NationStates Jolt Archive

Ok, I'm supposed to be studying, so I'll keep this short and be back in a bit.

LUCID DREAMING (http://www.lucidity.com/LucidDreamingFAQ2.html) ... what do you know about it? I have in the past months come upon this subject several times while browsing forums, and to be honest, it seems ... quite neat, to say the least. I am thinking of trying to learn lucid dreaming in the coming months (years? Who will tell?).

It would be great if some people who have experience with it would answer to this topic. I have checked some sites on the net, and I think I have a basic idea of what it is, what it involves, and so on. But some stories from people who are lucid dreamers themselves would be much appreciated.

Bump? Well I wasn't reacting that much reaction, but some would be nice.

Ok, I'm supposed to be studying, so I'll keep this short and be back in a bit.

LUCID DREAMING (http://www.lucidity.com/LucidDreamingFAQ2.html) ... what do you know about it? I have in the past months come upon this subject several times while browsing forums, and to be honest, it seems ... quite neat, to say the least. I am thinking of trying to learn lucid dreaming in the coming months (years? Who will tell?).

It would be great if some people who have experience with it would answer to this topic. I have checked some sites on the net, and I think I have a basic idea of what it is, what it involves, and so on. But some stories from people who are lucid dreamers themselves would be much appreciated.I didn't learn it. is it actually possible to learn it...


I ask this because I do this... often.

I know when I'm dreaming and when I'm awake. In my dreams I can actually take control of them. rewind, fast forwards, even pause to make changes.

there are only two types of dreams that I cannot control. One is fevered nightmares. ones you get when you're sick. those usually involve sounds like my heartbeat or something.

the others are even stranger. I say that because those are the ones that come true.

I S#!t you not. I've had alot of dreams come true, thankfully they're little stuff and nothing life changing. just a scene plays out or a series of small events that string along. small but memerable.

so... any questions?

I took a quick look over the link (since I didn't know what lucid dreaming was) and would have to say that I've had a few lucid dreams where I have been able to control what goes on in the dream. Most of my lucid dreams occur in recurring dreams that start out the same way but, after recognising that I'm dreaming I alter the ending.

Well... plenty.

But on the learning part (I don't know anything, this is merely information found and passed on). The following is a small excerpt from the link I provided:

Lucid dreaming is a skill you can develop, like learning a new language. A few individuals may have an innate talent for achieving lucidity, yet even they can benefit from instruction and practice in making the most of their lucid dreams. Many more people experience lucidity as a rare spontaneous event, but need training to enjoy lucid dreams at will. The best predictor of success with lucid dreaming is the ability to remember dreams. This, too, is a skill you can develop. With specific techniques, you can increase the quantity and quality of your dream recall, which will in turn greatly increase your ability to have lucid dreams.
This is followed by a description of several techniques.

On the ones that come true... I have heard this before, from a friend of mine, so I'm not in total disbelief.

Now one question that I cannot seem to get over: Is it really possible to do anything while 'lucid dreaming'? I mean, of course you can do anything in dreams, but what does this imply? Can you just stand there (in your dream) and think (sorry if it sounds a bit ridiculous): 'Oh, hey, I know I'm dreaming... While I'm here, let's do that and that and that, and then I'll wake up.' In other words... Can you / Do you THINK in your dreams? I don't know how else to put it, because realizing you're dreaming is of course thinking, but really... I don't really know how to put it... reflect, maybe?

Now one question that I cannot seem to get over: Is it really possible to do anything while 'lucid dreaming'? I mean, of course you can do anything in dreams, but what does this imply? Can you just stand there (in your dream) and think (sorry if it sounds a bit ridiculous): 'Oh, hey, I know I'm dreaming... While I'm here, let's do that and that and that, and then I'll wake up.' In other words... Can you / Do you THINK in your dreams? I don't know how else to put it, because realizing you're dreaming is of course thinking, but really... I don't really know how to put it... reflect, maybe?For me, it's more of a shout... in my dreams I yell out Stop! and everything freezes... then I look around... make changes, back things up, or resume.

for instance, one dream I was being chased by some punks. I leaped over a small creek and continued through an empty field. I paused... rewound it just a tad, then thought... some houses to help loose them would be better... then resumed play... so then I lept the creek and dogded around some houses in suburbia and not an empty field.

For me I can think. I am aware of self and aware of the fact that it's a dream.

I think if we could somehow master how we can have lucid dreams it would make the ultimate thrill ride or video game. Like virtual reality but better I think.

