How's it going?

I'll probably be mostly going to the dream journal section, mostly to post my own dreams. I have absolutely no knowledge of dream interpretation, but am very interested in what others may find in my dreams.

I know people say that you dream every night, you just might not remember each one. In any case, I remember my dream maybe...oh...once every...3-4 months or so. I'm not sure if that is common or rare or what else that means. I have never, ever even been aware that I was dreaming during the dream, much less been able to actually make changes in it. When I heard that people could do that, it was a very strange concept to me.

I usually get at least 6 hours of sleep and usually don't wake up during the night. I can get to sleep pretty easily as well as long as I'm in a familiar place.

Well, nice to be here and hopefully I'll enjoy it. Cheers!

:welcome: to Dreamviews!
Yes, you dream every night, and you just don't remember it... but you'll get better! Check out this tutorial to help you improve your dream recall.
For interpretation of your dreams, you can use either your dream journal or the Dream Interpretation Forum.
Again, welcome to the forum, and if you have any questions, just ask :D

Welcome to the forum, Idec :D

Good dream recall is very important if you are pursuing lucid dreaming. Reason being... how do you know you have never had a lucid dream if you only remember one dream once every 3-4 months? You're right that people dream EVERY night. Just some people remember dreams, and others don't.

Most of the time, keeping a dream journal will improve dream recall by default, but since people with sub-par recall don't have a lot to write in a journal, I would recommend reading dreaming-related information right before bed at night. And then reconfirming to yourself "I will remember my dreams tonight, I will remember my dreams tonight..." before falling asleep.

When you wake up, whether it be in the middle of the night, or in the morning, keep your eyes closed and don't move. Stay in the same position you have been sleeping in. Concentrate on the thoughts that were just in your head. You may see flashes of something, or remember certain things. Remember keywords from any thoughts or images you may see, and once you are satisfied that you have remembered everything you can, open your eyes and write down keywords and anything else that comes to mind. Keeping a small notepad and pen next to your bed will come in handy for this. Some people also keep a penlight in case you wake up in the middle of the night.

Also, waking yourself up in the middle of a REM cycle increases your chances of remembering a dream. There are numerous threads around here about REM cycles and dream recall, so feel free to use the Search option to look around the forum. The best way that I've found to wake yourself without using an alarm, is to drink A LOT of water before bed :wink:

Good luck and let us know if you have any other questions. :)

Thanks for the welcomes and advice. My computer is in my room and always on. I use notepad often to jot things down. I assume that would be suitable for having a notepad close by?

Half of the time I fall asleep without trying to. I'll have something be downloading or running on my computer and while I wait, I'll just go lay on my bed and end up falling asleep, lol. When this happens I usually get awakened by my screen suddenly turning on because my antivirus scan started at 3 in the morning. This is because I didn't turn off my monitors because I wasn't planning to go to bed.

Hey there, well there's not really much more to say so :welcome: to the forums! :D

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Originally Posted by Idec Sdawkminn

Thanks for the welcomes and advice. My computer is in my room and always on. I use notepad often to jot things down. I assume that would be suitable for having a notepad close by?

Half of the time I fall asleep without trying to. I'll have something be downloading or running on my computer and while I wait, I'll just go lay on my bed and end up falling asleep, lol. When this happens I usually get awakened by my screen suddenly turning on because my antivirus scan started at 3 in the morning. This is because I didn't turn off my monitors because I wasn't planning to go to bed.

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The only negative to using a computer is the fact that you have to get up and go over to it. Unless you have a laptop (which is what I do). Sometimes this can damage the memories of the dream, because you've already gotten up and as far as your body is concerned you have started the day. Most people have the best success recalling details by staying as still as possible.

That makes sense. However, in my experience, if I remember it while concious enough to open my eyes, I'll keep remembering it just as clearly no matter what I do. Most of the time I'll just wake up and the last thing I remember was what I did before falling asleep, no matter how hard I try to think of any dreams I might have had.

Idec, it can be hard to remember dreams sometimes, but what you have to do is make it deadly clear in your mind that the events that happen between falling asleep and waking up will be remembered, a good thing to do is just to make it the first thing on your mind when you wake, that way it makes things easier and all the stresses of the day don't wash any details out of your mind.

However you could be like me in the sense that trying such things has a negative effect, so my suggestion to you is to go to bed with no intention, the actual thought of not remembering what you could remember earlier is frustrating, but don't let it frustrate you, just loosen all the mental tension and make it clear that things could go either way.

Hmm. Well, I usually go to bed with no intention. I just go to bed because I'm tired or because I have to be up at a certain time. Dreams are normally not something I think of unless someone brings it up or the rare event when I remember one.

Also, "all the stresses of the day" isn't really that much. Just out of curiosity, I just went and took a stress quiz. I got 31.

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If your score is between 20 and 30, chances are you are non-productive or your life lacks stimulation.

A score between 31 and 50 designates a good balance in your ability to handle and control stress.

If you tallied up a score ranging between 51 and 60, your stress level is marginal and you are bordering on being excessively tense.

If your total number of points exceeds 60, you may be a candidate for heart disease.

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I will try to remember any tips you have mentioned, though. Thanks for the support!