Newcomer at the ready!

Hi all,

I have been interested in lucid dreaming for quite some years now, however after trying for a while i completely gave up and just watched my dreams from 3rd person perspective and gone along with whatever is happening. I was talking to my friend the other day about lucid dreaming, he thought i was obviously talking rubbish fairytales - so i looked up lucid dreaming and it brought me here, to you guys!

Anyway i have a few questions that maybe some of the more experienced lucid dreamers can help me out with.

1) Basically, i think in almost all of my dreams i know that i am dreaming and i try to alter the environment around me but if i try too hard, i wake up - why?

2) If i'm aware i am dreaming, does this mean i'm lucid?

3) Lots of times when i know i'm dreaming i try and look at my hands, but i don't have any hands or i just can't see them - why is this?

4) I have (many times) had circumstances where i'm in a dream and someone would say, call my mobile phone and in my dream i have a phone in my pocket and as soon as i answer it i wake up and realise my phone is ringing in real life - why?

5) I can hear the outside World sometimes when i'm in a dream. I am asleep, but i can hear the real World at the same time (i.e. if someone is outside going past my window talking etc) - why?

6) When i wake up sometimes i can go back to sleep within say 5 minutes or so and my dream just carrys on where it left off. When i awake i know i have been dreaming and i know aspects of my dream so i usually try and go back to sleep to carry on with the dream but don't seem to be able to have control - why?

7) Whilst lucid, i have the mental power to wake myself up when and as i wish - i assume this is normal? For example if i know i am dreaming and i know i have to wake up at x time the following morning i can wake myself up to check the time and then go back to sleep and carry on dreaming.

I'm sorry for all the questions but i don't see how else i could get my answers other than from you guys. You could say i'm new to the whole lucid dreaming, but i've been doing it for quite a while without even realising i'm in a lucid dream or what a lucid dream is.

Thank you in advance guys, i look forward to speaking to you all!

Regards,
Nick.

Hey MaverickUK, Welcome to Dream Views!

A lot of people have lucid dreams, but they just don't know what it's called, or that there is a community of people who do the same thing. When you tell people about Lucid Dreaming, they often will think you're crazy, full of rubbish (as your friend did), or a combination of the two. Sometimes you'll come across a person who believes you. When that happens kudos for you! And we don't mind questions. This is how we all learn and become better dreamers. It's good that you're willing to learn. It's also great that you have some experience. That will make the whole process much easier for you.

Now to answer your questions:
1) Yes, it is harder to maintain lucidity/even the dream state at all when you "try too hard". This sort of over-stimulates your consiousness and you may wake up. However, in the tutorials section of the site (I don't seem to remember the exact tutorial right now), you can find ways to stay lucid.

2) Whenever you are aware that you are dreaming, you are lucid. You may or may not have control over your dreams, but simply knowing that you're in a dream means you're lucid.

3) This is a common occurence. Some people also report missing or too many fingers. Your mind, in the dream, may not fully render your body, so you are a "floating consious" for lack of a better term. You can concentrate on "making" yourself if you feel you need a body whilst you're dreaming.

4) This is simply the waking world sort of breaking into your dreams. It's just fine, except for you wake up, and is perfectly normal. It can happen when people talk to you, while the television or radio are on, or when something like the telephone rings.

5) Ah, this question is similar to number four. Depending on how deep in sleep you are, you can be aware of what is going on outside of your dream. If this bothers you, you can always buy a pair of earplugs for yourself. These are usually cheap, and you can find them at many stores or shops.

6) This is fairly common, and is often called dream re-entry. The lack of control may actually be a mental block you've created for yourself. If you are aware that you're dreaming, then just concentrate on being able to manipulate the dream around you. You should be able to do this without any problems once you put your mind to it.

7) Being able to wake oneself up from the dream is fairly common, I believe. However, being able to wake youreself up at a certain time is fairly amazing! I wish I was able to do that. I have to rely on alarms/the correctness of my internal clock to get up on time... and my internal clock isn't always reliable.

Again, Welcome. Feel free to post any questions you may have. The community is generally good at answering questions (you may get five different answers, but...that's another story!).

For further information, you can peruse through the forums, or you can check out the tutorials section. Good to have you as part of the community!

Hello, and welcome to Dreamviews! Kordan did a good job answering your questions, but I figured I'd give you a second opinion anyway :). Now lets see what we have here...

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Originally Posted by MaverickUK

Hi all,

I have been interested in lucid dreaming for quite some years now, however after trying for a while i completely gave up and just watched my dreams from 3rd person perspective and gone along with whatever is happening. I was talking to my friend the other day about lucid dreaming, he thought i was obviously talking rubbish fairytales - so i looked up lucid dreaming and it brought me here, to you guys!

