaming - Dream Views
http://www.dreamviews.com/induction-...kingyoshi.html

Let me or one of the Dream Guides know if you need help with anything. Good luck on your lucid dreaming journey, I hope you enjoy it here!

Hello, Hosj. Welcome to DreamViews. Well, you've already read about how you have nothing to fear in regards to sleepwalking, sleep paralysis, etc. But what about addressing your anxieties directly? I'm not sure if you've heard of this (though maybe it's why you decided to get into lucid dreaming in the first place) but did you know that you can actually use lucid dreaming to help treat your anxiety?

Lucid dreaming can be used as a powerful gateway to exploring the deeper levels one's own psyche (or so I've heard) and there are people who have said to simply tell their subconscious to rid them of their anxiety in a lucid dream and the command carrying over to fruition in real life. Or you can use lucid dreaming to confront what you're afraid of in a controlled, simulated environment and thus learn to overcome this fear; or ask your dreams the answers to deep questions about yourselves and use your newfound, profound self-knowledge as a guide in your success.

So if you find that your problems with anxiety, phobias, etc. are seriously encroaching on your ability to function and be happy in your waking life, you could look into lucid dreaming for your solution. (A licensed therapist might be helpful too, though...)