# Lucid Dreaming > DV Academy > Current Courses > Intro Class >  >  ♫ PostScript99's Workbook ♫

## PostScript99

*Reality Checks:*
- Checks curvature of life line on hand (apparently feeling it does not work)
- Push finger through hand (never worked)

*Dream Signs:*
- Finding/winning money/prizes/other valuables items

*Short-Term Goals:*
-Teleport at will.
-Use Psynergy.
-Walk through a wall.
-Restabilize frequency. It's reeeally erratic right now. (complete, for now)

*Long-Term Goals:*
-Control time dilation.
-LD every night.
-Master WILD. (My two WILDS were complete accidents.)

*Lucid/Dream Recall History:*
-Normal- Record 8, usually 1-2, worst 0
-Lucid-I have only forgotten one lucid.

*Current Technique:*
-DILD

----------


## OpheliaBlue

Hey PostScript, welcome! I like your workbook.

Your lucid history is pretty incredible! I'd love it if you had some words of wisdom for the rest of the class  :smiley:  Anyway, quick question: if the finger through the palm doesn't work, then how come you listed it as a reality check? I'm just curious because I used that trick 2 times and it worked, then didn't. Which is weird because flying works better for me now, even though both are impossible in waking life. Well, not 100% impossible but you know what I mean.  :tongue2: 

Anyway, nice to see you hear, can't wait to read about all your lucid endeavors!

----------


## PostScript99

> Hey PostScript, welcome! I like your workbook.
> 
> Your lucid history is pretty incredible! I'd love it if you had some words of wisdom for the rest of the class  Anyway, quick question: if the finger through the palm doesn't work, then how come you listed it as a reality check? I'm just curious because I used that trick 2 times and it worked, then didn't. Which is weird because flying works better for me now, even though both are impossible in waking life. Well, not 100% impossible but you know what I mean. 
> 
> Anyway, nice to see you hear, can't wait to read about all your lucid endeavors!



Although my record does look quite imposing, some of them are simply quite fragmented since I didn't use any stabilization techniques at the time. My two MILDs were last week, and I'm happy for those. ::happy:: , but the two WILDs were complete accidents, the DEILD was difficult, and shorter than the previous lucid, and as it turned out I had used SSILD a lot years ago, before I knew what it was, and so I went to bed determined to have at least one and I got my wish.

And as for the finger through the palm check, I have tried several times to put my hand through anything, anything at all, and I have never done so, so I still use this RC just to see if I can accomplish one of my lucid goals.


Words of wisdom...hmm..

OK, the best advice I can give to new oneironauts is this: lucid dreaming is really a personal thing. It's not all about all those people teaching you, it's about you.There are always some basics that most people can follow, but feel free experiment with different methods.

Take me, for instance. I didn't buy into the 'no electronics' crap that I heard on here once, and every night I play on my GBA until 10:45 before falling asleep. ( I found the 3DS too disorienting.)


Anyway, let's get started with LESSON I! ::biggrin::

----------


## PostScript99

> Your Homework For Lesson I is to:
> 
> 
> Start your own workbook thread in this subforum (here)
> Start a Dream Journal and record each dream.
> Record the times that you naturally go to bed and wake-up, and list it in your workbook.
> Do reality checks whenever you experience something weird throughout the day, and list it in your workbook.
> Write a list for why you want to lucid dream (for motivation), and plan out what you want to do in your next lucid dream.
> Establish a night-time routine (Include reading your dream journal, making sure to leave your DJ open to a blank page for quicker dictations).



#1 Did that. Check
#2 Been doing that. Check.
#3 10:45 and 7:00. Check.
#4 Yesterday I checked out one of the potted orchids that I got when I went to the botanical gardens in Oklahoma, and it read: Gilded Urchin 'Oneiro'

Wait, WHAT? *rubs eyes, does RC* Ohh, it said Ontario, not Oneiro, guess it's not a dream after all.
Will continue to do this. Not checked.
#5 Really, my parents are just like seriously overprotective, so I can't really go anywhere...

"Why can't I cross the street, Mom?"

"You might get hit by a car."
 ::roll:: 

So in LDs, I can go anywhere I want, alone, and everything is new, I'm not staring at the same surroundings all day long, like in school. I can take pleasure in screaming my lungs out while flying or standing in the middle of the road and jump and land on the car right before it hits me. Ahhh bliss.  ::biggrin::  

Ok, so next lucid, I want to walk into a really high-tech room that is the 'Dream Control Panel', meet my subconscious sitting there, telling her that she can go play now, and messing around with every single aspect of the dream. Sounds like fun.  :smiley:  I'm just not going to touch the REM Atonia On-Off switch.

#6 All right then, I'll try...but my DJ always always always opens up to a blank page.

----------


## PostScript99

Other things that made me RC:

Texture's massive epic face avatar

I actually got a PM

It's 33 degrees outside in the middle of March

----------


## Texture

http://images5.fanpop.com/image/phot...28-640-480.jpg
 :wink2:

----------


## PostScript99

Just last night I decided put lucid dreaming on hold and get my sleep schedule back on track, and I end up getting a nice long DILD and another one using WBTB. Nice!  ::D: 

A question about Apple juice: does it have to be 100% and not from concentrate? Because I've have some that's like that and it's expensive and it's nasty.