Anyway i have a few questions that maybe some of the more experienced lucid dreamers can help me out with.

1) Basically, i think in almost all of my dreams i know that i am dreaming and i try to alter the environment around me but if i try too hard, i wake up - why?
Excess emotion and over-concentration can cause you to wake up. Altering the environment can be a bit difficult when you first start getting lucid. Like everything else, it just takes a bit of practice. I suggest starting small and working your way up. I suggest you start by changing colors of certain things, then move on to transforming certain objects, then you can go big and try to completely change the entire scene once you get the hang of it. Remember, you don't have to concentrate very hard, you just have to believe and expect yourself to succeed!

2) If i'm aware i am dreaming, does this mean i'm lucid?
Yes, any dream in which you become aware that you are within a dream, can be counted as a lucid. Even if you only managed to become aware for a short time.

3) Lots of times when i know i'm dreaming i try and look at my hands, but i don't have any hands or i just can't see them - why is this?
A dreamers hands are incredibly unstable in dreams. They often change length/width/form/and whatnot. This is why looking at your hands is a widely used reality check. My hands always appear crooked and are oftn bent at 90 degree angles, lol. Your invisible hands are quite normal. Text is also commonly unstable. Try reading text, look away, and then look back at the text again. It almost always has changed.

4) I have (many times) had circumstances where i'm in a dream and someone would say, call my mobile phone and in my dream i have a phone in my pocket and as soon as i answer it i wake up and realise my phone is ringing in real life - why?
Dreams can do some amazing things with noise from the actual world. I fell asleep one time, while watching a program about "The Great Flood." I never heard the t.v. in my dream, but I had dreamt that my town was completely underwater. I have also had songs on repeat while I slept, and didn't hear them in my dream, but instead the lyrics to the song popped up like subtitles. The human mind is a powerful thing.

5) I can hear the outside World sometimes when i'm in a dream. I am asleep, but i can hear the real World at the same time (i.e. if someone is outside going past my window talking etc) - why?
While sleeping, your body/mind still monitors the outside world. It is actually a natural defence mechanism. Your sense still pick up on loud noise, consistent noise, etc. This is why alarm clocks wake you up, physical contact can wake you (even though your body is in SP), etc.

6) When i wake up sometimes i can go back to sleep within say 5 minutes or so and my dream just carrys on where it left off. When i awake i know i have been dreaming and i know aspects of my dream so i usually try and go back to sleep to carry on with the dream but don't seem to be able to have control - why?
You may just have to practice on your dream control skills. A high % of dream control comes from confidence. Think to yourself, "I can easily control whatever I wish. I am an expert at this stuff." Then when you attempt to control something, expect it to bend to your will. Also, lots of practice will help you get better. You could look through some dream control tutorials found here: http://www.dreamviews.com/community/...ad.php?t=67107 . Sometimes, even though you have picked up where the previous dream left off, your mind simply tricks you into believing that this is reality. You may kick yourself once you awake, from not becoming lucid, but it happens :).

7) Whilst lucid, i have the mental power to wake myself up when and as i wish - i assume this is normal? For example if i know i am dreaming and i know i have to wake up at x time the following morning i can wake myself up to check the time and then go back to sleep and carry on dreaming.
Yes, most of the time it seems it is much easier to wake yourself up than stay within the dream. This is quite common, and it is good that you are so adept at getting back into your dreams. Some people struggle with this.

I'm sorry for all the questions but i don't see how else i could get my answers other than from you guys. You could say i'm new to the whole lucid dreaming, but i've been doing it for quite a while without even realising i'm in a lucid dream or what a lucid dream is.
No problem, that is what these forums are for. I, as well as many other members, are glad to help.

Thank you in advance guys, i look forward to speaking to you all!

Regards,
Nick.

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Good Luck with your future efforts! Just keep working at the dream control and you will get progressively better with each lucid! Have a good day! :)

Thank you both for the welcome and for answering my questions, I hope to be around for a very long time! I have one more question I hope someone can help me with... When I'm in bed and I close my eyes, after a certain length of time (I really don't know how long) I start to see a light under my eye lids and then everything seems to 'wobble' for a good 5-10 seconds or so and not too long after this, I start dreaming - I used to use the wobbly light as an indicator as to if I was going to have a dream but as I've read, we dream every night but just can't remember them. So, in essence, this White wobbly light seems to be an indicator that I will remember a dream, what is this all about?

Thanks again for the welcome, i'm excited to be here!

I would really appreicate a reply. Maybe asking so many questions was my downfall...

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Originally Posted by MaverickUK

I would really appreicate a reply. Maybe asking so many questions was my downfall...

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Nah, I've just been gone for a couple days ;). This wobbly light seems to be HI (hypnagogic imagery). HI often appears during SP (sleep paralysis) or just before transitioning to the dream state.