I didn't learn it. is it actually possible to learn it...

I ask this because I do this... often.

I know when I'm dreaming and when I'm awake. In my dreams I can actually take control of them. rewind, fast forwards, even pause to make changes.

there are only two types of dreams that I cannot control. One is fevered nightmares. ones you get when you're sick. those usually involve sounds like my heartbeat or something.

the others are even stranger. I say that because those are the ones that come true.

I S#!t you not. I've had alot of dreams come true, thankfully they're little stuff and nothing life changing. just a scene plays out or a series of small events that string along. small but memerable.

so... any questions?
My experiences are much the same as yours. I've even had dreams where I didn't particularly like what was happening and remember thinking, "Damnit, this is my dream and I'll dream what I damned well please!" :D

I have precognitive dreams quite frequently, but like yours, almost all of mine are of incosequential things. Someday I plan to have a lucid, precognitive dream so I can dream about the winning lottery number! :D

I'm...pretty much in the same position as you.

I'm...pretty much in the same position as you.
Now THERE's a scarifying thought! :eek:

Now THERE's a scarifying thought! :eek:
Since I have no clue what you mean, by default I'll take that in the most sexual way possible. :D

I one timed dreamed that I was lucid dreaming. ;) Of course I wasn't controlling my dream, but I dreamed that I was! I kinda realized I never controlled my dream when all I did was rollar blade around a school.

I've never really had a lucid dream, whenever i realise i'm dreaming and try to change what's happening my dream just fades and i'm just lying in bed awake :(

The trick with lucid dreaming is the instant you begin to suspect that you are dreaming you have to tell yourself over and over not to wake up, because usually you awaken immediately when you realise you are dreaming. If you can manage to stay asleep once you recognise you are dreaming you can do anything you want in your dream (morph, teleport, throw fireballs, conjure a harem...whatever).

Poll coming?

By the way, could someone give me a link to instructions on how to dream lucidly? I've had tons of precognitive dreams, but never been able to master lucid dreaming. When I get to make choices, I always make the worst ones. *sigh*

Yeah, i've tried that, maybe i just need practise :)

I've had the ability to have lucid dreams since I can remember. Though the only dreams I can't control are the nightmares. No matter what I can't do a thing to them but can remember them with crystal quality. Realy creeps me out.
Though once I did have a lucid nightmare. Every change I made that was supposedly for the better made a turn for the worse and only resulted in the nightmare getting worse.

Since I have no clue what you mean, by default I'll take that in the most sexual way possible. :D

I one timed dreamed that I was lucid dreaming. ;) Of course I wasn't controlling my dream, but I dreamed that I was! I kinda realized I never controlled my dream when all I did was rollar blade around a school.
Hahahahahahaha! You nut! I guess I'm getting kind of a "rep" here, huh? Tsk! Just because I'm a dirty old man too! :D

Vanilla Sky! That's where I heard it! That's a damn good movie. I spent 15 minutes thinking about where I've heard of Lucid Dreams before. It would be cool I guess. I might try to learn it.

I had a few dozen lucid dreams a few years ago. It seems that they happen more often when you have good sleeping habits (you go to sleep at regular hours, you perform sports in the evening, you're not disturbed during the night). They're more common when you sleep alone.

A lucid dream starts when you get "conscious" of the fact that you're dreaming. There are various levels of consciousness: sometimes you just have a hint, and it fades away. In other cases, you suddenly realize that you're dreaming (usually because the situation in your dream doesn't make sense). Now, no matter how you react next, this period of consciousness usually does't last very long.

CASE 1. Sometimes you're about to wake up anyway, so your dream will fade away. I call this "lucid semi-dreams". One thing to avoid while you're in a lucid dream: don't look too much at your arms or at yourself; it seems to trigger a wake-up sequence (because you become self-aware???).

CASE 2. Sometimes, you realize that you're dreaming but you "shift" into another dream and the consciousness is lost. Maybe there is some kind of safeguard in our brain? Anyway, it seems to happen if you look around too fast. Don't ever look behind you: you'd end up somewhere else. In a conventional dream.

CASE 3. The third situation is the most interesting. It's the case when you have time to perform a certain number of tasks before you lose control again. Don't forget that in a lucid dream, your consciousness requires a constant effort. If you're "absorbed" by your surroundings, you dissipate. If you "shift" too much your dream (by modifying the setting), you dissipate. If you look too far, or if you concentrate on a specific object, you dissipate.