----------


## paigeyemps

Hey welcome to the class! And congraaats on the lucid, they really do surprise you huh?  ::muffin:: 

Also about the apple juice, it's fine. Mine's not concentrated, i even add some water but it all works fine  :smiley:

----------


## PostScript99

Before moving on to LESSON II, let's see what goals I completed:

1. See a cartoon/video game characternamine.JPG Check.

2. Use WBTB. Check.

3. Try the mirror experiment. Check.

All right then, time for Lesson 2!!!  ::D:

----------


## PostScript99

> Your Homework For Lesson II is:
> 
> 
> Study up on all of the induction techniques listed here and find one that suits you.
> Practice your chosen induction technique for at least 2 weeks (although longer is preferred) before changing it to something else or ruling out that it's not working.
> Continue to post all of your experiences, even failed ones, into your workbook.
> 
> Optional:
> Discuss your chosen technique with the teachers by posting in your workbook. There are lots of ways to go about each technique, we will be able help you find a method that suits you!
> ...




Very well, for the next two weeks I will try MILD combined with ADA, since ADA works with everything. However, if I just get a bunch of DILDs I'll be happy with that too.  :smiley:

----------


## PostScript99

Nabbed another long DILD last night, but I can't remember most of it. I need to get my recall up to scratch.  :Sad:

----------


## paigeyemps

> Nabbed another long DILD last night, but I can't remember most of it. I need to get my recall up to scratch.



 Congrats! But sad face for not recalling  :Sad: 


Have you ever tried doing recall mantras WHILE lucid? Like tell yourself 'i will remember this' or something  :smiley:

----------


## PostScript99

> Congrats! But sad face for not recalling 
> 
> 
> Have you ever tried doing recall mantras WHILE lucid? Like tell yourself 'i will remember this' or something



That's a good idea, i should try it.  :smiley:

----------


## PostScript99

A couple of fragments the first night, but nothing on the second.

I got an LDD though, I think, so I should be happy.  ::D:

----------


## PostScript99

I have to drive this into my head!!!
RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC RC 

I've had 3 Lds this week but I need to have a MILD!!! Come on!

----------


## PostScript99

It's high time I posted in here again.

Well, I got a MILD, (yay!) but otherwise it was a pretty quiet week.  :Sad:  Oh well.

----------


## OpheliaBlue

Well congrats on the MILD!

What's a LDD by the way? Just a typo, or something new I don't know about yet?  :tongue2:

----------


## PostScript99

It stands for Lucid _Day_dream.

----------


## PostScript99

I got my first intentional WILD and my third-longest DILD on record.

I see Pennyroyal is improving very quickly so it's about time I did too.  :wink2:

----------


## PostScript99

4 DILDs!!! Woohoo!

BrandonBoss was right, micro WBTBs are awesome.

----------


## PostScript99

I've noticed that the line between lucidity and non-lucidity is becoming more blurred, the more I LD. Now, it's not a big aha moment anymore. It's oh, I'm lucid, or not even knowing when I became lucid. Is this normal?

----------


## CanisLucidus

> I got my first intentional WILD and my third-longest DILD on record.
> 
> I see Pennyroyal is improving very quickly so it's about time I did too.







> 4 DILDs!!! Woohoo!



 ::happy::   Congratulations on all of these LDs and your first on-purpose WILD!!  It sounds like things are going great for you right now!





> BrandonBoss was right, micro WBTBs are awesome.



Could you give me an idea of how micro WBTBs work?  Is this similar to DutchRaptor's DEILD technique where he sets lots of alarms throughout the night in order to achieve a whole bunch of LDs?  Whatever it is, if it's netting your 4 DILDs in one night, it sounds awesome!   ::o: 





> I've noticed that the line between lucidity and non-lucidity is becoming more blurred, the more I LD. Now, it's not a big aha moment anymore. It's oh, I'm lucid, or not even knowing when I became lucid. Is this normal?



Very interesting.  I can't say that this really happened to me, but it doesn't strike me as terribly abnormal.  Perhaps the idea of realizing you're dreaming doesn't carry the same punch of novelty as it did before and you don't get that big bolt of excitement?  I still get pretty excited and joyful when I become lucid and I have to consciously keep my emotions on an even keel or I end up with a micro-lucid.

----------


## PennyRoyal

> I've noticed that the line between lucidity and non-lucidity is becoming more blurred, the more I LD. Now, it's not a big aha moment anymore. It's oh, I'm lucid, or not even knowing when I became lucid. Is this normal?



I'm noticing this shift myself. The first few weeks I was becoming lucid something would jolt me suddenly into lucidity. Recently most of the lucids I have, I just seem to know that I'm in a dream and all I have to do is confirm before I try to jump off a skyscraper or something  :tongue2: 

4 DILDS in one night, thats awesome man. Super jealous.

----------


## PostScript99

> Congratulations on all of these LDs and your first on-purpose WILD!!  It sounds like things are going great for you right now!
> 
> 
> 
> Could you give me an idea of how micro WBTBs work?  Is this similar to DutchRaptor's DEILD technique where he sets lots of alarms throughout the night in order to achieve a whole bunch of LDs?  Whatever it is, if it's netting your 4 DILDs in one night, it sounds awesome!  
> 
> 
> 
> Very interesting.  I can't say that this really happened to me, but it doesn't strike me as terribly abnormal.  Perhaps the idea of realizing you're dreaming doesn't carry the same punch of novelty as it did before and you don't get that big bolt of excitement?  I still get pretty excited and joyful when I become lucid and I have to consciously keep my emotions on an even keel or I end up with a micro-lucid.



Thanks for your support CL and Penny.  ::D:  

Oh, and micro WBTBs are pretty much like that, except I didn't use an alarm clock.  :tongue2:

----------


## PostScript99

Got another WILD, but it was an FA and...I opened my eyes IRL because I thought it was real, so I woke up.  :Sad: 

Less than a second of lucidity, I'm not adding to my LD count.  :tongue2: 

But still, I WAS SO FREAKIN CLOSE!!!!!!! I'm trying again tonight.

