Regular Dream or Lucid Dream?

[marciosmg]

Hello, everybody. I’m new here and I forgot to ask this on the other thread I made. I had a dream once (about a week ago, before joining this site) and I don’t know if it was an LD or not. In the dream I was in my room and I suddenly said to myself: "Wow! I’m awake in my dream. Cool!" I was very happy. Then I felt the blackness coming. So I remembered to stare at my hands (read it in a guide somewhere) to keep it from the dream from ending. And it worked. So to test my new reality, I decided to make a friend of mine appear. So I imagined he would appear on the other side of the door. And he did. And then he said something to me (which I don’t remember) and I woke up. Now I know it sounds like I had an LD (even if it only lasted a few seconds), but there were 2 times (when I went from next to my bed to the door and the way back), in which I kind of just teleported myself. But I don’t remember wishing it to happen and my “dream–self” didn’t see anything wrong with that. So is it an LD and these are just gaps in my memory or was it just a very imaginative dream? Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance. P.S. – There’s a reason I’m describing the dream so much. It’s because I remember it with a lot of details and I’m very bad at remembering dreams and there’s only like 2 or 3 others that I can remember with such detail. So this dream or LD made a big impact on me. Thanks again.

[Mrs. Jones]

yes, it was an LD. anytime this happens: "Wow! I’m awake in my dream. Cool!" even if it totally sucks- not saying it did- anytime you realize youre dreaming then it's an LD.

[marciosmg]

yes, it was an LD. anytime this happens: "Wow! I’m awake in my dream. Cool!" even if it totally sucks- not saying it did- anytime you realize youre dreaming then it's an LD. Thanks for the quick response. But is it possible for someone to have a dream in which they think they are awake in the dream but they really are not? I mean dreams can be pretty freaky sometimes.

[Mrs. Jones]

yes, it's called "false awakening". most people really hate them because it tends to ruin lucid dreams.

[AlexLou]

It was an LD alright. Knowing that it is a dream makes it an LD, no other criteria is required for the label. Just because you're lucid that doesn't mean that you will recognize that aspects of your dreams are not compatible with reality. You are still dreaming, so you probably will not think as clearly as when you're awake. And you will still perform actions subconsciously (sometimes without realizing it).

[AspirationRealized]

Thanks for the quick response. But is it possible for someone to have a dream in which they think they are awake in the dream but they really are not? I mean dreams can be pretty freaky sometimes. Thats called a False Awakening. The bane of many lucid dreamers, you discover that you really didn't fail to be "aware" in your dream... you just weren't aware enough. Then you wake up, curse and/or slap yourself. And regular dreams should be called non-lucids. For the lucky ones, Lucid dreams ARE the regular xP

[marciosmg]

Thanks everybody for the answers. I didn´t know about "False Awakenings". Hopefully, I don´t know if I´m happy for having had an LD when I wasn´t even trying or sad for not having one when I do try. But I will certainly keep trying. That feeling was really good.

[AspirationRealized]

Thanks everybody for the answers. I didn´t know about "False Awakenings". Hopefully, I don´t know if I´m happy for having had an LD when I wasn´t even trying or sad for not having one when I do try. But I will certainly keep trying. That feeling was really good. Encountering a lucid dream in any sense is a good thing. Just keep working at it. Use this link here: http://www.dreamviews.com/tutorials.php Its helpful for learning things like false awakenings. However, as with any advice in life, don't take everyone else's word for it. Lucid dreaming is a very individual experience... find what works for you, and don't let anyone tell you what you can and can't do. There is a lot of proof that time and yourself are the only limits to lucid dreaming. Remember that. People will tell you its hard... its only as hard as you make it. Keep believing ^_^