WILD discussion thread

So, this thread is so DV members can discuss there own personal techniques of WILD, and potentially collaborate on improving them.

Personally, this is the way I WILD:
1) Wake up at 5:00 AM(I fall asleep around 11:00 PM), get nice and comfortable, do simple math in my head to get more awareness, then start planning what to do in my dream. In 30 minutes, i return to bed, then relax. If my mind tends to go blank as i approach sleep, I will get out of bed ans try again in ten minutes. Once I start noticing irrational thoughts, i go to step 2.

2) I start noticing illogical thoughts. Each time i notice them, i ask myself "what was i thinking about?", and try to regain that train of thought. At first, they vanish as soon as i notice them, but later on, I am able to maintain the same train of thought while being aware of its existence (this has become second nature, as i meditate often). Now that i am able to hold the illogical thoughts without actually being absorbed into them, I think about where I want my dream to begin. Now, carefully using that to seed an illogical train of thought, i carefully guide those thoughts, changing them where needed, shutting down branches that are of no use to me (sort of like pruning a tree). As an example:

• I decide to visit a city
  
• I think "City blocks"
  
• I then associate that with buildings
  
• then quickly add streets
  
• I add road markings
  
• then road signs
  
• then traffic lights
  
• then cars and pedestrians
  
• I then add shops and businesses at ground level
  
• and generate customers
  
• i add a sky, some clouds, and the sun

once i have a good idea of what my dream will look like, i start to actually create it.

3) by this time, hypnagogic hallucinations are easily observed, and i start to manipulate them to create a vague resemblance to any of the sensory aspects in the dream. I usually add the "root" sensations first. For example, the street lights and signs are "children" of the "root" road. Once i have a vague resemblance to the object i want to create, i carefully shape it through expectation, as if trying to decide what a cloud looks like. once i have "root" objects, it is much easier to add their "children", since it is more natural. As i add more of the visual aspects, i start directing my attention to other senses, such as adding a light breeze, or the warm sun. The important part is that I focus all my energy and focus into the act of creating the dream, not the dream itself. Once i have a detailed environment, i have to actually enter it as a dream.

4) So, I redirect my focus into the dream itself, and try to integrate myself into the environment by moving around and trying to "feel" the objects, continuously reminding myself of the unreality of this place. as it becomes easier to "feel", i spin around quickly, which triggers the dream.