Thread: Mancon's In Depth WILD Guide

Hey everyone, I have been practicing WILD for a while now, and pretty much have it down, Mostly thanks to Naiya and the helpful guides here on the site! Now I want to make my own WILD guide to help you guys! Let's jump right into it:

Abbreviations you should know:

WILD = Wake Initiated Lucid Dream
SP = Sleep Paralysis
HH = Hypnotic Hallucinations

What is a WILD? +Other definitions

A WILD is a wake initiated lucid dream, but what does that mean? It means you go directly from waking state into the dream state. You trick your body into thinking you're asleep, but really you are awake!

What is Sleep Paralysis? Sleep paralysis is when your body becomes temporally paralyzed so you don't act out your dreams! During a WILD, when you reach sleep paralysis you often see HH.

What are Hypnotic Hallucinations? HH are hallucinations created by the brain when you are deeply relaxed. During SP many people experience HH and sometimes it can be quite scary. Don't worry! The HH is NOT real and will not harm you! HH can also come in all 5 senses. My first experience involving HH, I saw/heard/felt frogs all over my bed!

Before You Get Started

Like I say to everyone, confidence is important when it comes to everything involving lucid dreams. WILDing is easy, you WILL do it! Close your eyes and visualize yourself getting to SP, and then into a dream! That will be you in the future! It won't maybe be you, it WILL BE! If a negative though comes into my head, I imagine the thought in a ridiculous voice and don't take it seriously.

When Should You WILD?

When I was new to WILDing, I wanted to get into it right away! I decided to attempt WILDs before bed, instead of waking up in the middle of the night. Bad idea. I had no success whatsoever. Yes, WILDing before bed is possible but definitely not recommended especially with newbies!

I would definitely recommend doing a WBTB in order to WILD.

So how long should I sleep before waking up to WILD?

Well, you need to wake up right before, or during REM, and everyone's REM time is different! I would try waking up somewhere between 4-7 hours after you fall asleep in order to attempt a WILD. Just experiment with waking up at different times and you will find the right time for you!

Waking Up

When you wake up for your WILD you could be too awake or too sleepy, this is what I do:

1. I am too awake!
You need to focus on relaxation.
I have put together a list of what I do when I am too awake.

A. I have seen a great relaxation technique in other guides here on the site, and it is called the Tense-Relax technique. The idea is to focus on each separate muscle, tense it, and then relax it completely. Start from the bottom up or the top down, focusing on each muscle.

B. Breathing is very important when it comes to relaxing. I start by breathing in air through my nose, holding a few seconds, and then letting it out. It helps me if I imagine breathing in positive things through my nose and then breathing out any negative things through my mouth. It improves my confidence, and ability to WILD.

C. If you are still not relaxed, listen to some calming music. I have put together a list of music I listen to for relaxation:
Relaxing Ocean Waves
Tranquility
Fireplace
Relaxing Nature

It also helps to visualize myslef somewhere relaxing while listening to the music.

2. I am too relaxed!

You need to get up and walk around. Pay attention to objects, what they look like, smell like, taste like, etc. If I am really tired I put some cold water on my eyelids. Drinking water always helps me too.

Remember to empty your bladder before WILDing!

Starting the WILD

Lay down, and stay still. Don't focus on anything too hard, and just let your thoughts run through your head. Don't pay attention to your thoughts too much, but be aware of them. These were my thoughts when I first attempted WILDing:

Okay, so I just stay still.
Stay still
Stay still
Keep still
That itch is itchy, but I need to stay still.
I want to move.
Oh my gosh, I am attempting a WILD
Keep still
Will I ever get into SP?
keep still
stay awake
Why isn't this working?

I was focusing on my thoughts too much, and way to worried about WILDing. You have to let them pass through, if you want to get to SP and remember you can WILD!

After 10 minutes of laying completely still, I roll over, as suggested in Yoshi's Technique. Then if I don't enter SP after 10 more minutes, I roll over again.

How Do I Stay Aware?

Sometimes, if I feel like I am falling asleep I focus on my breathing and count my breaths from 1-10. Once I get to 10 I start back over at 1. Sometimes, I listen to a noise in the background like a fan, but remember not to focus too hard on the sound.
I have seen people suggest causing physical discomfort while attempting to WILD in order to stay awake. I don't recommend this because you think about your physical body too much, and it isn't comfortable.

I don't think I ever have SP...

Unless you sleepwalk, or have a sleep related illness that lets you act out your dreams, you have SP. Don't worry!

How do I know I am in SP?

Not everyone experiences HH, so how do they know they are in SP? Usually you will fill heavier, and a bit of numbness. Sometimes, you have a change in awareness or thoughts during SP.
Remember, do not try to move to test if you are actually in SP! Just stay still, and stay relaxed.

You're in SP!

Congrats on making it this far, but remember not to get too excited! Once you enter SP you might start to experience some HH. Don't focus to hard on your HH, just watch it come and go, calmly. Remind yourself that HH will not harm you in any way. After a couple a minutes, images should expand and you are in a dream! Congrats!

So, is it possible to alter your HH?

Yes, it actually is! When SP is starting imagine your HH changing to what you want it to be. For example, If I wanted to see a park I would imagine how that park looked, how it felt, who was in it, what is sounded like, etc. This works very well for people who have a vivid imagination.

What are common HH?

Colors, whispers, stars, and vibrations are all common when it comes to HH.

Dream Stabilization

Stabilizing your dream is important to do with any lucid dream, but especially with WILD. So how do you stabilize your dream? Stimulate your senses. Look around at your dream scenery and concentrate on what everything looks like. Feel the ground, smell the air, taste any food, etc. It is also recommended to spin around or rub your hands together to stabilize the dream. Read more about stabilization here.

False Awakenings

Sometimes you think the WILD has failed when really you are having a false awakening! A false awakening is when you dream of waking up. This is quite common when it comes to WILDs, and if you think the WILD has failed ALWAYS make sure to do a reality check to see if you are having a FA!

Problems

Itching
Help! I itch everywhere when I try to WILD! How can I stop this?

Well when you are first starting the WILD out and you start to itch, it is best just to scratch it and not focus too much on it.
When have an itch, it takes over your thoughts which is bad. Once you get deep into the WILD and have an itch, I either try to ignore or focus on it. For me, if I focus on an itch then it will go away. Remember, try not to let itches take over your thoughts, think of something else. Sometimes if I think about water, the itches go away.

The Urge to Swallow

If you have the urge to swallow, go ahead and swallow. Thinking about the urge, will make it worse. Just stop thinking about it. If you have real issues with this, then during the day focus on your breathing, take control of it, and then let go of the control. You did this by distracting your thoughts. If you find it hard just keep practicing and it will get easier!

Thank you for taking the time to read this guide! Good luck!

Other Helpful Guides:

Yoshi's WILD Technique
CrazyInsane's WILD Tutorial
The Wiki WILD Tutorial
Jeff777's Free Falling WILD Technique