Thread: context awareness

hi all,

my first post. have been interested in lucid dreaming for many years, but have not made much progress. i have kept dream journals in the past, but finally got around to getting the LaBerge book this year and was hoping to make some progress this summer since i have a reasonably flexible schedule as i come up to finishing my masters degree

as i say, i have quite a lot of experience keeping dream journals, and it seems to me that by far my clearest dream-sign is context: with near 100% consistency. the only problem is, this seems to me to be the most challenging of the dream signs, requiring a lot more introspection that the others. i have been trying to getting into the habit of state checks, but little progress so far

joining this forum is supposed to be a proactive step, though! i'll be glad to hear any advice that anyone can offer

thanks!

Hey Jonnyboy! We're glad you joined us here at DV and I hope that we can help you answer your questions regarding attaining lucidity and all that. So, feel free to poke around and let us know if there's any way we can help.

I used to have a copy of EWoLD, but lost it some time ago without having finished it. I thought that some of the information and stories and exercises were very interesting, so I may need to get another copy of it. I'd say, though, that more than anything, becoming lucid requires persistence and patience. Some people have an LD the first night after hearing about them, but others may require weeks or months before their first LD. Everyone's different so start trying a few different things and see what starts to work for you. If you haven't looked at the Tutorials, I'd recommend doing that first. It has some good overall information as well as some common methods and practices that people use to move them closer to realizing that they're dreaming.

I'd say you're definitely on the right track. Getting into a habit of questioning whether or not you're dreaming is not easy, but it will definitely help in the long run. What exactly are you doing for your RCs (Reality Checks)? Are you just plugging your nose and trying to breathe or just trying to push your finger through your palm, or are you really questioning what's going on around you? Do you stop and wonder where you are or what you're doing or how you got there? I'm not saying this applies to you, but it's easy to simply say, "Oh, I'm plugging my nose and can't breathe. I'm awake," without really stopping and asking what's going on.

Most of all, don't let a seeming lack of progress discourage you. You're on the right track and if you keep it up, you'll find yourself lucid before long. Enjoy your dreams and take note of the little steps you find yourself making towards becoming lucid. You'll find yourself catching more and more opportunities to question what's going on and with keeping your DJ, you'll have an easier time recalling your dreams overall. Have fun with it!

Well, I hope this was encouraging if not helpful Again, feel free to look around and ask questions. Also, if you're having trouble finding something, feel free to ask any of us on the Dream Guide Team (we're the guys and gals with the green names). We'll do our best to point you in the right direction.

Sweet lucid dreams!
-Amé

thanks for your reply!

as of the moment i've been using the short-term memory RC approach: ie. can i remember why i'm here now, and what i was doing in the past half an hour or so. that seems to me to be quite realistic and practical. my dream recall is pretty good now, one dream most nights and sometimes 2 or 3!

and i'll take a look through the tutorials