Lucid Dreaming ( Practical tips )

[tecladocasio]

Hi , I would like to know if someone have some practical tips for lucid dreaming ... I really can't now , searching for ways to lucid dreaming more frequently and easily . 

Really aprecciate if anyone shared something that facilitates the process.

Thank you

[PsiloPutty]

Have you read Lucid Dreaming, by Stephen LaBerge? It's an easy read and it's full of tips and techniques. 

[Dodo]

You could also have a look at Charlie Morley's book Dreaming of Awakening. It's a book that is perfectly gelling together Tibetan Buddhism and Lucid dreaming. It has many techniques for how to be lucid. 

I can outline some of the things you can try out and see if it works:
Wake up 2 hours before your actual wake-up time, write down any dreams you remember and then go back to sleep. Close your eyes and be aware while you fall asleep.

You might enter a REM cycle right away as you fall asleep. The only step you perhaps will need to do is look at your hand from back and front a couple times. Then you'll know it's a dream, because your hand will not show up correctly! Try it out

[tecladocasio]

@Dodo @PsiloPutty  Thank you all ! Will search for this books 

[Vipassana]

I just started my lucid journey and its pretty tough in the beginning. I would recommend you to forget about lucid dreaming and just focus on what you actually dream about every night. Write your dreams on a journal everyday and just train your dream recall muscle. I've had about 2 - 3 lucid dreams in the last years when I was really into them but it fell back because I stopped doing the journals. Once you're in a dream, and you become aware that you're in a dream, only thing that will wake you up is if you cant keep your calm. I always woke up from my lucid dreams because I would get super excited once i realized im in one and thats how it went for all my dreams. So diet is definitely a big part, daily mindfulness and perseverance to write your dreams down every morning.

[Shin]

Watch Koi Frescos videos about it.

[Soulbass]

Go to bed early (22h-23h) be alone in the bed if possible, set an alarm after 4 or 5 hours sleeping (most of deep sleep occurs here), then wake-up and keep an activity that keeps you awake for some minutes. It depends on people, may vary from 15 minutes to 40 minutes. Then go back to bed (this technique is called "Wake back to bed" or WBTB). Then the brain will generate more REM, and shorter cycles, which is a good way to spot the right moment : the moment when you'r dreaming. Fall asleep while being awake, this requires some practice (it's called "WILD" and you won't succeed the first time). Find the balance between too much control and letting yourself go completely in the experience (otherwise it would be a regular dream). Use the anchor method : focus on your body and imagine you'r doing an activity that you know very well (like ridding a bicycle) or just count and repeat mantras "1. I'm dreaming 2. I'm dreaming 3. I'm dreaming..." it takes time and practice. Eventually you'll experience sleep paralysis, which is a good sign (if you want to stop that just hold you breath for 3 seconds, your body will automatically wake up). You'll experience all sorts of sensations, or sounds, don't focus on them it's just transitory. Don't try to move your body to check if you'r in sleep paralysis. At some point a new REM phase will being, and you'll see the dream taking form in from of your "dream eyes" (quick tip : don't try to blink in a dream, or you may accidentally wake up your physical body. Breath and eyes muscles are connected to the physical body). You may be amazed by the experience, so that you immediately wake up, due to excitement, that's normal. You have to be detached from the dream, while experiencing it. Be happy but not too much. Then you can stabilize the dream by focusing on physical sensations (you can practice this during waking life too) or turning around 360 degrees to generate the dream. Dreams comes with limitations, the limitations of your expectations : if you expect flying to be hard, chances are that you won't succeed. Playing video games or having seen movies helps with hacking the rules set of the dream, for example using harry potter's magic wand if you don't know how to teleport. The mind makes all sorts of associations that you would have ever thought in the waking life, it's very creative. Dreams have their own purposes, you may wanna fly but maybe there is something for you to see there, pay attention to the meaning of events. You can use "~" to trigger the console and enter command lines directly. A REM usually stand 10-15 minutes, be sure to wake-up before the end of it (by holding your breath) and write the dream down immediately after it, because it requires "using words" to translate the experience. Or you can wait few minutes in your bed before moving, re-viewing your dream in your mind before writing it (keep the body position in place). If you fall asleep after REM and return into deep sleep mode, chances are that you'll forget everything. A dream journal practice have benefits after 2 weeks, before that you may have lucid dreams but don't remember it. Before going to sleep at night, review you last night dream journal page, and ask for a new lucid dream to happen (be exited about it - go to bed like it's wonderland - and god's knows what you'll would learn on yourself). This technique doesn't requires RC "reality check" during the day, but it's a good idea to practice ADA "all day awareness" by focusing on the meaning of events, on physical sensations and searching for dream signs. After all the waking state life is speaking to us right now just like a dream.

Edit: and yeah what is probably the most important is expectations, for dreams & waking state as well. If you expect lucid dreams to be easier if you sleep on an empty stomach, it will works for you. My ex-girlfriend is a "natural born" lucid dreamer, she can do it on will and have explored this a lot during teenhood (for sexual fantasies). For me it takes a lot of efforts and practice, but I wonder if that's just depend on people. Expectations are key. Note about sexual fantasies : don't try to do this at first, it's extremely difficult (especially for men) and it will immediately wake you up (the idea of being detached). It's a beginner's mistake, extremely common. Remember that what you do in dreams is "what you are".

Try meditation in a dream, it's very fun (you get in seconds what you would reach within hours in waking state - and the effects stands after you woke up).

I would recommend "Are you dreaming ?" by Daniel Love, over S. Laberge. Daniel's book is practical and set the theory in place (brain chemistry tho).

There is a forum about LD which is dreamviews.com lot of experienced people here and ideas.

Sometimes a dream happen and I'm amazed of it's signification, the emotional impact it have on me stand for one week or so, and it's totally uncontrolled. Keeping a dream journal is a very good idea, whether lucid dreams or not.

Note about dream journals : don't try to be precise. Sometimes it's just 3 words that has to be written because you don't remember it, or sometimes you fill 30 pages, with a lot of details. I use a pocket flashlight to write things on paper, then report at the end of the week in a software like cintanotes, which handle tags and stuff (useful for dream signs - and learning how to spot the recurring ones). Dream signs are clues that helps you being lucid, we all have personal dream signs. Sometimes someone could tell you within a dream that you'r dreaming, but you won't recognize it (until you wake up).

Edited February 22, 2018 by Soulbass

[Dodo]

This might be helpful

Edited February 22, 2018 by Dodo