----------


## OpheliaBlue

> Got another WILD, but it was an FA and...I opened my eyes IRL because I thought it was real, so I woke up. 
> 
> Less than a second of lucidity, I'm not adding to my LD count. 
> 
> But still, I WAS SO FREAKIN CLOSE!!!!!!! I'm trying again tonight.



Ffuu I did that once, so incredibly annoying. I usually open my eyes very slowly and very carefully when I'm phasing through those WILD vibrations (just in case). Still I wonder, if being too cautious at that transition is becoming a transitional schema these days.

What do you do ordinarily during those transitions between awake and sleep when you WILD?

----------


## PostScript99

> Ffuu I did that once, so incredibly annoying. I usually open my eyes very slowly and very carefully when I'm phasing through those WILD vibrations (just in case). Still I wonder, if being too cautious at that transition is becoming a transitional schema these days.
> 
> What do you do ordinarily during those transitions between awake and sleep when you WILD?



You're supposed to do something?? I just wait and let the dream form around me, then start doing stuff.

----------


## OpheliaBlue

> You're supposed to do something?? I just wait and let the dream form around me, then start doing stuff.



I guess I was asking because, before I knew what those vibrations meant, I just went back to sleep and ended up in a nonlucid, and quite often a false awakening. You say that you are letting the dream form around you, which suggests that you are really aware at the transitional phase. If this is so, then how come you ended up having a false awakening this last time? (not a criticism by the way, just prodding for helpful facts).

----------


## PostScript99

Hey Ophelia, I was aware during HH and the vibrations. It was actually pretty intense, and now I'm hearing screams and chasing people and in a cartoon and hearing subconsciously composed marches....It's hectic.

I was really disoriented from all this HH, so when the dream started to form, it was exactly where I was lying and it looked as if I had accidentally opened my eyes a crack, so I opened them for real.  :Sad:

----------


## PostScript99

I forgot, I know, I should be following the lessons too....

I'm already doing ADA, but I seriously need help with meditation. I can't sit still for very long. Any pointers?

----------


## PennyRoyal

> I'm already doing ADA, but I seriously need help with meditation. I can't sit still for very long. Any pointers?



Now, I'm no tibetan meditation master, but I can tell you what helps me sometimes.. When I'm trying to meditate and I'm feeling antsy about sitting still, I've learned that If I visualize myself sprinting or swimming furiously it distracts me fairly well. 

Do you get most/all your lucids from WILDing?

----------


## PostScript99

> Now, I'm no tibetan meditation master, but I can tell you what helps me sometimes.. When I'm trying to meditate and I'm feeling antsy about sitting still, I've learned that If I visualize myself sprinting or swimming furiously it distracts me fairly well. 
> 
> Do you get most/all your lucids from WILDing?



Actually, I just recently started WILD, and found it much more reliable than DILD and MILD, and also very easy. We should stop telling noobs how difficult and scary WILD is and turn them away to DILD. WILD is great because the worst thing that can happen is falling asleep without success, after which you'll DILD anyway, so it doesn't matter.  :smiley: 

Speaking of which, that's exactly what happened this morning after a WILD attempt. I ended up with a DILD.

And I'll try your technique, thanks for the tip. Now I just gotta find time to meditate.  :tongue2:

----------


## PostScript99

2 DILDs, 8 dreams remembered!!!!

8 dreams is thanks to a dream where I saw the titles of the previous six while visiting DV and checking my control panel. I should utilize this more often!  ::D:

----------


## PostScript99

Another very long DILD, with good recall. I've been cruising along quite nicely without my DJ. It doesn't seem to have any negative effect without it. Then again, I did start without one so, I don't know.

----------


## PostScript99

Failed WILD because my hand twitched during HH and I woke up immediately..... I was so close, though.

I am trying again tonight. I'll get it this time!

----------


## PostScript99

No recall for 4 of 5 nights, set up for REM rebound, successful with 2 DILDS.

----------


## PennyRoyal

> No recall for 4 of 5 nights, set up for REM rebound, successful with 2 DILDS.



What did you do to set yourself up for rebound?

----------


## PostScript99

> What did you do to set yourself up for rebound?



Just major sleep deprivation. You really can do anything that can deprive you of REM sleep, though.

----------


## PostScript99

Okay, let's take stock on how far I've come.

When I started this workbook:
-Horrible recall
-1 dream a week (very bad for me)
-Dreams were short and choppy

Now:

- 3 a week is the new normal.  ::D: 
- Recall is up to 2-3 dreams per night, with good quality
- LDs are longer

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Okay, let's take stock on how far I've come.
> 
> When I started this workbook:
> -Horrible recall
> -1 dream a week (very bad for me)
> -Dreams were short and choppy
> 
> Now:
> 
> ...



That _is_ great progress, especially for just a couple of months of work!  Congratulations on the huge uptick in both lucid dreaming and your NLD recall.  While I'm an LD guy all the way, I've really come to appreciate just how awesome NLDs can be too.  It's cool that dream work builds up both of them very nicely.

What do you feel has made the biggest difference for you over the past couple of months?  Congrats on the wings, BTW.   :smiley:

----------


## PostScript99

> That _is_ great progress, especially for just a couple of months of work!  Congratulations on the huge uptick in both lucid dreaming and your NLD recall.  While I'm an LD guy all the way, I've really come to appreciate just how awesome NLDs can be too.  It's cool that dream work builds up both of them very nicely.
> 
> What do you feel has made the biggest difference for you over the past couple of months?  Congrats on the wings, BTW.



