# Lucid Dreaming > DV Academy > Current Courses > DILD >  >  Tony's Workbook

## tblanco

Hi Yall. 

I'm Tony. 35, married with a 2 year old. Was totally into this stuff a couple of years ago but job and baby no sleep kept me from it for a while. I'm back in and have been having some good success over the last month. 

I have big goals.

1: staying at it and staying motivated! that's why i'm engaging in the community. Thank you for this class and this amazing resouce.

2: better dream recall. I want more vivid and more dreams.

3: better daytime awareness: I want to be paying attention to the world around me, both for LD and because the world is a beautiful and amazing place.

4: more LDs. I've been having around 2 a week. I do daily wbtb, journals and occasional supplements including galantamine and caffiene. I'd like to be able to have sharp and vivid LDS withouth the supplements.  

My major dream goals right now center around awareness, stabilization and DC interaction. 

Let's do this YALL!!

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## tblanco

Fragments after watching the movie NightCrawler - Dream Journals - Lucid Dreaming - Dream Views

I did a wbtb last night and was up several times with fragments.. I wrote them all down.. I was watching the nightcrawler movie and most of the dreams were about that. 

I read something in one of these threads about how recall naturally waxes and wanes and that encouraged me. Do it every day.  I'm doing practices to increase recall

1 awareness. both in my senses and surroundings but also memory checks where i think back to how i got to where i am. when i remember i think of the specific details and visualize them.
2. meditation. I've been meditating for more than a year. Mostly mindfulness stuff. for a while I was up to an hour a day with some guided meditation but now it's like 10-20 minutes every day. Frequently I get antsy and stop before my alarm goes off.
3. I'm taking a day journal along with my night journal. Writing down stories about my day. 

One thing I would like to know from the rest of the class is what does your WBTB ritual look like? I don't really have a good one yet. I journal, walk around a bit, maybe take a supplement, read a little of Leberge... Maybe look at my Journal entries for inspiration, then i decide if i want to wild or mild and go to it.  What do you do? maybe we can try something a little more formulated to improve our retention. Share with me. What does your WBTB look like?

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## tblanco

I felt very sick and crabby last night. I wanted to try some SSILD after a WBTB but ended up being very stuffy and crabby. I ended up just sleeping all night with a brief wake up because my toddler wanted to get in bed with me during the storm. I was half asleep and crabby when i let her in and knew i should have DJ'd but didn't. So no WBTB attempt but on the other hand I did remember a pretty long and vivid dream for the first time in a couple of days which was nice.

My job + Game of thrones Dream..

I am working with Doug, my recruiting rival in a game of thrones landscape. We are outside of winterfell and are looking to fill a specific position. I have a good candidate already but he is looking for more people, specifically the lady of winterfell. We are sitting together in an inn at a wooden table. It's very dark, lit by a few candles. As he makes plans to find the canddidate/sansa stark, I begin to put together all of the mysterious deaths that have taken place over the last couple of months/seasons.  These deaths play out in my head like a series of flash backs. I see, NED, ROBB, Caytelin and Bran all slaughtered. I put that together with the fact that we already have the perfect candidate interviewing with  the company now and I understand that that he intends to kill sansa and finish wiping out the stark line so he can elevate the boltons to the heirs of winterfell.

I stand up in the inn and draw my sword. Tears are blurring my vision and i say. "it was you! how could you!" He has a dagger up to defend my blow and soon we are rolling round on the floor fighting.

On the upside, I did a pretty good regular journal before bed and got a solid 15 min of meditation in so i'm pretty up on all of my day work.

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## tblanco

I have terrible stuffyness. It's been keeping me from getting good sleep. I've been foggy and not doing well on intentions and wbtb activities. My day awareness has suffered as well.  That said. I'm still journaling, meditating and have been focusing on doing Frying's dream recall activities. Last night I did the thing where i held still and free associated up to a few different dreams. I'm like half asleep doing it though so i can't be sure i wasn't just making up some of this shit. lol

dreams from last night.
flying saucer attacks the Kroger in NI by my house in the middle of Th. day, not a cloud in the sky. I'm walking in my childhood neighborhood going to the market to buy something or other. It's a bright sunny day and i'm walking through a bright green field on gravel path when i see a small speck way up in the sky. It floats down and becomes a silver old school flying saucer. It hovers over the Kroger. The center hub holds still and the outer ring starts spinning. a come of light emits tfrom the bottom of the ship and covers the grocery story. I feel like "HOLY SHIT" and the grocery store catches on fire. I'm annoyed. I wonder where I'm going to get what I need. I realize that I don't remember what I"m supposed to buy. 

Argument with the owner of the skating apparel company when i still have a stuffy nose

alfalfa from the little rascals movie is posting updates to a new version set in mid evil times. He's like a Perez Hilton type figure and I'm taking an online quiz to determine if the new piece of information is coming from him or TMZ. The little rascal is going through a gritty reboot. Alfalfa is going to get hs head chopped off. Spanky is a vengeful king. Buckwheat is the spirit of vengeance. I wonder why I care about this. I have no feelings for the little rascals.

oprah winfrey climbs in a trashcan and rolls down a big green hill in a park. I'm thinking to myself. Ratings must be BAAAD if she's resorting to this!

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## tblanco

also..

I'm starting to pintrest.. I've made a board with LD inspiration and i'm pinning images and stories that I want to experience in my dreams. So i can rev up on those WBTB with intention and get that excitement for what i want to do..

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## FryingMan

Welcome tblanco to the DILD class!   That GOT dream sounded really awesome!

It sounds like your day and night work matches your goals nicely.   What I've found is that the combination of daytime awareness, particularly trying to stay "tuned in" for as long as possible, combined with dream recall leads to increasingly more "present" and aware dreams, where I feel like "I'm there."    Those sorts of dreams are on the border of lucidity, and it just takes some intention combined with good sleep conditions and/or WBTB to result in increasing lucidity.    I myself have dabbled in meditation but have not managed to establish a regular practice of sitting meditation.   Maintaining that would be a great thing, as it builds mental focus which is needed for a lot of other LD things like WILD, falling asleep after WBTB, etc.

As for your question about WBTB, I'm perhaps not the best person, since I don't WBTB much beyond a quick bathroom break and recalling dreams -- I just don't like being awake at night.
Fogelbise, though, has done fairly regular WBTBs and can report on his regime.     For a while I was waking multiple times per night intention in order to recall.   And that did indeed result in quite a lot of recall, but I also found it fairly tiring.    These days I prefer the water approach (drinking a lot of water before bed and during the night so you need to use the bathroom a few times per night).  I think this has several benefits: being well-hydrated means the brain operates well, and it doesn't take any use of intention to notice the wakings.   The downside is that if you have some really interesting recall you want to work through it can be hard to stay quiet and focused on it while your bladder is screaming  :smiley: .

I know in theory the recommendation is to stay quiet & dreamy, not to get too stimulated.     Everyone is different in this regard, you need to experiment to determine the ideal times and duration for WBTB.  

Regarding your #1 goal: the main thing to progress is steady, regular practice.    Don't quit!    You've had enough LDs to know how awesome they are -- wouldn't you rather that the time passes with your abilities growing every day?     When waking life interrupts, keep up the practice, but just dial down the intensity perhaps...but try to keep it above zero.

I recommend establishing some routines that jog your mind back to dreaming.  One thing I do is I have a little rhythmic mantra I recite a lot of the time while walking ("I'm lucid....I'm dreaming...I'm walking...I'm breathing...<repeat>".   I try to take notice of all location transitions (doors, room to room, etc.).

It's challenging at first, but the more you work on daytime awareness the more you'll catch yourself having "zoned out" and then you just gently "tune back in."

Not many people write about this but I think that daytime awareness work and learning to pay attention while awake actually leads to a stronger connection to the experience of our dreams, and thus better dream recall.   They're all intertwined, these practices!

Feel free to use your workbook to record your progress, notes, etc., and of course to ask questions!

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## FryingMan

Good to see you posting in the "one sentence summary" thread.  I try to make that part of my daily morning ritual immediately after getting up from bed (where I've gone over and over the list of dreams multiple times so that I don't forget them) hop on to that thread and get the summaries written.  I'll then fill in the details perhaps later by clicking on "copy to DJ" and then fill in the details.

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## tblanco

> Good to see you posting in the "one sentence summary" thread.  I try to make that part of my daily morning ritual immediately after getting up from bed (where I've gone over and over the list of dreams multiple times so that I don't forget them) hop on to that thread and get the summaries written.  I'll then fill in the details perhaps later by clicking on "copy to DJ" and then fill in the details.



I saw that bit of advice on someone else's workbook and am giving it a go.  with the gist, it's easy to fill in later. if i focus too much on one dream teh rest slip away.THROW EM ALL IN THE BOAT, better to lose a little detail than the whole fish

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## fogelbise

Welcome back to lucid dreaming and to the workbooks Tony! I have been away from the forums for several days, my apologies for not chiming in earlier:





> One thing I would like to know from the rest of the class is what does your WBTB ritual look like?



I drink enough water to wake naturally, often somewhere between 4.5 and 6 hours. I get up out of bed, sit down and almost always go on my phone and log my dreams so far and also any thoughts about anything I did pre-bed or noticed during the night so far. I will then either read something lucid dreaming related on my phone and/or do a google image search of dreamy images and while browsing them think to myself "If I were dreaming, I would." When I lay back down I either do SSILD or some visualization - sometimes for incubation and sometimes visualizing a dream from the night or recent nights and imagining the "aha" moment. For the longest time I did SSILD almost exclusively with much success but eventually started mixing in the visualization and/or doing some mantras before my SSILD or visualization.

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## tblanco

In the middle of my WBTB right now. I left some bones out from dinner that the dogs ate so I need to cook rice for them to eat right now.. I've been doing some writing on my intentions. What I want out of LD and why. I haven't been too strong on my awareness excercises, but when i see that i've been on autopilot in life, i can bring myself back to paying attention in the. The illness I have (strong head congestion) is putting a cloud around my life. But i'm working around that.. I've been thinking around daytime mantras to stay grounded in the moment and stay into lucid dreaming...

"be here now" almost like a chant. makes me think of teh old raam dass book
"if i were dreaming I would." I love that one for sure...

tonight is a strong night to have a LD..

POT/ART Dealer is trying to make his money and avoid the authorites until a final legalization ruling comes through. He has farmland with huge acres of barns that are filled with product and surrealist paintings. On the day the legislation passes he hires stoners to convert these barns into meuseams/amusement park for smokers. We are trying to figure out the logistics of installing AC units in these barns and convert them. The doors are thrown open in a moment of triumph. all of these stinky long haired people are overjoyed running through these pungent rooms that are brightly colored. 

there is a nick fury marathon on TV and I"M looking for a david hasslehof 90's era movie called "BOB FURY" in the b/w newspaper TV listings. I'm watching it on TV. He's got an eyepatch and a skin tight blue suit.

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## FryingMan

I've never successfully done this (but I have thought a few times about waking life physical limitations, like "with my back I'm in no shape to be playing volleyball"), but with your cold perhaps you could try to notice in the dream state that you do not have this cold condition as one way of inducing lucidity.

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## tblanco

I only got like another hour of sleep. Was up way early and way too late with the damn dogs. I did successfully SSILD myself into that heavy body trance state for the first time but it didn't get me lucid, or so i know. I woke up with no dreams remembered. I'm excited for tonight because I'm totally at an REM Deficit now!

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## tblanco

kid been in school for 7 years, tryning to get hired as some kind of an EMS in the jungle role. I want to disqualify him or taking him too long but I remember my roots

in SFO talking to my neice. Asking how my brother is doing? She tells me he fells bad for not trying to contact me.

Some kind of an action move scene. I can't tell if it's a deliberatley bad parody or just terrible.fat guy is moving very slow dressed like rambo through a series of heavily armed guys in all black like ninjas.  in some of the shots it looks like they are trying to throw the guns down or over reacting to simple punches.. i wonder what am i awacthing.

WBTB

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## tblanco

Looking in the newspaper for computer programming jobs. Find a good one and think about how strange it is that the newspaper has want ads for this type of ting. Remember i don't know how to program.

I'm running a legal aid service for mythical american creatures. Sasquach comes in and :Im veryexcited to meet him. he's having issues getting his dposit back from hiss landlord. He's a blurry guy.

