allow me to introduce myself.

[ksmash]

I'm new here (duh) and excited to be surrounded by those who won't say, "you can do that when you dream?!". Family and friends can never get past that when I really want to talk about "what" I dreamed about, not "how". When I first signed up I said I was a Master, but changed it to Expert after reading the descriptions. I don't think I could "teach" someone else how to LD (lucid dream/dreaming right?) since I didn't teach myself. I've always known I was dreaming ever since I could remember. I didn't start controlling/changing my dreams until I was about 7 or 8 years old after some simple advice from my mom and grandpa to help me deal with some bad nightmares. I had no idea this was unusual until my hubby said so. Checking out these message boards make me feel like I'm not such a weirdo...although I kind of like being one anyway. I've been doing alot of soul-searching in the last couple of months and I think my dreams will help me understand my "awake" brain a little better. I've never kept a dream journal but I'm going to start right away. Any advice on that would be just super-duper. Anyway, thanks for having me ksmash

[Tornado Joe]

Hey K and That's great that you come to us with so much experience already. Don't be suprised if you find yourself learning something new here - there's people from all over the world who share experiences such as your own and some who have experiences quite unique. As you will notice there are people of all different skill levels as well and we have a pretty helpful and friendly community here all working to help each other out. Dream journal advice? Never stop writting! The one thing that can keep your journal filled with blank pages is saying to yourself "ah, I'll just write it down later" or, " nah, that dream wasn't so interesting, I'll just skip that one". Me <-- guilty of saying both, still hasn't gotten back to the journal Anyway, if you have any questions you need answered in private or simply want to start a dialogue with someone, feel free to PM any of the staff (particularly DreamGuides, that's what we're here for! )

[Burns]

Welcome to the forum, ksmash! I'm glad you've found a place where you feel comfortable. The community here is great, so like Joe said, don't hesitate to ask questions and share experiences. Good luck and have fun!