Thread: Reality checks

So, I discovered this site yesterday and have logged a couple of dreams and come up with one dream sign so far: That my being violent to people will result in any blows I make slowing down, as if I'm moving through water. So clearly, this is not a suitable reality check. I had thought that just practising punches in the air might work, but I think that it's more the danger of the situation that sets off the slow motion.

So that aside, I've been asking myself quite often today, "Am I awake?" but, more importantly, "If this is a dream, what proof is there?" Since I am often searching for clues with the thought already in my mind that this is the waking world, I could be convinced by the smallest thing, and so my sub conscious would also be able to fool me easily. I suppose what I'm looking for are good examples of reality checks I can do around the house that will really convince me.

Anyone with a bit more experience able to offer some advice?

Pretty sure this is posted somewhere, but some common one's are.
-Pinch your nose and try and breathe through it, in a dream you should be able to.
-Flip light switches, light levels in dreams are reasonably constant, so they shouldn't work.
-Look at a digital clock than look away and back, if the numbers change or are unreadable, it's a dream.
-Jump in the air, if you float around or anything, you get it.
-Try to read small text, then look away, same deal as the clocks.
-Look at your hands, to see if they look wrong, try sticking your fingers through your palms.
-Mirrors may behave odly and you may be able to walk through them in a dream, so try tapping on them.

Do you have a cellphone? Try dialing a phone #. Usually the numbers will keep changing
and it won't dial correctly in dreams. Thats one of my dream signs I had.

Memory reality checks work best for me. Try and remember how you got to where you are, if you can't then you are asleep. Also try and remember what you've done for the past few hours, if you have gaps in your memory then you are dreaming.

The mobile phone trick is a little out of the question, since it has to be something I can do in almost any situation (the mind will likely shake me off the trail with socially awkward or threatening situations). The memory one is interesting, but it's training yourself throughout the day until the checking becomes a norm of your behaviour. Today at work and yesterday at home I had been trying to push my fingers through my palms, examining my hands closely, pinching my nose to check my breaking and observing digital clocks wherever possible for oddities.

It's going to be the sort of thing that takes a lot of patience, and I'm not sure my sleeping mind is disciplined enough to concentrate on how I got anywhere for any length of time. That said, I could probably also convince myself that pushing my fingers through my hand is normal since that is what I had hoped to (and therefore somewhat expected) to see. It will take a lot of patience if I am ever to get anywhere, but at least I may gain a break in a life where I tend to wonder around in a haze a lot of the time. I wonder if I'm dreaming now.

Last night I tried the sticking my finger through my palm. It was my first time doing that and it worked. Although I did not stay lucid as long as I'd have liked, I still consider that a good step.
I can't recall ever doing an RC until last night, and I've had a number of long lasting lucid dreams over the years.