Thread: How can RCs help?

An RC is something you need to get into the habit of when you are not dreaming. Once you have made it a habit then when you are actually dreaming, it will seem unusual to get an out of the ordinary response from your reality check.
For instance, lets say your reality check is to have something written on your hand. If this word or sentence is always there when you look at your hand then it will become as natural as anything else you do. So when you are dreaming and you look down at your hand at some point the writing will most always be different, which should give you the realization in your dream.
Take into consideration that this does not happen quick at all, patience is a virtue; especially if you rely on reality checks.

The point of reality checks is that you are questioning whether or not you are dreaming when you do them. Because of that, you already have the idea in your mind that you may be dreaming, and you also know that outcome A of some RC means you are dreaming, while outcome B means you are not.

When I started RC's my lucid count went up considerably after about a week and the habit formed. I've never actually done a RC in a dream though, almost every one is a spontaneous "Hey! This is a dream!" moment. Haha I still let some pretty obvious dream signs pass me by though, like the other night I dreamed I was on a bus where I was the only person on board (there wasn't even a driver) and I said to myself "Gosh, this is boring! I wish I was having an LD now... Oh well"

Originally Posted by Paradox-db3

When I dream, I almost ALWAYS dream bizzare things. And I always accept those bizzare things as normal. So, if I did a RC in my dream, how would that help? For example, if I pinch my nose and am still able to breathe through it, I would simply accept that as normal. Is there another method of discovering you're dreaming?

There is a method called VILD. This incubates the dream to one that has you doing an RC. It's in the turtorials.

IMJ

Originally Posted by Dalek

When I started RC's my lucid count went up considerably after about a week and the habit formed. I've never actually done a RC in a dream though, almost every one is a spontaneous "Hey! This is a dream!" moment.

I'm the same. I've been RCing every hour on the hour, or when ever I look at the clock to check.

Every lucid I've had has been due to a sudden realisation.
I mean, theres no point in doing an RC if your talking to a dancing pink elephant or some such!

But my lucid task is now to ground myself next time I LD and do as many reality checks as I can. Just to see if they work or not.

I know the writing one works. I noticed it one walking down the street in a dream. Every sign was wierd. The fonts and letters were perfect, but the writing was all jumbled up.

I'm also going to dream port into my house, just to see how realistic a False Awakening might be.

RevolutionEvolution said it perfectly. The more YOu RC, the better you are at observing what is odd around you, and how things should be. When they aren't your dreaming

You have to get used to picking them out, it takes practice. You can start going through your dream journal and finding recurring elements.

If you just pay excrutiating detail to everything around you all the time and have a good ability to ground your mind (ie question when something wierd happens) then that's good too. Also you don't need to keep doing reality checks although reality checks would be more beneficial if you can get into a solid habit of doing them.

Well, the purpose of the reality check is to 'state test' or to really look around you anazlyze whether or not it is a dream and what evidence supports your conclusion. It's not JUST looking at your hands or plugging you nose, though a lot of people make it just that.

A good reality check method: stop everything you are doing, don't allow yourself to get distracted. Look around you. Where are you? Should you be there? Do you remember getting there? Does the situation make sense? Do you remember dressing yourself in the clothes that you are wearing? Seriously question these things, and on top of that look at the number of fingers you have, or the digital time, or whatever.

Also, make sure that you always do a couple of different reality checks, since they sometimes will not work. Look at your hand, look away, look back. No change? Try to breath with your nose plugged (I don't like that RC there are too many reasons the mind can come up with for why it should fail). Try to push your finger through your palm. Feeling resistance? Tell yourself, "Well, if this is a dream, my hand doesn't even exist! so my finger should pop through!" If it still doesn't work, look at a digital clock. Note the time, look away, and look back. Did it change? Etc. I usually do the finger through palm, look at my hands, and read some text or a digital clock every time that I RC.

Im not exactly subtle, last time I did a reality check (I was pretty sure I was dreaming) I pulled a fork from my right pocket and jammed it into my left arm not a reality check I'd recommend for everyday use

Yeah I'd really like to know too. But what does RC stand for?

Originally Posted by Bing

Yeah I'd really like to know too. But what does RC stand for?

RC = Reality check