why do i need an extra ten minute nap to recall?

the last four times ive recalled dreams, i've woken to my alarm, turned it off, and lay there trying to remember if i'd dreampt... ive given up, looked at the projection on my ceilling, and seeing ive still got time before i have to get up, closed my eyes and snoozed for a few minutes...

each time i've snoozed for at least 10 minutes ive had a recall... when i had nothing beforehand...

why is this? is there any way i can draw on this to improve my recall (aside from my DJ) or perhaps draw on it to induce a lucid? for the record, i'm sure that waking up to begin with is NOT an FA...

anyone?
thanks..
-tony

Hey there,

Are you recalling older dreams, or are you having recall because of the 10 minute snooze? We tend to sleep lighter the more sleep we've had. Early sleep is very deep sleep in which its very hard to remember dreams at all.

Snoozing at the end of your sleeping period, on the other hand, is very light sleep which would make it very easy to recall things. Even in ten minutes, it's quite possible to have dreams (I know I have them often).

Additionally, 'clearing the mind' can be helpful in remembering dreams as well, so that might be another factor. Paradoxically, it's even possible to become so focussed on 'I have to remember your dream' that this very focus is actually interfering with your ability to remember the dream :) You're not paying attention to your dream, in this scenario, you're paying attention to your desire to remember your dream. Which is why 'letting go' at that point and clearing your mind can sometimes bring a dream right back into your memory.

Regardless, can you use this to improve recall? Absolutely. Work with what you remember, write it down, even if its just a feeling, a sound, an emotion. Simply by paying attention to your dreams you will find your dream recall starting to improve over time, and after a while you might find you're starting to remember bits and pieces of dreams from other periods during the night as well.

Hope that helps!

-Redrivertears-

Hello mate,

Sounds like you genuinly are having trouble with recall. I developed a technique for me to induce lucidity, but what I have found as that even when this fails my recall and vividness of my dreams has improved so much. Others have reported it helped them with recall too. You might want to check it out, there is a link in my sig. :)

Hey Tony,

I think that though you are having problems with recalling your dreams that it is a fixable problem, most problems are solvable. Basically to improve your recall i think you need to maybe approach the situation with a fresh state of mind, try and be positive about things, don't tell yourself that you will remember dreams the night before you go to bed because i guarantee if you don't remember any in the morning you will feel disappointed.

My advice to you is to experiment, see what works best, trial and error is the best way, go to bed and don't even think about recalling any dreams, just clear your mind and feel at ease as your fall asleep. Stress can damage recall alot so if you experience alot of stress you may want to try and get rid of it by maybe doing some meditation or relaxation exercises. Its up to you, experiment and see what works best for you, another is if you wake in the morning and get in a state of clear thinking and then try to remember some dreams you just had, it can be the tiniest details, just work on it, things will improve :) Believe me.

red: that makes alot of sense.... a whole lot......

adam: i've been re-reading your technique since you PMd me a few days ago... just these last few days ive been so distracted in the morning that it's difficult to remember that i was just alseep, let alone what ive dreampt about.. the faith is still there, as i know i was dreaming... it's just a shadow when i go to think about it once ive been disturbed so horribly from my sleep (mom/phone calls and sister/slamming my door.. ugh)

seeker: last night i decided to try and "force" a dreamsign... it's corny, but i'm stealing a technique from star trek voyager... where dude (don't know his name) sees the moon all over the place to remind him he is dreaming. i actually think it may have worked.. i remember about .025 seconds before i woke up to my alarm that i was in a good mood because i thought it'd worked, but i really just can't remember today.. too many distractions this morning... (my sister kept bursting into my room and scaring the crap out of me every five minutes... what a way to start the day..)

to all of the above: thanks for the replies! your insight is most deffinitely valued... i shall keep.. um.. "trying to let it happen" if you will... "trying not to try too hard but still make the effort" ... you know what i mean... either way, thanks for the support.