A Few Questions

[Josh90]

First, I'd like to comment on how awesome of a resource this website has been for me. I've become lucid once (two nights ago) and woke up in excitement! Anyways, few questions.. 1.) Is it common for people to try the WILD technique, only to fall asleep and find themselves lucid? 2.) Any suggestions on how to better focus? I've tried the WILD technique several times, after awaking early in the morning, and was simply too mentally "tired" to continue. 3.) Is it normal to be slightly anxious about the "random sounds" and "sudden dropoff into the dream state" that the WILD technique entails? 4.) As you can obviously tell, I've tried the WILD technique most frequently. Is it that more difficult than some of the other techniques? What would you say is best for beginners? I've kept up a dream journal as directed as well. Thanks alot everyone. I'll be posting here frequently.

[Man of Steel]

First, I'd like to comment on how awesome of a resource this website has been for me. I've become lucid once (two nights ago) and woke up in excitement! Welcome to our humble community, and congrats on your first lucid experience! Hope it was a good one! Also, if Josh is your real name, then that rocks*, because my name is Josh too! Anyways, few questions.. 1.) Is it common for people to try the WILD technique, only to fall asleep and find themselves lucid? I'm not positive what you're trying to ask here. The goal of a WILD is of course to go straight into a dream state without becoming unconscious, and thus remaining conscious in the dream. If I understand your question correctly, then no, it's not all that common. Essentially, if you fall asleep (become unconscious) and thus have failed to WILD, you typically won't find yourself lucid (conscious within the dream) immediately thereafter. It is, of course, possible, just not terribly likely. Of course, I may have completely misunderstood the question and I probably didn't phrase that well; I apologize if I've confused you with that. 2.) Any suggestions on how to better focus? I've tried the WILD technique several times, after awaking early in the morning, and was simply too mentally "tired" to continue. The idea here is simply to keep the mind awake while letting the body fall asleep. Simple counting sometimes works well enough; if you find you start to lose count try just counting to ten over and over. If counting is in itself putting you (the part of you that we don't want asleep) to sleep, then you can think of pretty much anything, but try to keep it structured. Just letting your mind ramble is a quick way to lose consciousness. I'll let some other folk more experienced with WILD chime in on this one. 3.) Is it normal to be slightly anxious about the "random sounds" and "sudden dropoff into the dream state" that the WILD technique entails? Completely normal. However, keep in mind that quite a few people never hear any strange sounds, or even see much in the way of hypnagogic imagery. That transition to the dream state can be sudden, but it's nothing to be afraid of. Think of it a bit like a drop-off on a roller coaster ride if you will. 4.) As you can obviously tell, I've tried the WILD technique most frequently. Is it that more difficult than some of the other techniques? What would you say is best for beginners? I've kept up a dream journal as directed as well. Thanks alot everyone. I'll be posting here frequently. Here's the thing: it's different for everyone. Some people never need to bother with WILD because they naturally have dream-induced lucid dreams, some people do better with simple mnemonic induction (MILD) and some even naturally WILD! The best technique for lucid dreaming is very dependent on the individual. The WILD can be a difficult technique to master, but once mastered can be one of the most consistent induction methods. My most successful way to lucidity is a combination of constantly questioning my reality (if I see anything the least bit out of place or odd, I ask myself, "Am I dreaming?") and doing reality checks frequently. I recommend the nose-hold, where you pinch your nose as if you're about to go underwater and try to breathe. If you can breathe, you are dreaming. I had a DILD (dream-inducted lucid dream) just night before last due to this. My secondary, follow-up, just-in-case reality check is trying to put the index finger of one hand through the palm of the other. If that happens...well, I think you get the idea. I tried that in my last lucid, and it was pretty cool to watch the skin on the back of my hand pull against my finger as it pushed back and forth through my hand. I'd say keep an eye out for anything remotely 'dreamlike' in your day-to-day life, as well as, of course, your dream signs, and do a reality check at every occasion. Don't just do a token nose-hold, either; really question reality. Seriously think you might be dreaming, and ask yourself. You just never know... -Does a reality check- ...Nope, not this time. Hope this helped, good luck, and happy lucids! -MoS *Hard. Rock hard.

[james-25:22pm]

1) Although this is a different answer to 'Man Of Steel', but yes this is quite common. Lots of WILDers always say that if you fail at wild theres a good chance you will have a regular dild instead. 2) Maybe have a snoop around at all the different wild guides. Whilst essentially, all wilds are the same...the way inwhich you keep awake varies. Some involve visualising, counting, imagining sensations etc. Many styles for different types of people. Just experiment 3) agreed 4) agreed. It really depends on the individual. I Choose to believe that WILD itself isnt the hard part, but getting the correct combination of variables is ie, amount of sleep, which WILD sub-technique to use, how long to stay awake for etc you may get lucky, like many have...or battle endlessly like me, experimenting until you hope one day it will all 'click'! At this point, i will say I cant actually WILD yet, but I've gotten closer with practice; and these are things I've learnt from all my research on DV. goodluck

[Josh90]

Yes my name is Josh. Small world huh? You did understand my question correctly. I'll scrap that one up to blind luck. Anyways, thanks for answering my questions so quickly guys. Hopefully, I'll have some more information to share. I tried the FILD this morning but was unsuccessful.