Been using Fry's trick of one sentence to remember each dream. Realizing i do dream more than i think. I haven't done a wbtb in a few days and will probably do one tonight. I am intending to be more aware and the most i'm getting out of it is occassionally i'll wake up during the day and remember i've been on complete autopilot.

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## tblanco

I had great intentions and woke up several times but I was just so sleepy last night. big fail.


falling through dreamscapes. talking to people about the validity of dreams briefly before I'm swept up and falling again.

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## tblanco

TWAke up with the weezer song butterfly in my head. I can remember sharing my dream in my dream and talking about people way down who could tell that it was all a dreamy. The dream people are laughing and laughing. They are looking at  my body sleeping in a bed and start shaking me up. "hey! he's sleeping!!!" i think..
yesterday I did more work on intention and awareness. I'm trying to remember that a lucid dreamer is just who i am.  fake it till you make it. that confidince helps.  and it did. last night i had just a tiny second of lucidity!

Wild... brief lucid

laying flat on my back doing breathing with the word "remember". I can feel my hands go heavy and i forget for a second. Soon I am sleeping in a whole new bed. It's a full sized with a black comforter pulled tight. It doesn't tip me off. I go back into my wilding. I enter a dream in the dark on a  block in a neighborhood. I do a nose pinch and try to stabilize but the excitement knocks me right back into my body. I try to deild and wake back up in my bed. My kid is sleeping next to me. I thought she was in her bed. She is in her bed. I wake up.

Post W;ld
My Bloomin Onion is being indecent. I'm in the chilli's telling it to cover itself.

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## tblanco

Didn't sleep well last night. I've been doing all my day work and keeping up with my journal. Hopefully the REM deficit hits me up this week. One good dream remembered. 

dreaming about the internet. if people put their true feelings about the confederate flag, then they become exposed to people that could hurt them. I don't want my friend Anit to get hurt but i think that we should destroy the flag forever. I see another friend deliver a strong opinion against the flag and I'm surprised and a little relieved.
Share

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## tblanco

Studying Sageous' wild lessons and making sure to do awareness once an hour. I didn't meditate yesterday and didn't try a wbtb either.  the night before i had no sleep so i jsut wanted to catch up and not get fancy.

had a couple of dreams

helping find  a SSBB a job. They are building a profile int the system, going through a large facility for improvement/clean up projects. One of them involves cutting up tons of trip  fresh cilantro. All of them involve looking for the best Western or help them get ready for work.  Wet muddy and brown, cleaning up poop.

---

Had my brother joe in the dream. He had responded to my email like nothin was going on. I was tryng to help him with work and we were going through possible people he could hire. I"m also engaging him in conversation about what's been going on with him in the last year. He's avoiding teh topic like he doesn't want to talk about it. 
…

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## tblanco

I have been keeping up with my journals and have made a few attempts at WILD but man I fall right the hell asleep. I've been super tired on waking up and have only been pulling out fragments for the most part. I have been working on saegous' reverse reality checks on an hourly basis.

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## tblanco

I do remember looknig down at my hands and saying ""I will look at my hands and remember I am dreaming". The sudden rush of realization brought me right into my body. .

I can't for the life of me remember what I was dreaming about. 

Wait...I'm in my old home town. I'm driving around and looking for my father's house. 


After I woke up n my body I held still for a long time thinking about doing a wild.I held still for a second and did like one or 2 mantras before rolling over and going back to sleep.

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## tblanco

A little better. I got two fragments instead of one. I had an argument with a friend soon before bed and that's not conducive to LD. Last night I did 2 mantras. the memory one right before bed and when i woke up for wy WBTB I did 'I will look at my hands and realize I am dreaming" one. This is what i got.

 Having an argument with a friend that I care about. 

my daughter is singing a song to me about "a lovely juice" over and over again.

I didn't lay still when i woke up. I jumped up with a start shaking the dreams out of me. That's something i need to work on tonight when i wke up. HOLD STILL!!!   

I did some wilding and was able to mantra for the most part but eventually i gave up and rolled over back to sleep. I didnt' get out of bed to WILD but i did read 10 pages of teh Robert Waggoner LD book.  I need to stand up to wild.

How are you doing?

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## FryingMan

^^ Arguments are usually dream killers for me as well.    My dreaming's been great all week with a couple LDs, an epic non-lucid, and just tons of recall.  Last night was a reset with poor sleep and crappy vague recall, probably all due to ill-advised cups of tea during the afternoon and evening (I'm very sensitive to caffeine).

Keep up  the good work!

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## tblanco

First night back in my bed and I just slept like a madman.  I had 2 dreams in mind when I woke up but by the time i finished my first journal I forgot the second one. I'm sure that tonight is then night.  I'm back on home territory and I can work with what I'm doing to really pay attention to my world. I saw what frying man said about how it's better to just do the RCs on your own without the alarm , so I am stopping the alarms to work on remembering to do the RCs myself. 

 At a  house party talking to someone abut playing  elder scrolls online. I tell them about how i like to kill dragons by climbing mountains and finding where they nest.  Then I just slaughter entire families. They are a little horrified and tell me that the dragons are both sentient intelligent creatures but also endangered. I am worried about the environmental impact of losing the dragons.

My current lucid goals are as follows. 
1. To have a conversation with a DC and get them to sing a song with me
2. To find something to eat and see how it tastes.
3. To open a portal to another world

Stability is back and I'm on my way!

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## fogelbise

Hi Tony,

I was catching up on your posts and noticed some dreams with seemingly heightened awareness and memory when a few additional aids might have pushed you over the threshold into lucidity:





> ...i wonder what am i awacthing.







> ...Remember i don't know how to program.



WBTB is good for heightened awareness as I am sure you know and regular RC's. It sounded like you got rid of the alarm reminders which I agree are a crutch. Are you able to get a good number of RC's in without the alarm? It took me a while using truly random alarms before I was able to do fairly frequent RC's without the reminder. If I am slacking I still go back to it and I like to change up the alarm sound to something I'm not used to and something that sounds a little dreamy. 

My most common RC lately is really thinking "wow, any moment could be a dream" (I can sometimes become fascinated by some aspect of my surroundings and start thinking about what I would do if dreaming, look at my hands a few times + maybe another RC). It is always great to follow up with "The next time I am dreaming I will (RC) and realize I am dreaming!"

Edit: Regarding one dream forgotten while writing down the first one. You might want to try writing down a few key words if not one sentence summaries for each dream before writing out the whole dreams so that you retain as many dreams as you want to.

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## tblanco

Date: Tuesday July 7 2015, 5:18 AM
Important: Yes

wild 
Big day for day work! Last day of vacation and I'm at home. I'm working on the RC + Sageous' Unreality checks a couple of times an hour. Studying some Leberge and Sageous yesterday and getting to bed super early with a Meditation session right before bed.

bed at 10:30, wake up at 3:30. I almost didn't get up but then i finally did. Let the dogs out to go pee and wandered around the back yard looking at the sky and thinking about dreaming.I took a "Lucid dreaming" supplement from Dreamimins. (galantamine + Choline) I lay still.  I stretch my hands, arms, legs, chest, back and face. then i hhold still and repeat the classic Carlos Casteneda mantra. "The next time I am dreaming I will look at my hands and realize I am dreaming. I hear lots of noise. Rushing wind, people talking. I'm thinking about getting up to see what all the commotion is then I remember that I'm WILDing and remember that I'm dreaming. 

I'm in a dark room with no light source but a lamp. I'm carrying it around shining it on things.  I think that because I'm dreaming I should be able to make light appear.
I try to find a light switch but when i find one, it doesn't work.
i think about how i have that old schema that light switches don't work from "Waking Life". 
i find  a door and imagine what I want on the other side. I remember how one of my goals is to have a conversation with a DC. I walk through the door
then the lights come on. 
I'm in a big room with super tall columns. There's an elegant cocktail party going on. 
I am looking at hands, the fingerprints are deepening and darkening and crawling all over my hands in crazy patterns.

I see a pretty indian woman in a black cocktail dress and my sex drive takes over, I walk up to her and started kissing her. I put my arm around her. She's pulling away. I ask what she thinks, not interested, gives me a disgusted look, she leaves and i'm a little annoyed.  The dream starts to destabilize so I Look at my hands.

looking at my hand and seeing henna tattoos patterns all over them. I find another door and want to go outside.

make it outside and it's very bright and very green. Lots of grass and a few small buildings. 
I try to fly and make a high jump and fall to earth. 
I see a building like some kind of fancy shed and use that as a jump off point.
I Jump to the top of the building and fly into space.
I'm looking around at the stars and I see the death star. This is super cool.
I try to fly to it  but I'm stuck
I remember the Waggoner technique of thinking myself there so I try to pinch zoom it closer with both hands. Instead of  it coming closer the whole sky expands into an industrial death-star landscape. I see smoking red fires and  and explosions. This causes a heart rush and I lose the dream.

Dield
I'm walking around in a dark house  with lots of hallways and i see people walking around.
I see an old friend but he's now in a wheelchair. I remember that one of my goals is to have a conversation with a dream character. I ask him how he's doing but he won't look me in the eye. His brother walks up to me.
I ask how he's doing.
he tells me that we are friends now and that his brother is happy but distant.
dream goes black

I start spinning. It's like 2001 with the colors shooting all around me.
I am in a very gothic house. There are mer-people flopping all over the place.
they are disgusting.  There is a hot meryl streep mer lady laying on the couch. I tell her hi. A big ugly mer monster man, slimy and sweaty, jumps down from a door frame and attacks me.
I wake up.

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## tblanco

> Hi Tony,
> 
> I was catching up on your posts and noticed some dreams with seemingly heightened awareness and memory when a few additional aids might have pushed you over the threshold into lucidity:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> WBTB is good for heightened awareness as I am sure you know and regular RC's. It sounded like you got rid of the alarm reminders which I agree are a crutch. Are you able to get a good number of RC's in without the alarm? It took me a while using truly random alarms before I was able to do fairly frequent RC's without the reminder. If I am slacking I still go back to it and I like to change up the alarm sound to something I'm not used to and something that sounds a little dreamy. 
> 
> ...



I had huge dreams last night and when i woke up I just held still to gather up as many details as possible then i just scrabbled them out like key words to your suggestion. Worked super well, I went back later and fleshed out the dreams. HAD TO! Massive WILD success!!

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## fogelbise

Nice LD series there Tony! You solved some challenges, so use that to bolster your dream control confidence. If you can fly to space where others have trouble doing the same, then you know that other dream controls do not have to be difficult either! That is one concept I really locked into early on. I remember reading how some great LD'ers had trouble with something I found easy, so I knew that the items that I found more difficult didn't have to be and dream control was much more unlocked than previously. I still run into challenges from time to time but I solve them quicker typically. Nice job!

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## tblanco

I had a neat series of LDs the other day that I don't want to share specifically because they got kind of sexually explicit but I would like to bring up the question of... Does anyone else find that when they go lucid it's kind of a baseline lucidity where your lizard sex/fighting/flying brain takes over? I have all of these lofty goals but when i get into the dream I'm constantly either flying or trying to fuck something...

also I had an interesting DEILD that I will share... 

In the gray I'm holding still  and try to see if i can deild. My body forms and I'm walking in a nondescript foggy landscape. I remember I want to smoke a lucidity blunt and just put my fingers up to my mouth like i'm holding a cig. I'm smoking and I can taste something that's not smoke. I  exhale smoke but when i look at my fingers there is nothing there. My fingers are also fading like back to the future. I wake up.

I see what i could do better there. I could have stabilized to calm it and started thinking of a scene. I went straight to my goal.

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## FryingMan

Were these "lizard brain" dreams lucid enough to where you acknowledged that you were dreaming?   I have quite a lot of what I call "semi-lucids," where I do not explicitly acknowledge that I'm dreaming, but know I can do things like fly, phase through walls, and typically go into "caveman mode" (girls), etc. like what you're talking about (I had a couple just last night in fact).   

I find that in LDs where I get a higher lucidity level to the point where I remember dream goals, I manage to hold on to goals for at least a little while.   When the lucidity starts slipping is usually where caveman takes over.     Recognizing these urges may be a good way to try and boost back up lucidity to a higher level.    It's quite hard fighting them, but it is possible if you make a firm "no sex!" intention.   I've been able to stick to that a few times.

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## fogelbise

> Does anyone else find that when they go lucid it's kind of a baseline lucidity where your lizard sex/fighting/flying brain takes over?



