Originally Posted by
Shift
Alright, the reality checks that you are talking about are really a way to remain conscious and focused on yourself and your reality. What you do, is any time something "dreamlike" occurs, you should conduct a reality check. That is, anything that will draw your attention to the fact that you are in a dream.
For me, I like to try to push my finger through my palm, look at the number of fingers on my hands (usually +/-5 in a dream), look at my clothes and try to remember if I put them on or not, try to place where I am in the world (works if you are in an unfamiliar place), etc. Some people like to pinch their nose and breathe, because in RL you wouldn't be able to, but in a dream you can.
Now, you should do a few of these reality checks any time something seems strange, or unusual, or something isn't working the way it should, or you have any sort of deja vu, or any time you can't understand what someone is doing and then suddenly realize it (this happens a lot in my dreams).
Every time that you do a reality check you should pause everything else that you are doing, look around yourself, and try to figure out why it is that you aren't in a dream. Do a few of the reality checks (sometimes they don't work, so always do more than one). Do this as often as those strange circumstances (or whatever serve as a stimulus for a RC) occur. There is no set amount you should do in a day.
Once you get in the habit of doing this, you will start being more and more aware. In dreams, you will be more conscious and question whether or not you are in a dream more often and strongly. Then, you'll think that maybe it is a dream afterall, and you'll do a couple of RCs. If your finger goes right through your hand, or if you are wearing clothes you've never seen before, or whatever, you should realize it is a dream and become fully conscious.
The other thing that you are talking about is either hypnagogic imagery, or the WILD technique. Keep practicing! You'll get better. There are tutorials all over the site!
Hope that helped! :)