CASE 4. Sometimes you can even be cheated by your dream: first you're lucid, but later you just THINK you're lucid (i.e. your avatar is acting, or you dream that you're conscious). It seems to happen after you've done 1 or 2 cool things (such as flying or interacting with your dream's actors).

So if you ever happen to reach a lucid state during a dream, don't waste it. Because it won't last very long.

Here's a checklist of cool things to do.
1) Say a few sentences out loud; it'll be cool to remember them the next morning. For example: "Hi brain, my name is ____ and I am having a lucid dream."
2) Walk through windows/glass (if your dream is set in a room). This is one of the most pleasant sensations you can find in a lucid dream; it's like passing through a wall of jello. Warning: don't try to pass through walls, you'd shift (because you don't SEE where you're going).
3) Attempt to fly. Jump "very high". VERY high.
4) Try to speak to people. This is tricky.
5) Be very attentive: do you see colors, or is it in black-white-gray?

well Arkanaz, did these help or do you have more questions?

I began having lucid dreams as a very young child (kindergarten). Not all of my dreams were lucid, but a vast majority of them were. For a long time I thought this was normal, over time I realized it isnt normal for everyone. As I got older, I lost them. Not so much because I cant have lucid dreams anymore, but simply because I rarely remember my dreams anymore at all. If I use the journaling method I can remember my dreams and have many lucid ones (and a few non-lucid). But thats just too much hastle, I dont want to write stuff down every time I wake up, I usually just want sleep.

My lucid dreams arent without limitation though. I can do anything in my dream that I could do in real life, but I cant do all things I would like to do but are humanly impossible, and I cant simply conjure things into being. I can cause things to appear but I dont have full control over how they appear. For example, I may decide that I want a certain person to be in my dream, and that person will be in my dream but not necessarily immediately. It may take some time to find them and then there is no telling what the situation under which I find them is or what their role in my dream will be. My dreams are very much like weird movies/stories and while I can control certain elements, there is a part of the plot that I just cant escape. Another good example of the limitations is flying. I can rarely fly superman or peter pan style. However, I can often jump incredible distances and even jump in the air with no ground to push off of. So, I could jump and when I start descending, jump again before I reach the ground and so on. But I cant just fly and change direction mid air and stuff.

I dont know how you would go about getting lucid dreams if you dont already have the natural ability to do so. For me, its just a matter of remembering my dreams. If you want help remembering your dreams however (which will increase your chances of remembering any lucid ones you might have too), then you should keep a dream journal near your bed. Any time you wake up throughout the night, dont move at all, stay perfectly still and think about everything you just dreamed and then take your notebook and write down the critical points of your dream. Then, go back to sleep. In the morning you wont even need to look at the notebook because the act of organizing your thoughts in such a way that you could write about it already helped you put that dream in your memory.

I also did the lucid dreaming thing at around kindergarten age, and off and on for years afterwards. I shared a bedroom with two older brothers, and we often talked about our dreams right away in the morning. They were the ones who introduced me to the concept, and it turned out to be fairly easy to do.

As you lay down before bed, you just think "it's just a dream" or whatever other message you want over and over again. Then you fall asleep. It doesn't necessarily happen the first night, but it does happen. At some point in the dream you receive your message to yourself, and you're lucid. What happens next is up to you.

Naturally, we talked about taking over our dreams as well, and I experimented and managed that as well. The most extreme incident I can recall was running through a field with my stepfather chasing me, and I was scared. Then I realized it was a dream, and took it over. I stopped, turned to face him, and formed a sword into my hand using the Voltron method (I was 9, ok?). Then the background faded to white and I woke up.

In fact, that's usually what happened when I took over a dream. I'd wake up so quickly that it wasn't much fun. Even if I became lucid but did not take over, the lucidity was pretty much the trigger to wake up. After a while I got bored because of that... my dreams were just so much more interesting if I left them alone.

So I don't do it anymore. BUT... I think this little experiment is the primary reason why I simply do not have nightmares. I no longer take over my dreams, and very rarely realize I'm dreaming at all, but there seems to be a lingering confidence in the dream world from those takeover experiments. Along with the usual random stuff I occasionally dream that I'm about to come to harm through some agency or other, and yet I don't. One night it may be that I'm breathing underwater. Another night I may be shot at, but the bullet doesn't seem to do any damage even though I feel it pass through me (a very weird feeling). Another night I may be harassed by a large bully, but faced by that sort of thing I invariably turn and fight back... and though I don't seem to be able to hurt the other person, they can't hurt me, and I'm a flurry of activity in comparison and win the fight on the cards, so to speak.

