First Time Changing a Bad Dream into a Good One
Since joining Dream Views late last year, I've had a good number of lucid dreams even while going through a lot of life changes and some stress (i.e., I'm an accountant, and in the U.S., tax season lasts from January through April - it's not easy to LD when your brain is so full of numbers that you dream of analyzing financial statements all night!). Since joining, I've read books by Stephen LeBerge and Robert Waggoner - at least one of which, maybe both, describe methods that can be used to deal with nightmares.
The method that caught my interest is: if confronted with a DC that seems to mean you harm, face it and show it compassion without fear. One of LeBerge's suggestions is to just sit back and observe / study the "evil" DC (or the fear-inducing environment, like a dark hallway). Last night, I was finally able to do just that! For me personally, it was a big moment; I don't have many nightmares, but when I do, I usually run away or just try to wake up. So, to both have a nightmare and be lucid at the same time is pretty rare. Just in case you're wondering if projecting positivity upon a hostile DC works, here's what happened in my dream:
Initially, I was not lucid; earlier in the dream, I had been inside of a small airport with some friends, and I remember watching a friend I hadn't seen in 8 years sprint down an airport runway toward a plane that was taking off. I guess he missed his flight, and while he was running, his pants fell down, which I found hilarious. After watching that, I walked away from the window I had been standing at, and the dream seemed to be going just fine as I socialized with people in the airport. Eventually, I was beckoned / ushered into an area by what I believe was a stewardess, away from everybody else. The woman, who had brown hair and was wearing a white dress, opened a door in front of me, which led to a pitch-black room. She seemed nice enough about it at first, but as my vision began getting darker while walking into the room, I instantly had a sinking, fearful feeling. I began to feel a familiar bad-dream horror and knew I was in for something I didn't really want to deal with. But, instead of letting the dream run its course... instead of getting scared... I walked into the dark room and turned around. I became lucid at this moment, instantaneously and precisely at the right time, since the situation was too strange for me. I looked into the eyes of the woman in the white dress, who was chuckling and was acting super-evil. As she began to shut the door behind me, I caught the door in mid-shut with one arm and strongly pushed it open. She looked amazed and baffled as I confidently resisted... something I don't remember ever doing before. If I hadn't become lucid at that instant, I would have been shut in and probably would have just woken up.
As I pushed the door open with some force (I could feel her pushing back), I noticed a portrait of a person sitting on a dresser across the lit room - the lit room had transformed from an airport hallway into a bedroom full of dark wood furniture and striped wallpaper. I had a feeling, for some reason, that the portrait was in control of the dream's evil nature. So, I walked right past the woman in the white while staring solely at the portrait. As I approached, I almost instinctively decided to feel love and compassion for the portrait; I picked it up with nothing but good vibes in my mind, trying to shut out surrounding negativity. The portrait had changed into a demonic face, with glowing yellow eyes, cracking grey skin, and a scowl to complete the look. I continued to stare at the face with love, and over the next few seconds, the portrait changed… the person’s eyes gradually became less yellow, and it began to smile. I set the thing down and began to run, feeling overjoyed.
I don’t remember everything that happened next, but I don’t think I tried to change the dream scenery, which I usually try to do when lucid. I do remember staring at some writing for a while, trying to read it, and seeing a few misspelled words, which I instantly remembered could be a dream sign – so I remained lucid. I was looking at some kind of wrist bands or ribbons emblazoned with text. Another thing I remember doing while lucid was running up to a thick window in the airport while I imagined people chasing me. I didn’t try to stop the people because I didn’t think that deep into the situation (I knew I was dreaming, but slipped into and out of the realization that I could change everything). Even though the glass was thick and seemed bulletproof, I mashed my arm into it and it shattered like some fine china. After that, I don't remember much of what happened next, but I slipped into and out of lucidity for the rest of the time.
Just thought I'd share the experience - it was a great way to start the day, and I hope any / all readers can confront their nightmares too.