Really, it's just getting feedback from other people and feeling extremely motivated to do RCs, etc. But really RCs for me are just to keep my mind on LDing. I have only gotten lucid from an RC 3 times. After a stressful weekend with dull dreams, I'm ready to kick my mind back into gear and get back into it! The only thing relevant was really a small fragment that was kind of maybe sort of a prerecognitive because it said I had 10 notifications and I really had 7. Whatever, close enough.  :tongue2: 

Thanks on the wings, but I'm really aiming to get all five in one shot this time.  :smiley:

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Thanks on the wings, but I'm really aiming to get all five in one shot this time.



Nice!!  Aim high, I say.   ::goodjob2::   Man, I'd forgotten that with the addition of the bonus task, it's now _five_ in one you had to do in order to nail them all.  That's actually getting to be a lot of stuff to remember.

I'll be very impressed when you pull it off!   :Nod yes:

----------


## PostScript99

Quality of NLDs as well as recall getting better, but little awareness and no lucids so far. Probably because of my messed up sleep schedule.

----------


## PostScript99

Got a very short LD last night, my subC had to trip me to remind me to spin, but I got an FA and thought it was real because my RC failed. Oh well.

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Got a very short LD last night, my subC had to trip me to remind me to spin, but I got an FA and thought it was real because my RC failed. Oh well.



All right, congratulations on the lucid!  Nice job remembering to spin... so did the spin plop you right back into your bed and you figured you'd just woken up?  It's a tough break, but you'll be ready for it next time.  On the plus side, it means your dream was nice and stable right through the spinning and didn't collapse.

When you began to spin, did you have a new scene in mind?  Maybe next time it's worth trying to imagine the new location you wish to travel to.  When you're not imagining any new location in particular, your mind may just fill in whatever is most readily at hand.  In this case, perhaps it was your bedroom!

Anyway, just a thought.  I'm glad to hear that recall is steady and that you're getting lucid!

----------


## PostScript99

> All right, congratulations on the lucid!  Nice job remembering to spin... so did the spin plop you right back into your bed and you figured you'd just woken up?  It's a tough break, but you'll be ready for it next time.  On the plus side, it means your dream was nice and stable right through the spinning and didn't collapse.
> 
> When you began to spin, did you have a new scene in mind?  Maybe next time it's worth trying to imagine the new location you wish to travel to.  When you're not imagining any new location in particular, your mind may just fill in whatever is most readily at hand.  In this case, perhaps it was your bedroom!
> 
> Anyway, just a thought.  I'm glad to hear that recall is steady and that you're getting lucid!



Lol, actually...I'm on a horrible dry spell right now, with no recall at all for the last five days. I know it's because I haven't gotten as much sleep as I should have, so it'll be no problem, I'll be back in the thick of it by tonight.

What happened was I ended up in my bed very suspicious of my surroundings, did an RC by tracing the outline of my life line, which is usually curved in dreams, but jagged in real life. Feeling it now, it seems exactly the same as in that dream, so I went back to sleep and woke up for real. So is that how you teleport, by spinning and envisioning a new scene? I will have to try this, since teleportation is one of my goals.

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Lol, actually...I'm on a horrible dry spell right now, with no recall at all for the last five days. I know it's because I haven't gotten as much sleep as I should have, so it'll be no problem, I'll be back in the thick of it by tonight.



Absolutely.  Lack of sleep is often a serious recall killer (at least for me), so chances are that'll all right itself once you're getting enough sleep.





> So is that how you teleport, by spinning and envisioning a new scene? I will have to try this, since teleportation is one of my goals.



I have unintentionally done this once but never attempted it on purpose.  It seems like a very good approach for a variety of reasons.  By jumbling up both your visual sensations and the map of the world your hippocampus carries around, it should in theory make things much easier to rearrange.

My teleportation is a work in progress, but I've had the most success teleporting out of the void (those moments in a dream where everything has gone black.)  From there I like to focus very close up on some detail of the new scene, such as how the floor will look and feel.  Then I imagine myself rubbing that floor until it comes into visual focus.  Then I imagine the new scene without looking up.  Once I've spent a good bit of time imagining what the new environment will look like, then I raise my eyes and look around.  This got me to the Colosseum.

I'm sure there are more efficient ways, but this is something that worked for me.   :smiley:   I plan on experimenting with a lot of other approaches in the coming LDs.  Let me know how the spinning goes if you get a chance to try it!

----------


## PostScript99

Don't say if. *When* I get a chance to try it.  :smiley: 

Right now, my most pressing problem is getting enough sleep. The nights are really hot, since my room has no insulation protecting, and the temperature difference can be felt when you walk into the room. I looked up a guide on eHow on how to sleep on hot nights, but all it basically had was wet clothing (my parents would kill me), massive ice cubes ( ::roll:: ), and fans. My ceiling fan is already turned on and it isn't helping much since my room has a 15 ft. ceiling. Any tips?

----------


## PostScript99

Broke the dry spell with a long lucid about flying. My stint of little sleep has ruined my vividity utterly. I'll have to build it up with my DJ again.

----------


## paigeyemps

"has ruined my vivid utterly"..im pretty sure you meant one more word in between vivid and utterly (?)

Lol. Anyway, congrats on the lucid!  :Party: 

As for the hot room, open your windows and door, and try to move your bed away from corners. It might not seem like much but it has a great effect on the flow of air inside your room. I know, my room is like this x)

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Don't say if. *When* I get a chance to try it.