I seek out a fair amount of sexual relations in the dream world while fully lucid. It is a fairly calm, collected and very deliberate thought process. I have had the other kind where I am not really in control of myself and only semi-lucid at best and those are what I consider caveman mode.

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## tblanco

Last couple of nights I've been having some amazing cinema dreams that are totally personal in nature with people I know so i've been journaling but I haven't been posting... One of the best images was walking into a strip mall karate class for infants, there was about 100 infants sitting on the floor of a dojo in Ghis. These haven't been LDs but they have been vivid and fun as shit. 
Thanks frying man for the tips on recall.

I did a wild attempt last night but it didn't take. I've been doing the frequent anti RC of Sageous but I think i'm losing some of the conviction. Like I'm not feeling the excitement of a couple of days ago? how to we keep that UMPH feeling going? Is it important to take breaks? Do we read more Journals? what are your techniques?

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## FryingMan

You could always just use initials in DJ entries, that's what I do, but I also have stayed anonymous here so I can post just about all my dreams.

Congrats on the vivid/fun dreams!   That's the best, really.  Lucidity is icing on the cake but awesome dreams almost every night is the absolutely most wonderful thing!

It's important to tailor your practice to your goals and life.   I go through times of lower motivation and less daytime effort, but I try hard never to reduce the practice to zero on any given day.

Working in general mindfulness and state awareness to your life helps you maintain the practice.   If you make a lifestyle change to always strive to stay tuned in, after you do it for a while, you don't feel like stopping.

  Sure, reading journals of other dreamers is a great way to maintain interest and get ideas on dream control, etc.

My general attitude is that I want to have awesome , vivid (and lucid) dreams with excellent, detailed recall on a regular basis.  I know that this takes effort expended over months and years.   Since I want to always progress, I know that I always need to spend effort.   

Just think of those vivid, cinematic dreams, and how you'd like to keep having them on a regular basis.   That's enough motivation for me!

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## tblanco

I had a couple of interesting fragments last night. I did a wbtb and wrote about a place that I wanted to go when i dreamed.

working for a medical research lab. helping make a decision to build a person that would be powerful and live for a short time or weak and live for a long time.

I am a caterer trying to make an octopus out of chicken parts. The drumsticks are the tentacles and i am trying to mold chicken breasts to make the head. I think i'm going to use olives for eyes. 
…


Here is the dream I want to visit.  

So. I want to meet my Dream guide. I need the proper setting to wild into. I'm going to a meditation garden. a cobblestone path in a green meadow of close cropped st auggie grass. small round dark gray rocks with large flat white rocks marking steps up a small hill. Under a single lotus tree is a meditation booth, a cushion and a small gong. There is a pool with lilly pads off to the side. It's a clear day  with a light breeze and slight sweet smell in the air. Next to the bench is a small brown sack. In that brown sack is everything I want. Behind the bench about 10 feet away is a door frame to nowhere. behind that door frame is anywhere and anyone I can imagine.

The next time I wild, I'm coming here. I'm taking a moment to take in my surroundings, to look at my hands, to touch the water, smell the flower and breathe deeply. I will stabilize. then i will reach inside the bag and retrieve a root of pure lucidity. I'll walk over to the door. Take a big bite and say. "behind this door is my dream guide. Tonight we are going to meet."

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## tblanco

I did not get the REM i was hoping for and tried to wild anyway. Probably a mistake. No luck but I did get to practice my new mantra. "launch point, dream guide"

all i got was a tiny fragment about my daughter having a very short haircut and me being surprised about it.

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## tblanco

one fragment about being on the Big Brother house helping the HOH who had descended into paranoia. My daughter was very restless and slept with me in bed with many punches and kicks. I"m not sure how much of that was a dream. I took a break from the nightly work to watch some BB live feeds and sleep.

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## tblanco

Maintaining motivation is a problem that I have in lots of areas. About a week ago I had 2 massive lucid dreams about 2 days apart and afterwards, my motivation starts slipping. i can feel my RCs getting more perfunctory, my sense of excitement waning. I know I want this. this is one of my biggest goals but the light in my eyes is fading. I know this process is cyclical. I still wake up every day and journal but my journals are fragments when not too long ago I was dreaming epics. 

This too shall pass. I will be an expert onieronaut

Saul  set up an indiegogo campaign for his son who has cancer.

I am in the bb house.

----------


## FryingMan

You can do it!    It may help smooth out the bumps to think of LD practice as continuous.   "Expert" is not so much a destination as a journey that you pursue long enough and with enough effort and reflection.     I'm in a low recall point now and I know it's due to my disastrous sleeping patterns at the moment.    Try your best to continually find the source of blocks and eliminate them, and stay positive because dreaming is so awesome!

----------


## tblanco

I thought about what FRY was saying regarding figuring out the blocks and Last night when i couldn't sleep with the thoughts running through my head, I realized i had some outside stressors that are holding me back right now. Some new additions to my day work include, Gratitude excercises, LD confidince mantras and boosting awareness... I'm going back on the alarms for a little while. Gratitude because I have a fucking wonderful life but if i get stuck worrying about what's not perfect then I don't have time to live in what's awesome about my world, so i want to actively direct the focus back to the positive in my life that exists today. 

Dream from last night.  Working a high powered corporate job and I'm looking for someone to fire. I have developed a very elaborate system  of who is deserving and people are Hiding from me.

It's weird, kind of like a nightmare except I'm the monster.

----------


## fogelbise

^^I really like the outlook in that first paragraph!..and some interesting fragments!  :smiley:

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## tblanco

Dreaming about LD.  That's a sign that I'm close.  

part of a LD support group where we talk about our dreams. I had a lucid dram that I'm describing to the group under the guise that it was for someone else. it was murky dream with flying in a purple fog. Afterword I'm trying to remember where the website for the group is so i can get that dream for my journal.

my wife is working with a shaman to fill a blank book with notes about the history of LD. She shows it to me, it's a purple spiral bound with a hard cover filled with postits. 

visiting people in an old house i used to know with my daughter. I walk down a hallway where a woman is half naked wearing a green shirt and nothing on the bottom. SHe's not doing anything about it but looking at me funny.  she gets into a shower with about there of her roommates. I look at them for a  second.  I'm looking around at the house and some of the furniture is very niced brushed wood  and some of it looks looks like a crack den. The people who live there are leaving and i ask if i can get a ride to town and they say yes but i remember i have my 2 year old and she doesn't have a car seat. Then i remember that i haven't seen her in a little while and she comes in the room wearing panties. I ask her if she peed on the floor and she says no.  we find her dress and her socks. I send a facebook message to my wife asking her to pick us up but it doesn't work. then i try to find my phone.

----------


## tblanco

staying with family including dead grandfather.
he  gives me a copy of ronald regan's signature from when he was a kid
I give him a kiss on the cheek and say we should talk more about history
I go out wandering the streets of Laf/Nat
End up at my old house of Pavie
people are sitting on the porch
I chat for a couple of minutes then wander around some more
realize i forgot my shoes and go back to get them
I'm at some kind of a restaurant
I find the person in charge, black guy with blonde hair
I  ask for a bus boy job
he asks if i can be a waiter
I say sure and he gives me that job
I'mm asking various people what time to show up for my shift
nobody knows
then the kitchen manager says I'm surprised you don't want to work in the kitchen. I says sure, wh ynot.
I'mm leaving with somebody I know. trying to figure out where i'm going to live now then realize i can just stay with family while i figure it out
i go back to my grandfather's house and watch a movie
suddenly it's morning.

big dreams... I think that a few of these dreams were smashed together my my brain and not one continuous thing. Dead people, old places I've lived melded together, it seems like a boring dream but it was pretty interesting to me.

----------


## FryingMan

Even though I sometimes complain about "boring dreams," I don't think there is any such thing really, being aware of your dreams and recalling them well is such a wonderful addition to life, in a way you're extending your life by remembering your dreams so that the night's mental adventures are not wasted and forgotten...

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## tblanco

boring is the wrong word, because it was pretty exciting to have these new jobs and such.. mundane is a better word becasue there were no real supernatural elements, no giant things missing, (except for the dead come to life)

----------


## tblanco

Trying to shake off the  bad week. 2 days with no recall in  a row. I want my confidence back but it seems like everything i try to do to jumpstart it just makes things a little tougher. THis is kind of what happened to me the last time i jumped into this headfirst... I started building skill, had a couple of great weeks with some badass  lucids, then it just stopped and i got frustrated until i quit. I dont' want to do that again but I can feel myself getting frustrated.

----------


## FryingMan

Don't let yourself get frustrated!    Easy to say, I know, I'm in a really sticky low-recall phrase right now myself, and it feels like I have to dig and dig and dig for the memories instead of having them just ready to review upon waking.    

Maybe this is a good time to practice extended, calm recall: try your best to stay quiet, still, and reach "softly" for the memories, asking (sometimes saying this out loud) "What was I just dreaming about?"   If nothing comes after a while, try associating on common dream themes (school, work, girls, fighting, sports, anything you dream about often).

Sometimes you'll just get a flash of an incomplete impression or a single word/idea, when that happens try to hold on to it and associate until a more complete memory forms.

Sometimes you get nothing, but almost every time I do an extended recall session in the morning like this, I come up with at least some solid fragments, or even full detailed dreams at times.     Spending more time on recall also helps to establish to your subconscious that dreaming and dream recall is important to you, so it should eventually cooperate more easily  :smiley: .

----------


## tblanco

yes, project of the week, Thanks fry

----------


## fogelbise

Yes, do try to hang in there Tony. If you feel like you are trying too hard, feel free to ease up on the throttle a little. More consistent lucid dreaming is in your future if you are able to keep up some day practices even when you are frustrated and then ramping your practices back up when you are feeling better. We may have mentioned this already, but it is good to look at it as a journey without immediate results but with many benefits along the way.

----------


## FryingMan

What never fails to keep me motivated, beyond of course just a love for dreaming and waking up every morning having lived through new, wild, wacky, fun, funny, sexy, scary, thrilling adventures, is realizing that dreaming is just so awesome, that I'd always come back to it if I ever quit for a while.   And knowing that consistent effort is so important for consistent progress, and since I'm no spring chicken any more, I have absolutely no time to lose.   Why not just cut out all that lost time, and never quit!

And yes to echo what fogelbise said: it's a journey, love the journey, and have lots of awesome dreams along the way!

----------


## tblanco

2 dreams last night with a wbtb. When i woke up i held still for-ever and finally there was this tiny flash way in the back of my mind that unraveled into a whole dream. Also, I can begin to see how my mind is stitching together separate dreams with common elements. I read a great passage in ETWOLD last night... 





> “The degree of awareness one is able to achieve while in a dream is in direct proportion to the degree of awareness one experiences in waking life.”



It's charging me up to get back to my day awareness practice with greater detail and clarity. I can even start to feel that excitement again. 

Dominick cruz is asking me about takng over the UFC. The photo is blurry but that is because the person is blurry.

meeting r at  a fast food restaurant at the end of my subdivision.
outdoor patio seating.
I order a burger at the counter and rusty steals a steak.
when it comes somebody cut it in half
I'm trying to get the attention of the manager to get the rest of my burger
Hannibal is there and we are hanging out
I see haji outlaw too for a seocnd
Pretty girls want to go out with us.
we  are trying to call a cab
They keep lifting their skirts to show butt
I gget one on the phone but as it's coming we go back to their apartment.
I meet one of the girl's husbands.
I show pictures of my baby.
the husband straddles me
I realize i live in the same building

…

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## FryingMan

> “The degree of awareness one is able to achieve while in a dream is in direct proportion to the degree of awareness one experiences in waking life.”



Yup, brilliant.   In many ways, ETWOLD  is really all you need.   There is so much goodness in that book.    Only took me about  year to a year and a half to come to the realization contained in that quote myself  :smiley: .

----------


## tblanco

Wild attempt

Day off. Stay up late. Sleep 5 hours. Lay flat. Ssild techniques while picturing my dream scene. Hands get heavy, get some 

In the void. I hear a voice booming. It is ordering me. See the ground, a dirt path! Hear the wind! Start walking! I am spooked and look down at my body while the world shimmers into view.  It is just a second before the world blinks and is gone.

----------


## FryingMan

Great progress!   WILD is a tough one for me, I treasure any little dreams that come along that way, so I'd be really happy with that result.

