new kid. Arent all dreams lucid?

Hi all, just found this place while scanning around for stuff on dreams as i was quite bored :P

anyway i noticed all this stuff on "lucid" dreaming. and that its basically that you have control of your dreams or atleast know that you are dreaming.
ok well ive always known when im in a dream since as long as i can remember, well ill know that its a dream but its just as real as reality.
Now when you talk about controlling your dreams what exactly are we suggesting? simply being able to control your own movements? or actually changing your dream as you will, or atleast have a degree of control over it. like being able to do things/ make things happen matrix style and what not.

seeing as i only know what dreams are like for myself and havent actually asked anyone what its like for them, in general what are dreams 'supposed' to be like? Is it normal that people are simply observers in their dreams? or is atleast being able to make conscious decisions like in normal life more common?
thanks

edit: haha "lurker" is a rank. hilarious! :P

Sounds like you are a 'natural' or someone who lucids without having to try. As far as control, most people describe being able to change the dream at will, though in lucid dreams, control is a kind of gradient. You could say that being able to control your movements is a basic level of control in dreams for sure.

As far as your last questions, I'd say it depends. Some people have a more active role, while others feel completely separated from their dreams. I'd say more people I've talked to fall into the former category, but that's just my experience.

It seems that you are just a Natural Lucid Dreamer!

Also, you can change your User Title in the your Control Panel if you don't like Lurker :P

You can also upload an Avatar and Signature.

A dream, I would guess, is when the brain is processing everything that you've done through out the day, and what your imagination is or something...I'm going to have to read this one up again to get a clear definition.

ah ok cool.
well i never used to even think about it, but then i started thinking.. why not see what kind of fun i can get up to in my dreams. so i started experimenting and just seeing if i can do random stuff if i try, like fly, or do cool magic stuff and matrix kinda things. flying is tricky, i keep wanting to fall back down and instead ends up as just jumping really high, im guessing because were used to gravity to you have to try and make your brain believe that since its a dream normal rules dont apply. appart from that i seem to be able to do whatever i want, with varying degrees of difficulty, like making waves in water or throwing fire. I like alot of scifi and fantasy so alot of my dreams have some sort of crazy thing going on in them.. or it just starts happening in the middle of what would have otherwise been a normal setting :P

still it can be hard though. and sometimes things happen that i cant control. like i cant run properly, i feel really light and my feet arent getting any grip. or sometimes i get pulled away or held by some invisible force. though other characters in the dream are ok and are able to help me sometimes

Hi, I was also a lucid dreamer ever since I can remember, but there are some days where I can't be lucid & I get carried away by the dream.

To give an example of controlling a dream: A few days ago I was having a normal dream (not lucid) when all of a sudden my bag that I carry to school in real life fell into a puddle of water with all my school work. While in the dream I realized that it was too dramatic to be reality & I took control of the dream(it became a lucid dream). I altered the dream so that nothing happened to my stuff eventhough the bag was completely immersed in water.

To give you another example of controlling a dream, Most of my nightmares consist of being in very high places like mountains and trying to get down. I have learned how to cheat these dreams when I am in a lucid state. I just close my eyes and alter the surroundings, so that I am on safer ground (I do this just by saying to myself this is only a dream I can do whatever I want). Eventhough I can do whatever I want, changes that are too dramatic wake me up.

Flying is tricky, sometimes I soar like a bird & sometimes I am really bad at it. I think it has something to do with how you are feeling in real life.

Hi aj! You sound like a natural to me :) Dreams can be so different depending on who you are. My dreams are usually very linear. There are story lines that play out, sometimes people and places come back from very old dreams that i used to have to finish up unfinished stories.

Keep experimenting with your dream control. Remember that when you are dreaming, you are more then just your body. YOU are not IN the dream, you ARE the dream. The Dream Universe is as much as you are as your body is in the dream. :)

yep sure is. dreaming is like ultimate matrix to me :P only whoever is in control of it likes chucking random stuff in there lol. ok ill make a point of remembering what happens tonight so i can give you an example of the craziness contained within my subconscious haha