Ha!  You are absolutely right.  I stand humbly corrected.   :Nod yes: 





> Right now, my most pressing problem is getting enough sleep. The nights are really hot, since my room has no insulation protecting, and the temperature difference can be felt when you walk into the room. I looked up a guide on eHow on how to sleep on hot nights, but all it basically had was wet clothing (my parents would kill me), massive ice cubes (), and fans. My ceiling fan is already turned on and it isn't helping much since my room has a 15 ft. ceiling. Any tips?



When it's hot, I go with the fan on, the absolute bare minimum of covers, and of course more minimalist sleepwear.  When it's hot, I go boxer shorts and a light sheet over one leg and a little bit of my body.  It's weird but I like having just that little bit of cover.   ::whyme:: 

Is there any way that you can access a secondary fan that you could have blow on you from nearby?  The white noise could also be beneficial.  I like Paige's ideas.





> Broke the dry spell with a long lucid about flying. My stint of little sleep has ruined my vividity utterly. I'll have to build it up with my DJ again.



Congratulations!!  Don't worry, when you're sleeping properly, you'll get it all back.

----------


## PostScript99

Last night I decided to try something new. Since I don't have an alarm clock I had the idea that I should stick my arm under my pillow, so it would "fall asleep" during the night and I would wake up for a WILD. Well, that part worked. The only problem was I couldn't go back to sleep. I spent a couple of hours tossing and turning, got into HH twice, but once my hand started involuntarily, and the second time I heard a huge clap of thunder the nearly made me jump out of bed. I ended up not going back to sleep.  :Sad:  And I was so motivated last night too, and planning out everything I was going to do...Dream vividity has not returned yet, strangely. I've noticed that most of my DILDs never come from fuzzy dreams, so I'm going to have to get it back up. I'm cutting electronics 2 hours before bed to see if it helps.

----------


## CanisLucidus

Sorry that the experiment didn't work out but that was an interesting idea to try.  Do you think that it was just bad luck that you had so much trouble going back to sleep or do you think that making your arm fall asleep worked "too well"?

That clap of thunder was real, right, and not just super-intense HH?   :smiley: 

Good call minimizing electronics before bed!  A program that I like is f.lux, which warms the color temperature of your computer monitor as night falls.  It's free and does a great job of minimizing that electronic shock I always get from looking at my screen at the wrong time: f.lux: software to make your life better

Hopefully you're getting good sleep.  I'm sure that the dream vividness will return.  At some point you're going to catch that REM rebound and you'll be loving life.

----------


## PostScript99

It was a clear night four days ago so it was HH, I'm sorry to say.

No, I'm not getting good sleep at all though, my biological clock is completely out of whack, and I can't fall asleep after WBTB attempts. I still have trouble falling asleep after being sleep deprived and I think I have MOTN or regular insomnia. I still don't feel rested after a lot of sleep, and most importantly, _I have to put LDing and the competition on hold until I resolve this is issue! _

----------


## CanisLucidus

> It was a clear night four days ago so it was HH, I'm sorry to say.



Well, that's actually kind of cool.   :smiley: 





> No, I'm not getting good sleep at all though, my biological clock is completely out of whack, and I can't fall asleep after WBTB attempts. I still have trouble falling asleep after being sleep deprived and I think I have MOTN or regular insomnia. I still don't feel rested after a lot of sleep, and most importantly, _I have to put LDing and the competition on hold until I resolve this is issue! _



That sounds like the right move to me.  As fantastic as WBTB is, the single most important "dream aid" is _sleep_.  If WBTB is getting in the way, just let yourself get the rest that you need and deserve.  Get a decent bedtime going, relax your mind and body before bed, and just take good care of yourself.

I know it's painful having to go back and focus on something besides your competition and LD goals, but everything in your life (LDing included) will get easier when you're getting proper rest.

----------


## Sibyline

> I had the idea that I should stick my arm under my pillow, so it would "fall asleep" during the night and I would wake up for a WILD.



Don't do that, mate. I did that inadvertently last night and cut my finger off (in a dream).

I use an alarm app with a single buzz. I'm still fine-tuning the timing, but it has worked for me (CANWILD).

----------


## PostScript99

> Don't do that, mate. I did that inadvertently last night and cut my finger off (in a dream).
> 
> I use an alarm app with a single buzz. I'm still fine-tuning the timing, but it has worked for me (CANWILD).



It'd be nice to have nightmares again, haven't had one in ages.  :wink2: -

----------


## Sibyline

Haha!  :vampire: 

That wasn't a nightmare, though, just weird. I haven't had a nightmare in years. My dreams tend to seem gruesome in print, but they don't feel that way.

----------


## PostScript99

Tried going to sleep 30 minutes earlier than normal, ended up waking up 3 hours later with Golden Sun characters swimming before my eyes and delusional thoughts roaming about. Needless to say, I didn't fall back asleep... I felt very uncomfortable for some reason, like it was hot, but, the room was actually cold.

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Tried going to sleep 30 minutes earlier than normal, ended up waking up 3 hours later with Golden Sun characters swimming before my eyes and delusional thoughts roaming about. Needless to say, I didn't fall back asleep... I felt very uncomfortable for some reason, like it was hot, but, the room was actually cold.



Sorry to hear that you couldn't get back to sleep after that!  Have you ever looked into meditation to quiet those racing thoughts?  How long did it take for your mind to eventually quiet down?

A meditation practice that I read about long ago and find effective is to acknowledge a thought as it arrives, don't resist it, but just gently set it aside.  A recommended way of doing this is, as a runaway thought arises, thinking, "This is a thought.  I wonder what my next thought will be?"  This tends to interrupt these crazy trains and help you gradually get your sense of calm back.

And I remember Golden Sun!   ::happy::   I have that for the Gameboy Advance, though I haven't played in ages.  Am I thinking of the same game?