----------


## tblanco

After a couple of days of nothing, last night I buckled down and really set the intention for memory. I got a couple of dreams upon waking and in one of them I remember smelling things which is pretty unique. I'm not often smelling things in my dreams. I'm still back to building my confidence... I was trying to do the sageous "reverse reality checks" for a while but I"m back to more standard checks because i gave it a few weeks and nothing came of it. Perhaps I'll try again later. I have a goal of 10 LDs before the end of August and had my first  LD fragment a few days ago.. Them shits will happen.

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## FryingMan

I think you need to view the Sageous RRC as a part of a lifelong effort to built self-awareness/presence/mindfulness/paying attention/whatever-you-want-to-call it.    Feel free to adapt it to yourself.  I never really "felt" the "I affect everything around me and everything around me affects me".  My personal opinion is that is actually a by-product of state-awareness (which I think is [slightly] separable from self-awareness, and Sageous believes they're all the same thing).   As Ursula LeGuin wrote, "infinite are the arguments of the mages"  :smiley: .

The parts of the RRC that I think are invaluable are the part where you stop, and fully realize that "*I*…am *here*….*now*…", and the memory check.

Self-awareness builds slowly over time.  I don't think you can set out with a plan to do RRCs for a few weeks or months and expect to "see results."

Best is to try to always strive to pay attention, to notice that "zoned out" state/mode as soon as you can and bring yourself back to attention.
After doing that for a while (way more than just a few RRCs per day, I try to hold it as long as I can, all throughout the day), I did notice that my non-lucid dreams tended to get a lot more vivid, I had a lot more "epics," and a lot more semi-lucids.

I think concrete goals are good, they give you that extra "umph," that push which is so valuable when you just want to go back to sleep, but instead find the will to get up for that WBTB.   WBTBs are really important for many dreamers to produce more LDs.

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## tblanco

WBTB is my main goal for this month... I was under the assumption that the RRC was somehow different from a state check or awareness but i do know that i was having solid lucids before and then zero after. I know this is a slow process that will build over time but i felt i had taken a step back, which is fine. I know that i'm supposed to give anytihng i try a few weeks  before giving up on it, or so the story goes. I'm also working on writing out dreams i want to dream and scenarios to deal with in my lucids as per the EWOTD.

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## FryingMan

RRC is *not* a state check.   It's a "reverse" reality check, so it is not a reality check.   It is not meant to take the place of the RC, it is meant to build self-awareness.   So keep up those state checks in addition to "present" moments, they're really important!

Sign up for the August, 2015 competition that Sensei's running, it's always a lot of fun!   Link's in my sig and DILD class announcements thread.

----------


## tblanco

Took Fry's advice and went back to old school state checks and awareness practice. Also read the old recall tips and got a voice recorder app. Ended up with 2 dreams, wbtb then one more dream.. I played a stupid video game on my wbtb which i know is not the ideal thing to do because it took me forever to go back to sleep.   THese recordings are crazy to listen to. I sound like i'm on serious drugs lol. 

Also where do i put my points for sensei?

Ronda Rousey is fighting for WSOF championship against Rousimar Palharas. She is afraid of being hurt. 

I am rummaging through a clear tuppaware container next to my front door filled with coupons, I'm an extreme couponer.

A pro wrestler is trying to get me to buy commercial time for his flight. I'm not interested in buying. the wrestler is flamboyantly gay and is annoyed that i'm being evasive. It's also some kind of a sex scandal, he thinks i'm trying to give myself plausible deniability for something. 


Digging this recording thing, first time having multiple dreams in a while.

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## FryingMan

Haha I get so tired of the sound of my tired smacking lips sometimes and tired breathing while I gather my thoughts but there's really no better way to capture the complete memory of the dream before it evaporates.    It's also way better than writing: so many times my chicken scratches were illegible in the morning.

Sensei's competition has not started yet, he mentioned he's aiming for starting on the 14th.   If it's like previous competitions it will run for two weeks.  There will be a formal competition thread separate from the sign-up thread started with the complete scoring rules posted at the beginning.  It will be announced on the sign-up thread most likely so keep an eye on that one.

Congrats on the increased recall!   Keep it up, keep it important to you, and the recall will grow.

----------


## tblanco

my two year old had nightmares all last night. She woke up telling me that "spiders eating her hair". fucking terrifying. this morning as i was driving her to day care I told her that the spiders weren't real and if they came again she should tell them that she loved them and ask them to please stop eating your hair. She said "Spiders not nice, Daddy".
Needless to say, there was no wbtb like planned last night and i had a sobbing kid in bed with me all night. I am not the most gentle man when i am tired.  :Sad:  I am a lot better of a father when i've had some sleep. I need to work on that. But i did want to teach her about dreaming and lucid dreaming and here is a good chance for that. the moldable mind of a kid and all.

but i did use my voice recorder again to get my dreams out.

some kind of a julia sugarbaker airplane ride, old south, beige pink leather waiting room of an airport. I'm afraid for my safety, not sure how it's going to go. 

I'm looking at a photo album looking at old photos of fever to celebrate his sobriety. in one, he's at the ESPN zone wearing a black shirt with a grey stripe on the sleeve. the other guy in the photo is wearing all black.  He also has hair on his head. He's smiling with an arm around the other dude. 

2 dreams, more details.  My awareness is getting better too. Tonight I'm doing a WBTB unless something happens, then my goal is not to sweat it. 

Any stories about sharing LD with family members?

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## FryingMan

> hmm.. that melatonin first galatamind later looks very iteresting... I'm going to try that for my next wbtb



If you haven't read it yet, you should absolutely read Yuschak's "Advanced Lucid Dreaming: The Power of Supplements" if you're at all interested in supplemented lucid dreaming.   He goes through a great many supplements in detail, and gives detailed instructions on dosage and timing for best effect.   He recommends WILD, but WILD never works for me very well, so I just head right for sleep and DILDs.  When I can get back to sleep the dreams are pretty amazing.

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## tblanco

3 dreams last night after a bit of amemory dry spell. I'm working on some prospective memory excercieses but my awareness has been much better. my LD is right around the corner..

 Running into a specialty yogurt shop and buyin a flavor that is still left. The shop is empty and the owner is Skype g with so,someone 

VNessa is trying to figure out how she can still stay but there is no escaping her fate

I want to figure out what level of competition would be necessary to win bb but still have tons of fun.

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## FryingMan

Yes I bet your next LD will be soon!

----------


## fogelbise

> my two year old had nightmares all last night. She woke up telling me that "spiders eating her hair". fucking terrifying. this morning as i was driving her to day care I told her that the spiders weren't real and if they came again she should tell them that she loved them and ask them to please stop eating your hair. She said "Spiders not nice, Daddy".
> Needless to say, there was no wbtb like planned last night and i had a sobbing kid in bed with me all night. I am not the most gentle man when i am tired.  I am a lot better of a father when i've had some sleep. I need to work on that. But i did want to teach her about dreaming and lucid dreaming and here is a good chance for that. the moldable mind of a kid and all.
> 
> Any stories about sharing LD with family members?



I am impressed with your consistent posting here in your workbook! In regards to your question at the end of the quote above: I tried with my son but he and his Mom think it is "not something to mess with." More importantly though, my father advised me of the ability to take control of nightmares but I was quite a bit older than your daughter at that time so I can't speak for how it might work with that age. That seed he planted allowed me to become lucid and take charge of the monster in my nightmare and seemed to make nightmares a rare occurrence from then on. Unfortunately I didn't stick with lucid dreaming and before long I let dreaming in general slip into the background until much later in life.

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## tblanco

it's looking dim that i'll hit all 10 of my lds this month since i've only done one. I'm still working on my awareness and state checks, now i'm adding visualization of what i'd do if lucid and a little bit of my day mantra.. "i'm a fuckin lucid dreamer"  I think my goal is now to be lucid and less to do cool shit in dreams and that's a mistake, need to get back to my goals of what to do in the dreams... i'll be thinking... 

had  a great night of dreams 2 days ago... i'm dusing the voice recoroder and this was the first time i really felt myself holding still and reaching like fry says. it was super cool as the thoughts kept rolling in. super neat. 

ferguson, nudity, stalking, instagram

 i have the theme to the wet hot american summer in my head. working on finding a medical sales person of some sort for alc or jdp, going through the database looking at people, calling them, putting a note, a green a killer a something else. i'm annoyed because noone has a job yet. looking at hotel rooms yet, and we booked everybody in adjacent rooms and it will make them upset. I ask jkp why do we want to make them upset and he says 'you'll see the point later.'

naked girl on a park bench not allowed to go to a party. woman at the party said no double butts are allowed, she has a pair of glasses on. 

ferguson. going to the riots. walking along some sort of fence. folllowing a national guard troop.  I see people throwing bombs made of cardboard boxes. I'mm running trying not to get blown up. I talk to an older black lady for a minute, try to comfort her, make sure she's ok.

 there's a girl there, a very pretty girl, I call on her too. she sent me naked pictures on her instagram. I'm scrolling through and trying to find them and I think they are deleted. it's not completely gone. I find some pictures from that day, i'm follwoing her around her a pool with a camera and she looks pissed off that I'm taking pictures of her.

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## tblanco

> I am impressed with your consistent posting here in your workbook! In regards to your question at the end of the quote above: I tried with my son but he and his Mom think it is "not something to mess with." More importantly though, my father advised me of the ability to take control of nightmares but I was quite a bit older than your daughter at that time so I can't speak for how it might work with that age. That seed he planted allowed me to become lucid and take charge of the monster in my nightmare and seemed to make nightmares a rare occurrence from then on. Unfortunately I didn't stick with lucid dreaming and before longb I let dreaming in general slip into the background until much later in life.




hopefully i can stay engaged and keep talkaing toher about it. i'd love to be lucid for life. it's almost an experssion of practical spirituality in day and night.

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## FryingMan

Nice mantra!   I can feel the energy.

I think you're right that specific goals are important.   I've also had the general goal of "just getting lucid" and it doesn't seem to do the trick like specific goals, for example task of the month goals or competition goals.

Congrats on the recall, just it's amazing as they just keep rolling in "Oh, there was *that*..oh, then that one, too, etc."     We need to constantly stretch and reach to extend our recall.

Humph, what kind of party doesn't allow double butts?  Haha dreams are awesome!

----------


## tblanco

I've been putting dreams on my voice recorder but haven't transcribed them. Something else I've noticed is that i haven't gone back and read my old dreams.. Especially around the middle of june beginning of july. I want to go back and read those entries and journal entries to see if there's any clue as to what I was doing that would put me back on the track as I haven't had good LD's in a few weeks minus a brief moment  at the beginning of the month. I will transcribe my dreams here by the end of the day.

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## tblanco

8/17 - I'm ona call with a guy, medical professional. I want him to give me information about compensation and think about a different role. He does give me the number he's being paid but i don't know if he wants the job. 

8/16 - I have tracks of my tears stuck in my head.. there's a professional wrestling personality in there somewhere.

8/14 - I dreamed that james' real name is Harold Merryweather Honeycomb. He looks like howie mandel in disguise. I see that vanessa is evicted on facebook.

----------


## tblanco

i am travelling by car through a neighborhood. I see chain link fences. I see a house made of different color brick. I see a guy who wants to play a game but he can't talk.

steve and vanessa are talking, they are sitting outside in the reclining area of the big brother house. they are talking about how austin and liz are snuggling in the other room. steve wants to spy on them but he doesn't want to be weird. Vanessa is like, it'll be fine, just go do it. they were also talking about pac-man type maze eating game they are playing and he wants to play too. they wonder if the game is going to be part of the competition for the next week.

I'm on a date, we are riding in a canoe. I'm very gassy. I don't like the person i'm on a date with. I wake up a couple of times and think i can go back to it and be lucid but i'm still non lucid.  After the date we are hanging out at the house. I'm still gassy. Loud Loud Loud farts. Weird soul music is on that i've never heard before. I'm looking for clothes to wear. I find a pair of wrinkled red pants in the dirty clothes. I tell her that i like the pants but they are wrinkled. She's not impressed. I don't care. 

I'm trying to WILD last night at one point but it's not happening. I can hodl still for a few minutes but then I get bored and roll over and go to sleep.

----------


## tblanco

a wbtb at 2 am after 4 hours sleep. I tried to wild but it was a super halfhearted attempt. good detail remembered but no LD. 

