Any lucid dreamers out there?

[Baby Owl]

I frequently have lucid dreams (where I know I am dreaming), and I am trying to get to where I have more control over what happens during those dreams. As it is now, my control is sporadic. For example, as I approach a door in a dream, I will decide I want something in particular to be on the other side. I open the door and that's what I see. Other times, this does not work. I will even close my eyes (still within the dream), concentrate on what I want to see, and open my eyes again. Sometimes this works, other times not.

Does anyone else do this? How much control do you have?

 

[jema]

Hi,
I wish I had some advice to give but I don't know how to increase control of lucid dreams.
For me it came as quite a shock when I was a teenager that not everyone had lucid dreams. I would say that at least 75% of my dreams (that I can recall when I wake up) are lucid to some degree. The real test for lucid dreaming for me is to read in my dream.

I once did read the cards in a lucid dream too

 

[Belladonna]

I love lucid dreaming! It was quite natural to me as a child. These days I have to work at it a little, but I find that just keeping a dream journal for a couple of weeks to get me remembering as many dreams as possible triggers it. Lately I've been practicing walking through solid objects such as walls, the all time favorite- flying, and spinning in the air. My biggest challenge would be to conciously visit someone, but maybe I'm getting into astral travel territory!

 

[Baby Owl]

Part of my interest in gaining more control during lucid dreaming is an interest in trying astral travel.

How about if you are dreaming something and you either can't or don't want to try to change it, so you decide you want to wake up? Do you have a specific method for waking up that works well? I find that yelling sometimes works. (I don't think I actually yell out loud -- at least my husband has never commented on it!)

 

[Indigo_lady]

Yelling does work, but I don't like how it feels afterwards. At least for me, because I feel very stressed

It sounds like a cheesy comparison, but for me it's like a movie theater. I just tell myself it's time to go and turn around and I wake up instantly, as if I had never been sleeping (though rested of course).

But I think in my case it is something that comes natural, I didn't have to work for doing that.

 

[firemaiden]

Does anyone else do this? How much control do you have?

Yes.
How much control varies.
Once I auctioned myself off on a table in a pub along with a bunch of other wenches. It was great fun.
There are some cool websites out there about lucid dreaming.

Have you read any Carlos Castaneda?

 

[Belladonna]

The scary thing for me is that sometimes I can't wake up, or it takes me a long time. I've tried yelling and it doesn't work. I get very scared and finally I manage to wake up somehow. Other times waking up is no problem. I just decide to and do.

How do you know for sure if you are astral traveling? I've experienced the weirdest warping sensation of separating from my body ( it feels like "Bloooowwwahhhgh") and even walking around my house and going outside and flying, but I can't seem to go somewhere I'm thinking of, or visit someone, etc.

 

[Melvis]

I was just going to suggest what Belladonna did in her earlier post. I need to be keeping a dream journal in order to get some measure of control. But even then, it's hard for me to completely control what goes on.

Waking myself up is actually the easiest thing for me to do. I just tell myself, "OK, I'm going to wake up now!" And it's like taking a big breath. That might actually be what I do, because it seems like I'm transferring a dream action into a real action. It probably has something to do with overcoming the body's natural paralysis during dreaming, and somehow I'm able to trigger it to shut off.

The first lucid dream I had was when I was a child and I was having a recurring dream. I dreamed we lived in a kingdom where we had to pick vegetables in the king's garden. (Weird, I know!) My mom was mouthing off about the king, and suddenly some guards showed up and took her away to put her in jail. Then I was forced to leave the kingdom because I was now all alone. That was the scary part! I kept having the dream every few nights, and it was really annoying me.

I think what changed is that instead of letting the dream scare me, I got mad at it. So one night when the guards came, I just said to myself, "I'm not going to let them take her away!" And suddenly, the guards were gone and mom was still there! Then I woke up because I was so shocked! But I was just thrilled because it felt so empowering. I was such a shy child that this empowerment really meant a lot to me.

OK, now you guys are getting me thinking...Maybe I need to start my dream journaling again!

Pleasant dreams, all!

Peace,

Melvis

 

[Baby Owl]

The scary thing for me is that sometimes I can't wake up, or it takes me a long time. I've tried yelling and it doesn't work. I get very scared and finally I manage to wake up somehow. Other times waking up is no problem. I just decide to and do.

There have been times when I try to wake up and think I am awake, but then something occurs or appears that tips me off that I'm not really awake. I've learned to look for and spot those clues quickly, but it's unnerving to make two or three unsuccessful attempts, like traveling up through layers or being underwater, trying to get to the surface.

How do you know for sure if you are astral traveling? I've experienced the weirdest warping sensation of separating from my body ( it feels like "Bloooowwwahhhgh") and even walking around my house and going outside and flying, but I can't seem to go somewhere I'm thinking of, or visit someone, etc.

I'm a bit hazy on this. I understand that looking down and seeing yourself lying in bed is a strong indication, but I don't know if it's a necessary step. I have never experienced that.

 

[Baby Owl]

Melvis, I see you are in Minneapolis. I lived there for 5 years. I still have a recurring dream where I'm in a large downtown area waiting for a bus. On occasion I have asked a dream guide where I am, and the answer is always "Minneapolis." LOL