----------


## PostScript99

> Sorry to hear that you couldn't get back to sleep after that!  Have you ever looked into meditation to quiet those racing thoughts?  How long did it take for your mind to eventually quiet down?
> 
> A meditation practice that I read about long ago and find effective is to acknowledge a thought as it arrives, don't resist it, but just gently set it aside.  A recommended way of doing this is, as a runaway thought arises, thinking, "This is a thought.  I wonder what my next thought will be?"  This tends to interrupt these crazy trains and help you gradually get your sense of calm back.
> 
> And I remember Golden Sun!    I have that for the Gameboy Advance, though I haven't played in ages.  Am I thinking of the same game?



Sorry for the delayed response, my parents are on to me and they don't believe in lucid dreaming.  :tongue2: 

And I have been trying meditation, my insomnia is all but gone now. XD although my LDs haven't come back yet... :Sad: 

Coming back into lucid dreaming is actually really difficult, I haven't had one in a few days. I have to remain optimistic, though, or I won't be able to do it at all.

And you mean this game?

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Sorry for the delayed response, my parents are on to me and they don't believe in lucid dreaming. 
> 
> And I have been trying meditation, my insomnia is all but gone now. XD although my LDs haven't come back yet...
> 
> Coming back into lucid dreaming is actually really difficult, I haven't had one in a few days. I have to remain optimistic, though, or I won't be able to do it at all.
> 
> And you mean this game?



Ahh, sorry to hear that your parents aren't big fans of LD.  When you say that they don't believe in it, do you mean that they simply think it's a bad idea or do they actually not believe that it's possible?

I'm very glad to hear that you've beaten the insomnia, though, that's great!  You are meditating at WBTB now I guess?  I'm glad to hear that it's working.  I tried to meditate at WBTB last night and it worked TOO well at preventing insomnia.  I kept collapsing and dozing off while I was trying to do it.   ::chuckle:: 

And things may _feel_ difficult right now, but don't believe it!  You did it before so you absolutely can _and will_ do it again.  The only obstacle you have remaining is to once again begin thinking of yourself as someone who has lucid dreams.  Intent and confidence are so important.  Once you start having them again, you'll be reminded of your own skills.  In the meantime, believe in your abilities!  Remember what you can do and just make it happen.  I know that you'll succeed.

And yep, that's the game!   ::D:

----------


## PostScript99

One of my family members and I had a long, heated debate about LDing, where she kept insisting that LDing could neither be as realistic or even close to real life, and how HH was terrible, and her experiences with that and SP. She has SP disorder but refuses to admit it is a disorder, and asked me how you could tell the difference between HH and dreams. She kept on telling me how horrible HH and SP were, and I told her about my HH, filled with beautiful music and cartoons, and she told me about the demons and witches she saw, and just told me “whatever, it’s bad for you so don’t do it.” I know she means well, but seriously. The whole time she was just telling me she needed scientific proofs and papers whenever I said something about the vividity of dreams or time dilation, and I just felt so frustrated. My parents are just “You cannot control your dreams.” And “Why are you even interested in that site?”

Anyway, insomnia bit back last night, but I managed to get enough sleep by sleeping on the ground for about 30 minutes and going back to bed afterwards. Oh, and did I mention that I had a long lucid two nights ago that I don’t remember much of at all. I basically wandered around completely stripped of my memory for a long time. So that makes my next goal improving dream memory.

----------


## PostScript99

I woke up at 1:00 this morning and was unable to fall asleep, but thanks to meditation I don't feel so terrible. While I was trying to sleep, I honestly thought I was lost in a forest of bamboo, and there were bamboo poles attached to me, and there were other lucid dreamers out there so I kept changing my sleeping position so that the others would see me. This went on for about fifteen minutes, until I snapped out of it and went to meditate.

----------


## PostScript99

Got one on rebound last night, demonstrated telekinetic abilities and elemental magic usually far beyond my power. Progress!  ::D: 

Found dreamsigns: Tornadoes (seasonal), duplicated and disproportionate items. Will add to OP.

----------


## CanisLucidus

> One of my family members and I had a long, heated debate about LDing, where she kept insisting that LDing could neither be as realistic or even close to real life, and how HH was terrible, and her experiences with that and SP. She has SP disorder but refuses to admit it is a disorder, and asked me how you could tell the difference between HH and dreams. She kept on telling me how horrible HH and SP were, and I told her about my HH, filled with beautiful music and cartoons, and she told me about the demons and witches she saw, and just told me “whatever, it’s bad for you so don’t do it.” I know she means well, but seriously. The whole time she was just telling me she needed scientific proofs and papers whenever I said something about the vividity of dreams or time dilation, and I just felt so frustrated. My parents are just “You cannot control your dreams.” And “Why are you even interested in that site?”



Yeah, I can see how that'd be a hard situation.  It's a tough discussion to have, because there's that grain of truth in that people who suffer from sleep paralysis are enduring something very crummy indeed.  But lucid dreaming and sleep paralysis just aren't the same thing at all.  Lucid dreaming is an experience that takes place entirely when you are asleep.  "Sleep paralysis" is a (generally horrific) waking experience.

As far as your parents go, if you do ever wind up discussing this with them again, maybe stick with subjects that can be scientifically verified (like the existence of lucid dreaming) vs. subjects like vividness which are subjective.  Stephen LaBerge demonstrated very clearly with some well-designed experiments that people can become lucid in a dream and perform a series of pre-arranged eye movements that prove that they're lucid.  Pretty amazing stuff if you've not read it before: Psychophysiology of Lucid Dreaming

But not everyone's receptive to this sort of thing.  I'm sure most of us have friends and loved ones that we wish were more receptive and/or interested.  It can be hard.