I'm still super angry at amazon. I'm telling people in my dream about their business practices. I'm trying to organize delivery practices and help them get paid better for it. figuring out a way to boycott or bring attention to the exploitation at the same time realizing it's on customers to not accept the services that are given to them at face value. People are getting hurt for free delivery. we get in a room and find ways for the company to pay for it. A message comes in and says that an extra 10 dollars will be charged for this product. I'm looking at a green blotter on a desk trying to figure out how we can make that work.

I remember a warehouse manager hitting a kid with mental disabilities for disobeying. this situation was going to have some kind of consequences. when the kid got cold cocked i was suprised. I  am at a warehouse. A giant facility for sorting online packages.   3

----------


## tblanco

guy is doing sales into medical packaging technology, I'm looking him up on the computer to see if he's interested. my boss is kind of poopooing him. He doesn't have a ton of available information or success into what we are trying to do.

false awakening. in my bed at home, sleeping with the baby, she climbs out of bed, grabs my phone and calls my wife crying. April comes home and says that carmelite told her that i let her watch mad max fury road. i'm amazed that she could dial the phone, surprised that I let her watch fury road, wondering if fury road was out on video yet. 

false awakening made me very happy. It came froma failed wild attempt and i know that i'm so close. I was totally questioning my reality and all sorts of aspects of it but not quite putting it together. so close.!!!

----------


## fogelbise

> I've been putting dreams on my voice recorder but haven't transcribed them. Something else I've noticed is that i haven't gone back and read my old dreams.. Especially around the middle of june beginning of july. I want to go back and read those entries and journal entries to see if there's any clue as to what I was doing that would put me back on the track as I haven't had good LD's in a few weeks minus a brief moment  at the beginning of the month.



Good thinking. That is one thing I try to do when I notice differences in my recall or lucidity…to try to remember to include in my personal DJ what I did the day before and during the night or what I had been experimenting with lately.

If you haven't found a solution yet, you might try adding more fun back into your practice and setting intentions right before bed. One of the most fun practices for me is frequently reminding myself what I would like to do if this were a dream RIGHT NOW…all the fun things i could do from right where I am at (even if that means flying or teleporting somewhere else or finding my dream girl. In my car I often imagine pulling back the steering wheel and flying up over the traffic and to some interesting place nearby…or when walking around in public, all kinds of fun things I'd do…If I see some majestic trees - flying to the top of them or over them…or a beautiful vista - flying through it, etc…Inspiration can be found virtually anywhere.

Edit: I see you were posting while I was putting together my reply and that you seem to be heading in the right direction and it sounds like your are close to your next lucid.

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## tblanco

there is a fighter called shithead who lives in a room in a  factory and he's sharing his strategy of how many punches and kicks he needs to throw and it's based on the caliber of the machine that he works at his job. 

wbtb

im an mma journalist profiling a UFC fighter for a website. This guy seems terrible but the UFC is trumpeting him. he's got a win streak but it's been crushing cans. he's got a girlfriend and they are in a truck. he was offered another role where he doesn't have to fight and he's excited about it. UFC cancels the fight at the last minute to replace him with someone else and it makes him very upset.

----------


## tblanco

Fucking breakthrough!!! Pre wbtb DILD, post wbtb chain of WILDS. triggered by the sensei comp!   I have 12 minutes of frickin audio notes to 
transcribe... 

Pre WBTB DILD

I'm on this gameshow and I can't figure out the point of it but I'm standing in a big black room where these different groups of people are doing weird superhuman feats. I wonder how they are happening. One person is like floating up in the air and their hands are glowing and they fall to the ground and everyone cheers. Everything is happy and exciting. It gets to my group and people are yelling at me "just feel it, just go with it, just do it!!"

I hear a big voice "TONY, YOU'RE GONNA FLY! YOU'RE GONNA TELEPORT!" I'm wondering, what's happening? There's a waterfall. Like a glowing waterfall. It's a waterfall of lucidity. I realize that the gameshow is Sensei's competiton and i'm watching other people have their turns. I step in the falls and i feel the power of lucidity wash over me but i don't have any control. People are yelling "GO WITH IT!" I can feel this power, this realization that i'm in a dream but i don't have any control. I want to look at my hands but i can't do anything. I step back and the feeling is gone for a second. I step back into the glowing waterfall and I'm thinking about sageous' book for a second and this rush comes over me and it's beautiful. I think about what i want to do in this situation and i start to leave the moment and I'm back in my body.

i had a WBTB and my daugter puked during my wild attempt. had to get that cleaned up and tried to go back and hold still but it took me an extra hour to fall asleep. I wilded right into my bedroom. i got heavy hands and flashes of pictures. For a while i saw a whipping pattern of light and some noise and i tried to make it into a dream but couldn't think of anything to dream.

Wild, Remember, then flying. 
From the wild I end up in my bedroom. I can tell that I’m dreaming because the room is very dim and unstable. I am rubbing my hands together. I have a very narrow strip of vision. I’m looking at my hands and nothing is clarifying. I look around and say out loud “I’m in my bed and I’m asleep” the room gets more clear after that. I walk to the wall and start rubbing the texture of the wall. I go through the hallway to the living room and go outside.  I leap into the air and start flying, soaring over my neighborhood. I land on top of a neigbor’s house and I look in a window and it’s my bedroom! I’m reminded that I’m dreaming again and I run to the edge of the roof and jump and I’m flying. I think about how I can teleport and climb to the top of a building, like an office complex.  Dream fades. 
School sex then battle!
In the hallway of a school like a Hogwarts, fancy boarding school and I see a pretty thin girl that looks like amy schumer. I remember that I'm lucid and my sex drive takes over. I ask her if she wants to come sleep with me. We walk through a door and it’s a bedroom and I start grinding on her. I tried to do thing where you start humping and it turns into sex but it doesn’t, it just stays dry humping.  She’s wearing a pink tube top and has blonde hair. I never finish and I end up going back into the other room. I am lucidish during this. 
In the other room it’s now a big combat hall like at the end of the karate kid. I’m fighting a guy and I have chi powers. I can lightly tap my opponent and he’ll fly across the room. He looks like captain lou albano, big fat guy with long stringy beard and rubber bands. He’s wearing a karate gi with a  black belt tied around it. 

False Awakening
I’m talking to my friend ced after the dreams and I’m showing him my phone. Telling him that I’ve been having trouble LDing but now I’ve got dreams… “here’s 4 minutes worth, here’s 8 minutes worth.” He says, “wow, that’s great dude!”

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## FryingMan

Wow, that's great, dude!

Heh, seriously, congrats on a fabulous night!   Having goals that are important to you can really get the lucidity flowing!

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## tblanco

Got a little lazy yesterday after my huge night. I wasn't as diligent about my day work. stayed up late watching a movie ("forget it jake, it's chinatown.") Didn't plan a wbtb. Only halfassed some memory mantras and came out of the night with a fragment.  What's the method here? I was expecting a bit of REM deficit because of the huge sleep the night before and i didn't want to set expectations for failure but is that just setting myself up for failure? You big onirenauts, do you power through every day on this tip? What's the scenario?

Dream: drivign on a highway, seeing billboards of Jmac in different poses.

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## FryingMan

The longer I practice, the more I appreciate the near-dominating effect of conditions.   For recall it seems to be for me some sort of exponential curve so that the earlier I get  to bed before midnight I recall more and more, and every minute after midnight causes a very fast degradation.   You can do day practice until you're blue in the face and pop a vein doing nose pinches, but if your sleep is not solid then you can expect poor results.

Getting lucid IMO requires a "perfect storm" of different factors all coming together.   You have to work on the fundamentals, but you also have to work on the synthesis.

Keeping your attitude positive in general, setting strong intent, and maintaining the expectation that you'll be lucid are important to keep up.     We all have to find the balance that allows us to keep these up enough, without getting exhausted or retreating into a LD practice cave in the himalayas.

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## tblanco

my sleep patterns have been jacked for the last couple of nights. not catching that good rem. Would love a good night of sleep so i can remember some dreams!!!

also, I've been reading Sageous' book "simply pay attention" It's wild. I'm loving it.

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## tblanco

Recall starting to come back. Looking forward to a dedicated true WBTB session tonight. Last night I did do  WBTB but just to pee. I didn't walk around and aware the world or anything like i usually do. Can't reccomend Sageous' book enough. I thought it was crazy at first but the more I read it the more I love it. 

1 dream.
I'm in a hotel room and I'm working as a recruiter. I'm trying to find a person at this company. There's a gate keeper guy with short dark hair and I'm asking him where this sales person is. He tells me he needs to ask for permission. I know I should stop him but I don't and the sales manager says no. I ask the guy what about you... is this something that may be interesting to you and he says no.

2 dream.

My baby is sleeping next to my wife on the other side of the bed. I know she is sleeping next to me because she is usually putting her foot in my face kind of thing.

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## tblanco

wbtb and galatimine + choline mix  Lucidimine...

massive dreams.. no lucids.  I love crazy dreams...

1.
i'm reading a book about different kind of lucid opportunities. Different kinds of superpowers in my dreams. first thing i try to find a comic book to read.  I want to start dreaming and flying. firsst i start finding my legs but they aren't underneath me,  I need places to go and people to talk to.        

2. i am in a cold call/auditon/job interview for this weird part that's a cross between an amusement park  and a workout facility. I'm wearing a t-shirt and headphones and i'm there to support my friends. there are stadiums and reisers. They call my name and when i get to the front it's a pair of twins, mousy looking dudes, like mort burke. I'm looking at them like, oh shit, this is a mistake. I say to thme, what's happening. I sit down and say OK. I'm the wrong guy, this is an error. 

they look at me like i'm crazy and i say, i just spent the day at your facility and it's terrifying.  they  have this thing you strap your body into and you shoot along this track and you need to do these crunches while you are flying around, and it's horrifying. it's crazy. there were all these kids there. I'm giving them the recruiter schpiel, I'm not the guy assigned to the search i'm helping them with the research, i don't know how my name got here. Let me go get em.  they sent me to research the place but i'm not the guy

.3 I'm at a hiking/safari facility. i don't know the people there. There's all these endangered animals. A big turtle. I'm at the top of this half finished zone. Scaffolding and cinderblocks stacked very high. At  the bottom is this creek and i want to swim but it's very unstable and i don't want to fall. I'm trying to figure out how to negotiate but it's very wobbly. I'm thinking about jumping in but holding tight. a stack of blocks fall and almost hit this aquatic dinosaur of a fish. Am i gonna climb down or jump. It's a very narrow target and I don't want to do this. the scaffolding starts to tip and fall and i'm going with it and it hits the deck. I"m ok, the thing is ok I say, this is dangerous, fuck. they say, yah, we know...

4. i'm at this excercise facility with TJ miller. He's looking washboard fit. Hey we're hanging out. He's showing me all of these crazy fitness machines/rollercoaster rides. this is where he straps into this strange machine where he's flying around and doing crunches. I ggo do one that's a surfing simulator and it's pretty fun. We are leaving but i realize i want to try the crunch coaster and we go back and there's all these kids around a change machine. I go to the ride and I don't have money. It takes my thumb print. I'm not sure how to get in. The machine takes off and I'm shooting around like superman. It's scary. I"m holding on for dear life and when i get to the bottom, i'm like hey tj I get a 5 and what did you get?  18... wow!.  

I say hey tj let me see is this your number? he says no. how about one of these, no. Can ii get your number. he says, nah.

I'm doing some prospective memory day work. RC whenever i hear a phone ring (work with phones) or touch a door. Tomorrow, when i hear a bird or see a pretty girl.

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## fogelbise

A lot of nice recall there! Funny, TJ Miller, I really enjoyed his character on the Silicon Valley series.

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## tblanco

Getting back on track to my day work, night work, have a new DV friend to do talking about Dreaming and LD with so that's awesome..

Here's a couple from yesterday. I haven't transcribed my dreams from last night yet..

sea battle, helping navigate and negotiate targets at sea. I'm not actually on a boat but i am outside.

I'm trying to remember where I left my daughter. She's in a discount clothing bin.

this family is being evicted  from their house because of CPS and I'm the agent. They are looking for a place to stay but i don't know if i can take them. you can see through the floorboards, you can see purple grass growing beneath the house.

I can feel the awareness and excitement building, I know a lucid is right around the corner.

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## tblanco

> A lot of nice recall there! Funny, TJ Miller, I really enjoyed his character on the Silicon Valley series.



TJ is an old buddy of mine from when i was on teh chicago open mic circuit.

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## fogelbise

> I can feel the awareness and excitement building, I know a lucid is right around the corner.



Awesome! There really is a difference when one is and isn't practicing awareness.