So a dream may cause me to wake up annoyed, or sad, or laughing my ass off, but I never have those nights where I wake up in sheer terror. My wife is jealous.

I dream occasionally, but when i do i either experience lucid dreams or brief falling dreams. I dont sleep well on those nights.....

I've lucid dreamt a coupla times, although it always seems to end whenever I get to excited and try and have sex with a passing dream character... :( I seem to be way more horny in the dream world than I am in real life.

Have had a few lucid dreams.. but I have to fight to keep from waking up. I usually lose the battle.

Had one years ago that I stayed in for a decent amount of time.. I started searching for things written by me to find out how I thought and what I did etc. after I noticed that I was in my bedroom of my parents house.. but looked out the window and the house was in a totally different place .. that I didn't recognize.
It was like I knew I was me (dreaming) .. but I wasn't the me that was in the dream. She(I) was off somewhere else. I tried searching through the phone book, wanting to see what type of people I was involved with .. but I couldn't make out the writing. That's when I began to awake.. I was squinting and trying my damndest to read the names/numbers etc and couldn't. I awoke before I ever left the bedroom. I wish I would've left the room .. went through the house and outside to hopefully find myself in the dream.

That sounds weird. lol


More recent ones are sexual.. I immediatly grab a guy close to me and go for it. Those don't mean much to me though. I've always had sex dreams. It's just better when I know I am dreaming. No inhibitions. But.. I still wake soon.

I've lucid dreamt a coupla times, although it always seems to end whenever I get to excited and try and have sex with a passing dream character... :( I seem to be way more horny in the dream world than I am in real life.


Same here! I've never felt such a strong drive as I do in those dreams. Not sure if that is a good thing or bad thing for me.

-snip- One night it may be that I'm breathing underwater. Another night I may be shot at, but the bullet doesn't seem to do any damage

So a dream may cause me to wake up annoyed, or sad, or laughing my ass off, but I never have those nights where I wake up in sheer terror. My wife is jealous.

I've experienced that a few times also. Pretty cool thing, really. Especially the breathing underwater.

In my flying or falling dreams I always land unharmed.

Have had a few dreams that sent spikes/shivers through my spine so hard that once I became so afraid in my dream that it woke me.. I would feel my spine tingling for about another minute. I've never felt that while being awake(from a real life occurance-hope I never do). Very uncomfortable feeling. It actually kinda hurts. I will sit up and start rubbing my back to make it go away faster if it is terribly uncomfortable. Those dreams usually consist of some form of evil. Although I did have a dream of God once that sent that feeling through my body, but I wasn't afraid of him.. it was just from his presence. That was an awesome dream! But I wasn't aware I was dreaming during that.

From what I read here, it seems that any body-related action in a lucid dream (trying to have sex, for example) makes you wake up. I once woke up from a lucid dream by simply deciding to move my arms and legs. If you decide to move, consciously, your body... you're simply kicked out of "dream mode". Maybe that's the same thing with sex. When you try to have sex in your dream, you don't want "dream sex", you want "real sex" -- and you wake up.

Waking from a lucid dream is always a strange experience. In your dream, the background starts disappearing, it becomes white. Images and things transform into ideas and words. I don't actuallysee a dog anymore, I find myself repeating the word "dog" for myself. But the image is not there anymore. It's like a movie transforming into a narrative, into a book. You realize that you're not really "being there", but you're just telling yourself a story.

It feels really, really strange.
But it makes sense.

From what I read here, it seems that any body-related action in a lucid dream (trying to have sex, for example) makes you wake up. I once woke up from a lucid dream by simply deciding to move my arms and legs. If you decide to move, consciously, your body... you're simply kicked out of "dream mode". Maybe that's the same thing with sex. When you try to have sex in your dream, you don't want "dream sex", you want "real sex" -- and you wake up.


hmm, maybe if you're unexperienced... But people who routinely, purposefully lucid dream are able to do stuff like that, up to and including full on sex. There's a few tricks to maintain the dream, like concentrating on a dream object or rubbing their hands together (the tactile sensation seems to ground them in the dream). It's all about being relaxed in the dream state.

It is plausable to have full on sex in a lucid dream. Did it afew times and only woke up when somone opened the door in my room though it required extreme concentration and resulted in a nasty headache. Though I've been having lucids for almost 10 years now so they come easy to me.

Visualize your dream. Record it in the present tense; put it into a permanent form. If you persist in your efforts, you can achieve dream control