> Got one on rebound last night, demonstrated telekinetic abilities and elemental magic usually far beyond my power. Progress! 
> 
> Found dreamsigns: Tornadoes (seasonal), duplicated and disproportionate items. Will add to OP.



Congratulatons on the LD!  I'm glad that you're getting paid back in REM rebound for all of that sleep insomnia stole from you these past nights.   ::D:   Good work!

----------


## PostScript99

She suffers from the typical "old hag" syndrome, where someone is suffocating you and you cannot move. She claims it is a dream because: 

"I was under the covers when this happened, but irl I was sleeping on top."

"That doesn't tell you anything. I've had HH doing the pledge of allegiance and chasing people through hallways. And if you so firmly believe it is a dream, and you're aware, why haven't you tried to control it?"

"How can you control it when you can't even move?"

"Telekinesis. See, this is why I seriously doubt it's a dream."

"I'm a very logical person."

"I'm even more logical than you are (she's an artist) and I've flown, used magic and telekinesis before. "

"Well you're still young and..." etc., etc. And she's had two LDs, too. *sigh*

Why is it so difficult for some people to grasp? It seems maybe too good to be true, but still. My parents actually recognize that you can become aware in your dreams, and it turns my mother has some, maybe once every couple of weeks. They just don't believe in dream control, and don't like me posting on here. In fact, I shouldn't even be posting so shhhhh.  :smiley:

----------


## CanisLucidus

Wow!  Well on the plus side, it sounds like lucid dreaming is in your blood!  It sounds like you've got a family with the gift.  It seems that you're just the only one that appreciates it.   :smiley: 

But like you said, shhhh!  I'll try to keep my voice down.   :smiley:

----------


## Sibyline

Well... parents tend to be like that. My mother was horrified when I began talking about lucid dreaming. She thought it was something occult. I didn't know what it was either (before the internet), and there were aspects (of WILDs and FAs) that I didn't like, but the lucidity and dream control - those were great, and I was just trying to find out if other people had them too. Clearly, my parents didn't. My dad still calls it "humbug" - and I gracefully ignore the implied accusation of either being a liar or insane - but in my lucid dreams I make him believe me. And I told him this IWL, just to annoy him.  ::D: 

In your case, though, the best policy is probably just to leave them to their beliefs. If they won't take 15 minutes to google the science behind this, just leave them in ignorance. You have a huge online community supporting you, and although it would be even greater to be able to talk about this IRL, the majority of people don't know about it, don't understand it, or don't care.

----------


## PostScript99

> Well... parents tend to be like that. My mother was horrified when I began talking about lucid dreaming. She thought it was something occult. I didn't know what it was either (before the internet), and there were aspects (of WILDs and FAs) that I didn't like, but the lucidity and dream control - those were great, and I was just trying to find out if other people had them too. Clearly, my parents didn't. My dad still calls it "humbug" - and I gracefully ignore the implied accusation of either being a liar or insane - but in my lucid dreams I make him believe me. And I told him this IWL, just to annoy him. 
> 
> In your case, though, the best policy is probably just to leave them to their beliefs. If they won't take 15 minutes to google the science behind this, just leave them in ignorance. You have a huge online community supporting you, and although it would be even greater to be able to talk about this IRL, the majority of people don't know about it, don't understand it, or don't care.



Actually about 2/5th of the people I talk to either suck at it or can't do it but are interested (majority), or are naturals with SP disorder.The rest don't care (2/5) or they think it's crap (1/5). But I talk to weird people who mostly love Inception, which I try to convince them is filled with misleading knowledge but no one has listened so far.

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Well... parents tend to be like that. My mother was horrified when I began talking about lucid dreaming. She thought it was something occult. I didn't know what it was either (before the internet), and there were aspects (of WILDs and FAs) that I didn't like, but the lucidity and dream control - those were great, and I was just trying to find out if other people had them too. Clearly, my parents didn't. My dad still calls it "humbug" - and I gracefully ignore the implied accusation of either being a liar or insane - but in my lucid dreams I make him believe me. And I told him this IWL, just to annoy him.



Yeah, I could see false awakenings being downright disturbing if they're not something you'd prepared yourself for.  My first LD was actually a false awakening but I didn't really put it together until later.  By the time I had my next one, I'd read enough LD material to be ready for something like that to come.  I still wasn't prepared for how realistic it would be.

How does your dad react to the fact that lucid dreaming has been proven in a laboratory setting via prearranged eye movements (by LaBerge and others)?  This, it seems, is the piece of evidence that makes the existence of lucid dreaming an undeniable fact.  I've gotten the occasional mildly negative reaction to mention of LD, but those LaBerge experiments seem to quiet down any true "doubters".





> Actually about 2/5th of the people I talk to either suck at it or can't do it but are interested (majority), or are naturals with SP disorder.The rest don't care (2/5) or they think it's crap (1/5). But I talk to weird people who mostly love Inception, which I try to convince them is filled with misleading knowledge but no one has listened so far.



_Inception_ takes a lot of artistic license with what LD is, but they got a lot of the big, important stuff right.  Most importantly to me, it has been an awesome vehicle for mainstreaming the idea of conscious dreaming.  I find that it's so helpful being able to reference a great movie that pretty much everyone has seen.  I love that this movie is out there.