> TJ is an old buddy of mine from when i was on teh chicago open mic circuit.



Very cool! Must have been some interesting times!

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## tblanco

It's been too long since I've signed in. I'm journaling every day. My recall is not perfect but i do thing some of that comes with not having the best sleep. My day work has been better and I've been thinking of being grounded in reality, questioning the nature of this world and doing state checks. I tried to wild late last night after a water waking and was able to get to the heavy body stage, which was teh first in a while. I need to transcribe my verbal journals.

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## fogelbise

Me too. I was surprised to find that I hadn't logged in for 7 days! What do you mean by "I've been thinking of being grounded in reality"?

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## tblanco

I am a delinquint but not a delinQUIT. I have all of the best excuses but i'm not about excuses. I'm about intention. I'm starting the Leberge book over today and beginning from page one. First comes recall and dreamsigns. I'm down but I ain't out. 
and Fogel.. I was referring to the Sageous RRC where he was talking about getting the feeling of being in the world and knowing what that is.

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## FryingMan

Never quit!    It's a great idea to read LaBerge again.   I'm due for a read-over now as well!      Dreaming is weird -- my recall's been down quite a bit for quite a while now, but September was a pretty good month for me LD-wise (even if they were mostly short).   So you just keep plugging on, doing the day and night work as best you can, and just keep rolling with the punches.    I'm probably due for a big refocus on recall as well.    Recall's important, so it's a good thing to center on it for a while.

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## tblanco

I put myself into deep trance the other night, didn't go all the way to dreamland. Stayed in shaky vibration  void for a long time. 

Dream recall is coming back. Had a few epics in the last week or so and I've been remembering things every night. 

YEsterday I was practicing awareness and saw a roof that i wanted to launch off. I caught that buzz of excitement.

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## FryingMan

Excellent!   Epics sure are awesome.     Keep up that awareness practice, particularly being aware of your awareness of things, thinking "I'm on the lookout for the dream state!"

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## fogelbise

> YEsterday I was practicing awareness and saw a roof that i wanted to launch off. I caught that buzz of excitement.



This is one of my favorite things to do during the day and it has become a practice for me: imagining all of the fun I would have right now if I were lucid. I have specific examples of this translating to my dreams and getting me lucid and I suspect that it is responsible for some other LD's wherein the pre-DILD moments were perhaps too foggy.

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## tblanco

I have been reading "lucid dreaming on command" by jamie alexander and have been practicing his technique for trance state. basically It gets you right to the SP and you can play around in there.

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## FryingMan

Sounds interesting, how's it going, do you find it effective?  Can you give a quick summary of the approach?

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## tblanco

step one, lay on the bed flat no pillow, focus on the back of your head, mind's eye/where it touches. breathe until you aren't thinking only observing..




> Step one: You're going to focus your awareness onto the back of your head so you can silence your mind, or as I like to say, "To kill your inner-voice." It's what you'd do to get into a meditative trance. Step two: You'll then send yourself to the brink of sleep by completely letting go of every last bit of tension inside your body. The focus will be on your head because if you can release all the tension from your head, your body will follow suit. Step three: And finally, you'll shift your awareness out of your body while holding onto it, which will send your body to sleep and you'll pass into a lucid dream. THE SECRET SAUCE Before we start talking about the technique itself, I want to explain how you're going to accomplish step two which is letting go of the tension inside your body. You need to imagine your head and mind are two separate things, but right now your mind is sitting inside your head, right behind your eyes.

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## FryingMan

Have you been able to do this?

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## tblanco

I've been working on some trance meditation previous to this, so actually getting to the trance state is pretty easy. I've been doing it before bed so there's no real dream state to move into... I've tried a little bit after a wbtb but i'm not giving myself enough time to really wake up so i keep falling asleep.  Getting to the trance state is pretty easy for me... holding my awareness is going to take more work. I do like this though and i can feel the Sleep paralysis come on and the body heaviness.

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## tblanco

this board has fallen off. It's been way too long since I've connected. I'm still going through the meditation and reality check motions but i've had no LD since august.  :Sad:

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## fogelbise

> this board has fallen off. It's been way too long since I've connected. I'm still going through the meditation and reality check motions but i've had no LD since august.



Going through the motions is likely the culprit. Try to put some meaning behind both activities (not during meditation but when getting ready to meditate or when finding yourself getting off track). With RC's, try to think of an LD where you were absolutely flabbergasted during the dream that you were actually dreaming. Remember that moment, and that any moment you could be dreaming, when you do your RC's. It can also be fun and more effective to imagine what you would do right now when the RC shows that you are lucid and visualize or play it out. I hope that helps.

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## tblanco

I hit a wild last night. It was pretty awesome and very brief. I was in my own house and spent the time just looking at my hands in awe.

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## FryingMan

Woohoo, every WILD is a cause for celebration!   Congrats!   Dream hands can be mesmerizing, I know, I spent one LD doing just that.

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## tblanco

Back in the saddle. Got about 2 weeks of recorded journals under my belt.

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## tblanco

Last night I got 2 dreams recorded, one of which was an epic with multiple locations that was probably 3 dreams strung together. I woke up in the middle of the long one at about 4:30 and tried to do the DILD or wake induced where i remembered the dream, set intention and go back to sleep. I didn't get lucid but I think that was partly because I didn't have a real clear sense of what i was going to do if i became lucid in the moment. Lately I have been waking up clearly in the middle of the night and I've made it a point to journal. 

My big goal here is to be slow and steady with the effort I make and not get to hell bent on the end result. That's how i get frustrated and take long breaks. I think the biggest challenge for me will be handling the dry spell when i get up and lucid dreaming again. but slow, steady and consistant will be the goal here. 

that and I really want to make a go of becoming a cartographer of my dreamspace. I want to know what my dreams are like in good detail. before I would just journal and cruize on and not pay much attention to what was happening rather pushing forward to the next milestone.

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## FryingMan

Nice!   I love long epics, I think I like them even more than LDs!

Your goals sound spot on.   Adjusting your motivation and goals so that you stay engaged in your dreams, feeling very positive about them, and keep up day practice of awareness.    Really diving in deep to your dreams and getting very close to them like you mention is probably one of the best things you can do IMO.    Go for it and let us know how it goes!

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## fogelbise

^Ditto! I like your approach for getting back on the saddle! Welcome back Tony! 

Let us know how we can help and we look forward to seeing your notes here in your workbook.  :smiley:

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## tblanco

I'm having better recall in the middle of the night when I wake up than I do in the morning. Or I just lay there and ruminate on my dream for so long that when I finally move to write it down it's mostly gone and all I have left is a sentence without context. I'm a little distracted today but that's ok. I'll do a couple of reverse reality checks and not stress too much about it. I was looking back through my journal and remembering that I was actually pulling off a couple of real deal WILDs before I hiatused.  being able to DILD and WILD, the dream.   no pun intended.  for now all I want to do is go flying. or hulk jumping, that's really how I get down in the LD world.  good starter pack.

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## tblanco

Long wild attempt this morning. Got to get into some serious hypnagogic imagery more than one but I kept tasting my nasty mouth. And feeling the back of my neck. I am better at holding still but not pulling myself into to that next stage of the dream yet.

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## fogelbise

If you don't feel the dive is going well you can always do some MILD during the hypnagogic stage when I think MILD is most effective. That way if you decide to roll over and go for a WILD next time, you will increase your chances of a DILD.

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## tblanco

Building my Prospective Memory, Getting more regular with dream checks, got 5 dreams remembered from last night, I can feel the energy in my chest that comes with the sense that it's coming. I am a citizen of the dreamscape. It's time for me to wake up.

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## FryingMan

Woohoo I love that feeling!   I've had some days recently where I'm absolutely bursting with excitement for the dream adventures of the coming night.  Dream on!

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## tblanco

So i'm laying in bed after waking up, I've gotten pretty good at the expectation to wake up a little bit before the alarm goes off. the dream elements are shifting around in my head. How do you guys hold onto them and organize as you are preparing to write them down? I feel like my dream journal lately has been a jumbled mess of images and places and sensations and characters and not so much the play by play stories or set ups that make a great journal? do I need to adjust my expectations? is there a tactic i'm missing out on?  

Also, while i'm still preparing for that first lucid dream to peirce the film of dreamworld, can someone try to describe what lucidity feels like and how it differs from ordinary dreaming?

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## FryingMan

For recall: it just takes practice.   I used to use a voice recorder on every waking (and when I'm sleeping alone still do sometimes).   Now I go over the dreams mentally, making a list of key words or quick "feelings" like a mental snapshot of each major scene.   I try to build this list all night long, and when I come to the computer to write them down I get out quickly all the summary/keywords, then I go about filling them in.

I spend quite a bit of time going over the dreams so that they're cemented in my waking memory.  Some nights there's endless detail, some nights it's just "I was in a place with some people."   It even varies per dream within one night: some dreams are epic, some revert to vague impressions.   It depends  how calm you are, how well rested you are, stress-free, etc.

It also depends how much in your life you pay attention to your present moment experiences, moment to moment.   Make a habit of always paying attention, reflecting upon, and recalling later your experiences, both waking experiences and dreaming.   Do this consistently over time, and waking and dream recall will flourish.

Because if you live on autopilot during the day, you can't expect to have amazing detailed memories of dreams at night, especially considering that dream memories are more fragile.

Sometimes if I can't get anything, I'll just start associating through a list of common dream themes, and see if I get an "AHA" moment or not, and then pursue that line for a while.

But Tony, I thought you've had lucid dreams before, so wouldn't you know how they feel to you?

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## tblanco

went through my dream journal this weekend for signs, categorizing them according to the ewold. putting a couple of examples in each category

25 dreams cataloged

Awareness -  5 marveling at this crazy pie technology,  Crazy urgency in a flooding house, 
Action - 20 "I take my shoes off to tour an abandoned warehouse" "calling 911 at work" 
form - 12 "i'm a superhero working the valet in heaven's parking lot" "the hotel fridge was cavernous and filled with folded white towels"
context - 17  "I'm in Shreveport on UL Campus"  "my friend won big brother" "i'm backstage at an arena"

now what lol

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## fogelbise

I would keep going through etwold since there is so much of value in there. As far as the dream signs, you might need to mine the data you gathered and look for the most common signs that are a little more specific than just "action" for example. When I was focusing on dream signs a lot I had some specific ones like seeing a deceased loved one or weird stars in the sky but over time I have moved on to general dream signs that cue me in that I am dreaming, like taking a dream only action. I think that you may also want to start off more specific before focusing on general dream signs, but go with your gut instinct here…that could prove more productive than what I think will work for you.

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## tblanco

I built the list of specific recurring elements and I'm hitting the reality checks in moments of weirdness hard now. still no crack but with 3-4 dreams remembered a night and a general sense of wonder about my daily life, i'm on the edge. We are creating an evolutionary life change here.

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## fogelbise

Yes, very good! You sound like you are close to getting to the next level! The trick is to realize when you get there that you need to keep up the practices that got you there, some maybe more than others…finding which ones those are but not laying back and resting on your laurels lest you lose the progress you have made.

When I started this journey again well into adulthood I would have had much doubt about that last statement of yours, but now I really think there is something to that idea.

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## tblanco

Interesting night of dreaming last night. Usually I've been waking up after dreams to record, but last night I woke up held still and went back to sleep. At the end of the night I was able to remember 3 dreams in good detail including one where I achieved my current lucid dream goal in a non-lucid state. I was explaining to a friend in a park how you can use magic to fly and then i went flying. DUH lol. Interesting magical dreams, better recall, tangental recall. Loving this progress. Still no true lucid breakthrough tho.

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## tblanco

I did sign up for the contest.

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## FryingMan

That's a good step!   Keep it up!  Congrats on the dream recall!   And have fun in the competition.   I signed up, too.  Hopefully waking life won't get in the way too much  :smiley:

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## tblanco

3 step task

RC
Fly
Teleport

Personal goals

new
Eat a hamburger
Ask a dream character about their inner life
Shoot fire from my hands

Old
take a drug to increase lucidity
create a portal to another universe


My recall is in a slump from earlier this week. I think my allergies must be keeping me from great quality sleep. I'm keeping up the attention and reality checks. The best thing about the question reality/RC process is that I notice heightened emotion in my dreams, so if i'm getting worked up or sucked in in a situation in real life. I'm starting to pull my self out  and check for other dreamsigns, keeping me from acting in an overly emotional way. IT's pretty cool

Now on with the lucidity dammit

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## tblanco

Reading about the brain chemistry element of the WBTB. How you need to get your thinking brain moving to a certain degree so you don't just zzz back out when you go in for the dive. What techniques do you use after the wbtb?