What's funny about _Inception_ is that some of the pieces that seemed very fanciful to me when I saw it (such as the idea of a dream within a dream) are now things I've actually experienced.   :smiley:

----------


## Sibyline

> Questions



I don't want to hijack PS99's workbook, so please follow me.  :smiley:

----------


## PostScript99

I know I haven't posted here in a while since I went on vacation, so let's sum up what's happened:

-2 LDS
-1 WILD, 1 MILD
-WILD lost lucidity by FA for the fourth time, at the Canyon
-MILD was awesome, and I did use Psynergy for the first time, in Kingman, Arizona
-If I know I am prone to insomnia, I should know better than to drink two glasses of Mountain Dew before bed.

That's basically all that happened.  :smiley:

----------


## CanisLucidus

Welcome home and congratulations on the LDs!   ::goodjob2::   I guess that you learned the hard way about the Mountain Dew.  Although if you control the dosage (and brush your teeth!) you never know what a WBTB dose of Mountain Dew might do.  Xanous has been looking into that for a while now: http://www.dreamviews.com/research/1...e-trigger.html  :smiley: 

I looked up Psynergy -- Golden Sun superpower!  _Nice!_  ::D:

----------


## PostScript99

I can't believe I almost forgot about this!

I was feeling down a week ago, and got two dark lucid snatches that were probably from NREM (useless  :tongue2: ). I've gotten lucid in an NREM dream before, but everything was dark, there was only a chalkboard, and I though 9*6=4 and 8*6 = 77. However, in the last couple of days, I got vivid back-to-back lucids, so I'm feeling good.  :smiley: I'd experiment with SSILD a little, but am doing a challenge where WBTB techniques are forbidden, so that'll have to wait.

----------


## paigeyemps

Oooooh congratulations! And lol dat math, so good.  :tongue2:  good luck on the challenge

----------


## CanisLucidus

> I can't believe I almost forgot about this!
> 
> I was feeling down a week ago, and got two dark lucid snatches that were probably from NREM (useless ). I've gotten lucid in an NREM dream before, but everything was dark, there was only a chalkboard, and I though 9*6=4 and 8*6 = 77. However, in the last couple of days, I got vivid back-to-back lucids, so I'm feeling good. I'd experiment with SSILD a little, but am doing a challenge where WBTB techniques are forbidden, so that'll have to wait.



LOL.  Our brains probably don't do their best math in NREM.

Hey, this competition that forbids WBTB techniques sounds interesting.  Is that the main rule or are there others?  I lean so hard on WBTB that I think I'd be in big trouble!

What's the idea behind limiting WBTB techs?

----------


## PostScript99

Really, we're just trying to focus less on the process, and more on the result. It seems promising so far.  :smiley:

----------


## CanisLucidus

> Really, we're just trying to focus less on the process, and more on the result. It seems promising so far.



What have you and everyone else involved learned so far?  This is interesting to me because WBTB is an absolute cornerstone practice for me.  I've had a handful of LDs without it, but very, _very_ few.  It's cool to see that a group of you is exploring LDing along other paths.

Is this contest somewhere on DV?

----------


## PostScript99

> What have you and everyone else involved learned so far?  This is interesting to me because WBTB is an absolute cornerstone practice for me.  I've had a handful of LDs without it, but very, _very_ few.  It's cool to see that a group of you is exploring LDing along other paths.
> 
> Is this contest somewhere on DV?



It's an IOSDP thing.

I'm surprised that you're almost completely reliant on WBTB. A lot of my lucids were earned without it. For about a month now, I've been avoiding it after my insomnia scare, but did it again for the competition (and now I have insomnia again  :tongue2: ).

----------


## CanisLucidus

> It's an IOSDP thing.
> 
> I'm surprised that you're almost completely reliant on WBTB. A lot of my lucids were earned without it. For about a month now, I've been avoiding it after my insomnia scare, but did it again for the competition (and now I have insomnia again ).



Interesting, so it sounds like you guys are switching back and forth between using WBTB and not using it, then?

I'm sorry to hear about the insomnia!  Does making WBTB super brief help you at all in this regard?  All of my WBTBs are natural wakings, and if I'm in the daylight hours, I generally just go straight back to sleep after peeing.  That gives me the best chance of success, and a WBTB of even a couple minutes sometimes gets me lucid once I'm into the late morning.

----------


## PostScript99

Not necessarily, we just don't use WBTB techniques such as WILD, MILD, DEILD, SSILD, etc.

And it just started up again after I did a WBTB DILD and took it as long as I could (~30 min dream time) and then woke up and couldn't fall asleep. In fact, I was totally awake, as if I had been up for hours. Last night, I went to sleep normally and woke up at the exact same time and again couldn't fall asleep, but I still felt tired. I don't know if it's insomnia or what, but I only have one night now to catch up to she in the competition, and she's 27 points ahead right now.

----------


## PostScript99

Well, I totally forgot to check in here for yesterday. Today I got nothing, but at least I slept well.

Yesterday I got 7 LDs, 1 DILD and 6 DEILDs, mostly high lucidity, and high clarity. I achieved another Basic TOTM and summoned a tiny firework and ate it, but could not shoot out sparks. 

I've been thinking about trying Dutchraptor's DEILD technique since then, but I can't use alarms, which is a problem. But now I see why SSILD and DEILD is such a powerful combo.

DEILD is now the next technique I am going to use, btw.

----------


## CanisLucidus

Great job, PostScript!  That's a phenomenal DEILD chain!  Was the dream plot continuous between each of these or did they all kind of go off on their own.

Can't blame you for wanting to emphasize DEILD then.  I'd certainly be all over that if I'd gotten a chain that size.  Have you had a lot of success with DEILD in the past or are you just now picking it up?

----------


## PostScript99

Unlike micro WBTBs, they all went off in different directions. And this is the second time I've ever done DEILD, and the first intentional time, so I'm really new to it. We'll see how it goes.

----------