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## tblanco

It's fucking hard but I don't ever want to give up again.

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## FryingMan

I feel ya, bro!    My future self would never forgive me if I gave up, I know it.   Dial the practice up and down as needed to adjust to waking life pressures, but never let it go to zero, that's my promise to myself.   And reach for dream memories every single time upon waking up.     Work on the fundamentals as you can.    Find the joy in everyday life in mindfulness.   There's lots of good stuff out there even in the waking world, if you quiet the inner voice and let yourself experience it!

What I do after WBTB is set intention to lucid dream, like, "the very next thing I see will be a dream", "I will fall asleep now and have a lucid dream."   Then I will relax and do some dream yoga visualizations, maybe an all-body relaxation scan (which I almost never finish, I usually fall asleep before the end, starting with toes and ending with top of head, just relax each body area with each several exhales), then maybe watch myself falling asleep.   Trying various visualizations to try to move my awareness away from being locked into my head.

The best stuff is worth the effort.  And dreaming is some of the best stuff there is, period!

p.s. post 4500  :smiley:

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## fogelbise

> Reading about the brain chemistry element of the WBTB. How you need to get your thinking brain moving to a certain degree so you don't just zzz back out when you go in for the dive. What techniques do you use after the wbtb?



For me, I have to avoid knocking out too quickly by staying up longer and doing something to wake up my brain during the WBTB, before laying back down. I like looking at images on my phone during WBTB that inspire lucid dreaming ideas.





> Dial the practice up and down as needed to adjust to waking life pressures, but never let it go to zero...



I love the dial analogy! These adjustments are crucial to keeping up practices for me.

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## tblanco

Not sure what's holding me back here.  I listened to that, "thing i wish somebody had told me before i started" blog and it was just ok for me. I"m at that 50 LD mark and this round of trying to get back into it has been tough. I can feel my recall getting more detailed, my day work more consistant and i can start to generate that feeling of tightness/excitement in my chest when I start using my imagination to put stuff together. Seems like i was better at it before and I can't figure out what's different now.

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## fogelbise

Can you tell us more about what you are feeling? I looked back over page 2 of your workbook. I do think that if you continue to enjoy your regular dreams and some of these epics and continue to put in the work while dialing the intensity of the work up and down as needed to not feel burned out, that you will get to the point of having regular lucid dreamsthat it is just a matter of time. If you like listening to audio in general there are some fun podcasts on DV: DreamViews Podcast

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## FryingMan

Sometimes I think it's good to "start over" -- one of my favorite things to do to start over is re-read my favorite books: ETWOLD & Tibetan Dream Yoga books (both the classic TYoDAS and the new Holecek book).   I get really excited rereading this material.  

When I started out, I strictly followed LaBerge, with perhaps the exception that I didn't assiduously and re-work goals.    But doing that may be very helpful, because goals that you're excited about have been proven to increase performance (in many different cognitive activities).   Prospective memory exercises, reflection/intention moments, RCs.

What's a typical day & night practice like for you these days?    How many wakings per night do you notice?   Do you do WBTB at all?   Do you ever reset intention in the middle of the night?

The TYoDaS gives you a great way to measure your progress: basically, ask yourself: how often are you aware in the first moment of experience, and in the first moment of behavior (response to experience)?   Do you control mindfully your reactions, or do your reactions control you?

I think you can't go wrong with a steady diet of attention, reflection, and recall.   Build each as high as you can.  Play memory games during the day: use a mnemonic system like the peg system to "record" interesting moments/experiences/scenes throughout the day, and in the evening see how many of them you can recall.

As long as you're working on these fundamentals, and maintaining an active interest and strong intention to get lucid in dreams, I think you can't go wrong.   If you're enjoying your dreams and remembering more and more of them, and feeling more vivid and "present" in your dreams, that's all to the good.

To improve in any discipline one must add positives, subtract negatives, and balance learning theory vs. practice.   Keep trying different things to keep it fresh and fun.   It's important to build a practice that you enjoy, so that you can maintain if in the long run.

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## tblanco

So i have my Ipad where i keep my dream journal. I'm using it to do raw data transmission upon waking. I'm also working with a notebook where i write once or twice a week to go over dream goals, and to read my notebook for dreamsigns. I'm currently reading "are you dreaming" by Daniel Love as well as going through the Prospective Memory excercises with Stephen Leberge from the mild chapter of the book. I check print and clocks for stability any time I see. I also do a nose pinch whenever something feels weird or when ever I'm getting emotional. I am not perfect in terms of mindful actions. I notice coming out of a fevered moment and check more than i do in the middle of a fevered moment.  I've never heard of the peg system. When i catch myself being not mindful. I take a moment to feel my body and hear the world and do a moment to moment recall of the last few minutes. I stare at clouds and look for pictures to work on my schema buiding creativity.

At night. I set an alarm for 330ish 3-4 nights a week. That's about 5ish hours of sleep. I do some trance mindfulness meditation before bed in the vein of Jamie alexander. I'm also getting up in the middle of the night to set intention and try to wild back in with more trance meditation. 

It's never taken this long to hit lucid before. It's a little weird. I've set a few reasonable concrete goals and missed all of them. I'm keeping a steady diet of things beyond manuals that focus on questioning the nature of reality and dreams. 

I do have the andrew holoceck book in Audio form. I may download that again and give it another listen.

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## FryingMan

Well it sounds like you're doing a lot of good stuff.   It helps to stay very positive, think about how much you love dreaming and recalling dreams.   Hah, I also check clocks a lot but I haven't gotten lucid from them once in over 3 years.   And I've looked at my watch on my wrist (which I haven't worn in YEARS) on several occasions in dreams.  A week or so ago in a dream I also was given several watches (grudgingly by a guy who didn't like me) and I looked at them: sort of ornate analog watches, but I never tried to see the time on them.

I really like the Holecek book, I started with the audio version but quickly switched to the recently release ebook form because I prefer to learn from text.

I've had some long dry spells this year, I think on the 4-week level, even longer.   Dry spells make me sort of mad and make me try a lot harder  :smiley: .

Keep thinking of all the ways it's possible to get lucid: DILD from awareness and dream signs and intent, WILD from falling asleep aware, DEILD approaches maybe with clock alarms.   If your sleep cycle is very regular and you can map your REM/dream times accurately then try some sleep interruption timers about 20 minutes (play with the time) before your anticipated waking from a dream.   Keep trying them all.   I'm now working a lot on WILD based on this message:

https://www.reddit.com/r/LucidDreami...wilds_here_is/

... which is a sort of mindfulness meditation approach to sleeping.

Other things to try: eating for brain health, lots of choline & tryptophan & making sure you're not deficient in any key minerals and vitamins.    Exercise for good sleep.   There are many avenues to investigate, just try to keep self-evaluating and look for areas of improvement.

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## tblanco

I am having some great dreams. My dreams tend to be mashups of different periods in my life with a tiny bit of narrative. I mean the best ones. I have many dreams about things I watch on TV or games I'm playing. I find myself sorted into those roles. Having a community to see people hitting goals is great and I love to feel connected to y'all. I've been reading my little girl to sleep the Love book on lucid dreams and she's been telling me about her dreams in the morning as well. She dreams about star wars and darth vader quite a bit. that's pretty exciting because I do belive I'm building what will hopefully be a lifelong rapport in this space. When I'm in a good space with the RC and Awareness training, I am in better control of my emotions... that's not right... in better control of my ACTIONS because I can recognize when i'm having a flood of emotions. There is much that's great about this practice. But I still want the real shit... know what i'm saying?

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## fogelbise

> I've been reading my little girl to sleep the Love book on lucid dreams and she's been telling me about her dreams in the morning as well. She dreams about star wars and darth vader quite a bit. that's pretty exciting because I do belive I'm building what will hopefully be a lifelong rapport in this space.



That is sweet! I envy that connection you have with your daughter. I think I waited too long with my son (new adult) but he is starting to pay attention to mindfulness. I can't seem to get him to show an interest in dreams so far. 





> When I'm in a good space with the RC and Awareness training, I am in better control of my emotions... that's not right... in better control of my ACTIONS because I can recognize when i'm having a flood of emotions. There is much that's great about this practice. But I still want the real shit... know what i'm saying?



I hear yait will come with continued and consistent practice. It indeed sounds like you are doing the right things and you already know that you can have lucid dreams!  :smiley:  And they get better and better over time!

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## FryingMan

> There is much that's great about this practice. But I still want the real shit... know what i'm saying?



I do know what you're saying, I feel the same way!   There is a balance that needs to be struck, here, though (there goes that "b" word again!).    We want these dream experiences, so we work for lucidity in dreams.   Yet there is an element of (as the Buddhists say) "grasping" here, reaching for something because we think this will lead us to happiness.    It is this grasping that builds a wall of delusion that prevents us from fully living in the present moment and seeing the truth of our experiences from moment to moment.   This recognition of the truth of the present moment is lucidity!      So you see the paradox: in order to be lucid in both waking and dreams, we need to both want it and not want it.   The intention to be lucid in dreams seems to help make it happen more often, but we need to somehow manage the intention so that it doesn't distract us from what is happening right here, right now, and seeing it for what it is, and acknowledging our response to it, and choosing how to respond, rather than letting habitual reactions dictate our response for us.

Developing this mindset takes time, so patience and consistent effort are required.  I hope this helps in some way!

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## tblanco

You need to do the work with feeling but without desire. Anticipation not desperation. it's a tough line to ho. 

http://selfdefinition.org/tibetan/Te...-And-Sleep.pdf

fun resource if you guys don't know it already. my kid and I read some of the old steve ditko stan lee spiderman before bed... (did you know they used to call him peter palmer?) and then we read a little bit about lucid dreams. She's been telling me about what she wants to dream now. She wants to ride on Rainbow Dash (from my little pony) and go flying in the sky. and she wants to marry her best friend, lucy. three year olds are a trip. 

This Peg technique is crazy. I'm trying it out today with random things from my day and at then end I'll journal them. i'm up to 3 tree so far. How do you use the technique, FRY?

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## FryingMan

Yep I know TYoDAS  :smiley: .  It's one of my main resources (see my sig?  :tongue2: ).

I was doing the peg thing actively for a few weeks, I'm not actively working on it at this moment, but I would pick "interesting things" from my day and assign them a peg, and every time I assigned a new peg I'd go through the list.   I found that I pretty much always remembered all of them through to the end of the day, it's a powerful approach.

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## fogelbise

It's great to hear that you are using the peg system. You can use it to work on memory during the day like you are doing and it is also useful for retaining as many details as possible of your lucid or non-lucid dreams until you get a chance to record them, which is how I use the pegs. But that daytime exercise is great for one of the fundamentals of lucid dreaming: memory.

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## tblanco

Can I get an example of how you use pegs for dreams fog>?

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## fogelbise

I use the pegs for quickly recalling my goals when I become lucid. 1 (used to be tall man, currently just 1) = Show me an experience of being one with everything around me. Had a cool experience last time I did that. 2 (snake, handwritten 2 looks like a snake to me; good if no fear of snakes) = go to a specific place (private) that has a mental connection to snakes for me. 3 (looks like a butt on it's side) = Get off my butt and start narrating my dreams, etc...

I mixed up my mnemonics (memorization tools). What I use for recall is actually a pattern of letters either when I first wake or sometimes even during the lucid dream, most commonly during a breather in the void. For example: There was a *Bat and then later I was *Dancing with a girl. So I remind myself: Bat, Dance = BD = "Bad Dudes yo!" or whatever fun saying that comes to me. Of course you can make long sentences like the way you might have remembered the different levels of classification of living organisms in school "King Phillip Came Over For Good Steak." If that quote doesn't ring a bell, just google it, you will see what I mean.  :smiley:

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## Nebulus

I had tried to use mnemonics to save writing in a journal during the night, and it worked for a while. But I had never thought of using it in a dream! thanks for that.

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## tblanco

Peg work + developing the personal mantra + mindfulness meditation +ADA work. 
every day is every day

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## tblanco

So the goal here is to start to set real intention for my lucid dreams. This path is going to take me down to the dream yoga way and I'm very interested in connecting with spiritual geometry in the dream space, exploring chakras and auras in the dream space and feeling spiritual super powers, meeting gurus and enlightened beings and exploring the depths of my subconscious. First step is reconnecting with my confidence and understanding that lucid dreaming is real for me and a state that I can realistically achieve with the power of awareness and positive thinking. 

Lucidity is who I am.

This is the oldest magic i know that works. putting that intention out into the world. Shaping my thoughts and shaping my consciousness and thereby subtly influencing my actions and perspectives to bend the world to me or me to the world. Lucidity is who I am. With persistence, it's only time between me and sleeping awareness, clear light lucidity, crackling in the internal virtual reality sandbox of my mind. It's there, I'm just remembering the code, digging through the ring to find my key.

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## FryingMan

That's the attitude!    As they write both in Holecek and TYoDaS, the change may not come instantly, but remember that you're not the same person that you were when you were a teenager, etc.   (No I don't think it will take *that* long!), so as long as you keep it up, the change *will* come.

I had a brief LD this morning where I was doubting it at first.   That's the fog and haze laid down over our awareness in the dream state, and the impaired access to memory doing its thing.  We need to build a bright awareness, and realize that YES, this COULD BE the dream state!   

I'm dreaming, this is a dream!   We all dream a ton every night, we just need to connect with it!

Become a dream detective, always looking out for signs of the dream state.

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## tblanco

This morning I had a late period dream where i was sitting on a rock in a field talking to a beautiful woman. I was on the edge of lucidity and the DC was trying to help me along. She was telling me I could have anything I wanted. It was registering that I was dreaming way in the back of my mind, more like i was a celebrity superstar or I had some magical powers. It was right after hitting the snooze so i knew i was about to wake up but it didn't have that ZING of lucidity. She was also giving me pushback on my requests and I was just taking them like "ok". 

Meditation and sensory exercises are what i'm going after now. I think i gave basic LD Day work a fair 2 month shake and now i'm moving to some pure dream yoga stuff. This one was very close. The dream was really interesting. I jerked awake and lost the memory but then remembered to lay down in my sleeping position and drifted back into the dream.

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## FryingMan

I think long (like 1 minute or more), and as frequent as you can, session of reflection/intention really help generate LDs.   Also, daytime MILD-like review of dreams where you see yourself in the scenes from the night before, seeing yourself recognizing the dream state and getting fully lucid.      dream yoga illusory form exercise (the main meat of the day work) is basically reflection/intention.  You're recognizing the dream-like nature of experience.    Each time you do so, it's basically "having a lucid moment."

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## tblanco

my recall hasn't been great the last couple of days but i've been doing some good sitting meditation and stronger questioning of reality. I got really close a couple of days ago and it was very similar to the last time i pierced the veil. my dreams became about people trying to tell me what was going on. If i keep paying attention, i will listen.

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## tblanco

Recall is getting much better in the last couple of days. I've taken to saying out loud "this is a dream" at odd points. My kid is like "right now? THIS?"

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## FryingMan

Great!   Yes, it is a dream!   Keep it up.  In TYoDaS they say it can take a while to make a change to your awareness via illusory form, but the changes can be significant, and I believe long-lasting.  You get out of it what you put into it.

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## tblanco

THIS IS A DREAM.

alternating practice between sensory and breathing meditation.

my recall hasn't been great the last few days, i think  i need to start adding in more reflection.

Flexible, playful and humorous. Andrew H. stated those as what happens as you practice dream yoga and illusory form. Along with Lucid dreams, those are some great goals.

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## FryingMan

> THIS IS A DREAM.
> 
> alternating practice between sensory and breathing meditation.
> 
> my recall hasn't been great the last few days, i think  i need to start adding in more reflection.
> 
> Flexible, playful and humorous. Andrew H. stated those as what happens as you practice dream yoga and illusory form. Along with Lucid dreams, those are some great goals.



I think the playful attitude is really important.   It's how I feel in my best, longest, most stable LDs: having a good time, joking with the DCs, doing TOTM tasks.   The mindset I got from reading Holecek helped me to have a bunch of LDs that week or soon after.

Recall is about consistency, sleep patterns, overall well-being, and about how much you pay attention to your life experiences as a matter of course.   Illusory form practice should help with that.  Pay attention, reflect, recall!    Auto-pilot in waking life is the enemy of dream recall at night (autopilot during the day means you'll autopilot at night!)

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## tblanco

Got lucid friday night. Epic series of dreams taking me to many locations. In the last one I remembered the hotel I was in from another dream. I looked at the pictures on the wall and saw one with a few friends of mine and realized this was a dream. Then I woke up. As i was remembering all of the cool stuff that happened I made a judgment call to journal rather than try for the dild. 

Staying with illusory form practice. Staying with the meditation. Staying with awareness. Staying with visualization recall. I think i'm on the right path here. Going to start to add on new dream yoga stuff in the future. 

Staying with this site and this journal.

Thanks fry and fog.

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## FryingMan

Nothing better than an epic!   Except maybe an epic LD!    Congrats!   This is a game of changing your brain: stay with it, and in time the results will begin to roll in.  Sometimes the change is so gradual you won't notice it, before waking up one morning and realizing you've had an epic night of dreaming *again*, and it's been this way for months now.    Remember: "develop stability in awareness, and your dreams will change in extraordinary ways!"

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## fogelbise

Awesome job Tony!!  ::D: 





> Staying with illusory form practice. Staying with the meditation. Staying with awareness. Staying with visualization recall. I think i'm on the right path here. Going to start to add on new dream yoga stuff in the future. 
> 
> Staying with this site and this journal.
> 
> Thanks fry and fog.



I am so happy to hear that you have found a good path that works for you!  ::D:  I think the credit goes to you, and to FM for helping you find a path that resonates with you! Thank you for showing your appreciation.  ::D:

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## tblanco

Up to between 12-15 minutes of mindfulness practice a day after my kid goes to bed
Saying "this is a dream" out loud
Sensory training.
beginning that "look from the back of the eyeballs" training

I'm noticing marginally better emotional control. I am starting to feel that heat in my chest before I do something, rather than after. getting to make choices. 

Getting a few dreams a night but not terriffic detail. but steady practice every day.

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## fogelbise

> beginning that "look from the back of the eyeballs" training



This sounds interesting. Is that where you are basically soaking up everything visible to the eye, kind of like Sivason's diffuse vision exercise I think it is called?





> I'm noticing marginally better emotional control. I am starting to feel that heat in my chest before I do something, rather than after. getting to make choices.



Very nice, that is the start of some great changes!  :smiley:

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## tblanco

Capture.jpg

this is from A. Holocek's book.  I saw the Sivason thing too and i think they must be talking about the same thing here.

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## tblanco

Capture.jpg

this is from A. Holocek's book.  I saw the Sivason thing too and i think they must be talking about the same thing here.
edit, good lord that's so tiny

"look at things as if you were looking at them from the back of your eye. This is a deeper and more penetrating gaze, one that doesn't get caught up in mere appearance. It's almost as if the gaze of the psyche, our non-lucid gaze, comes from the outermost surface of our eyes, while the clear-light  mind comes from the very back of our eyes."

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## FryingMan

They're different.  Diffuse vision is specifically about remaining aware of phenomena within your visual field even out to the periphery without "focusing" your visual system on it -- about feeling and overcoming that urge to focus directly at movement in order to see it.     "Looking from the back of your eyeballs" is looking with full attention/awareness -- it's like you're seeing yourself seeing.    It's a little bit like the "Being John Malkovitch" phenomenon.

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## tblanco

they seem at least tangentially connected.

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## fogelbise

Very interesting! I am getting more and more interested in getting this book. Thank you both for sharing.

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## tblanco

Wake back to bed wild attempt resulted in successful lucidity. After a few minutes of lie still and wait i got up and went check the time. On the way back to bed i did a nose pinch and BAM, lucid. Immediately my excitement in getting lucid caused the dream to destabilize but I was able to start rubbing my arms and hands and the room came back into vision. I was feeling my body and the room was getting stronger. 

Progress. 

I'm also up to 15 minutes of sitting meditation a day. I'm beginning to work on some of the awareness excercises outlined in the Dream Yoga class and I say out loud "this is a dream" several times a day. 

A couple of days ago I didn't have much energy for it and only RC'd a couple of times. I said to my self that day that this shit ebbs and flows and I just need to do a little bit to keep going.

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## fogelbise

Awesome! Congratulations! Exactly, ebbs and flows…it is indeed important to keep your practices going even if you can't put as much into it on certain days.

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## tblanco

Some days you get 5 good RCs and you feel like it's not a good day, then you remember it was a day you kept going. 

I working on some of sivason's beginner excercises in awareness while sticking to sitting meditation every day. 

My recall is spotty these days and I think part of it is the stress of the impending holiday but that's ok. 

Just every day every day.

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## Azaleaj

Just wanted to say hi. I'm doing the same class you are doing and started around the same time you did. I also use WBTB , galantamine and dream journal. I also have about two lucid dreams a week and am working on stabilizing, lengthening the dreams and interacting with dream characters. I'm also interested in asking the dream philosophical and psychological questions and in meditating and similar things within the dream. Anyway I thought it was interesting we seem to be at about the same place in working with dreams which is fun I thought. Good luck with your continued dream work.

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## tblanco

Good to meet you. I'll follow along. It's good to have someone on the path you can connect with. 2 a week! that's pretty awesome. 

Big holiday weekend. lots of people. I've let myself go slack without dropping off completely. dream journal every day even though a couple of days had truly poor memory. Saturday i woke up and wrote 'no dreams remembered' then later while out for a walk i suddenly caught a memory of a dream from the night before. 

I've also been practicing diffuse vision exercises and beginning to get a little better at it.

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## tblanco

Alright, I've been super minimalistic over the last couple of days and want to remotivate myself. I am still journaling, still RC'ing 2-3 times a day, and doing 5-15 min of mindufulness at night. The fire is not there but it can come back. I know i will have 2-3 more lucids before the end of the year and when i do, I'm either going to walk through a wall if indoors or go flying if outdoors. Proper motivation necessary and I can do this shit.

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## tblanco

LD last night.  Got a wild about five hours after going to sleep being able to wake up and make some moves.  I did some work on the double vision shit getting a lot better at that especially now that I've realize that I can just look at the edges of my classes or keep them in focus and then everything else is just kind of there but I'm not focusing on any of it with my eye muscles but still I can use focus to move myself around and then put multiple things  into focus. And then I can start adding in songs or feeling my heart they are my breath. It's pretty impressive form of engaging that  awareness medic Tatian. 

 So I wild I find myself in a parking lot I do a nose pinch breath and get excited. This wasn't one of those relax into awareness type of dreams. This is one of those I force stabilization on myself as the dream keeps trying to wobble itself out of existence. I used to have trouble talking in the lucid dream and first I was like talking through lips that wouldn't open and then I got to words to come out like I was punching through a wall. I asked the dream character what the dream was about and first he was like what dream? And then I asked him again and he said what do you want the dream to be about? Sex of course. 

 But the dream would go blinding white for a second and start to shake away and I would use the diffuse vision to grab the whole scene in my focus and bring it back in or I remember slapping my elbows to keep you know a sense of my physical body to ground myself in but none of it was a relaxing thing. It was all really really deliberate  pow engaged and desperate I think is the best way to put it. 

 But a lucid dream HoorayI love it it was great awesome even I can see I've got a things to work on and I'm excited to work on them and I'm just happy to be progressing and being a part of this fucking world thinks you guys

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## FryingMan

That's really great, congrats!   It's really wonderful to see you incorporating your practice (diffuse vision) into your LDs!    Hooray for the LDs!   Keep it going, don't stop, and dreams and life will just keep getting better and better!

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## tblanco

I think a big part of the awareness and intention training is that a big factor of success in LD is that you are keeping a ton of shit in mind at once. holding onto the knowledge you are in a dream, you body, your surroundings and objectives, which may or may not require several degrees of focus as well. So building that memory training, that awareness training, that focus and mantra all of it is important because you are using all of it AT THE SAME TIME.

Last night I reread FRY's tips for memory before bed and made an extra effort to hold onto that mantra as i was going to sleep. I was also able to hold still while waking and kept track of some massive dreams from last night. My brain does a good job of taking seperate dreams and stringing them all together. not lucid but great recall.  I can do both.

the yoga and meditation practice continues apace, keeping my awareness up more into the world, practicing DV several times a day, next on savison's list is the mantra and that's one that i'm starting to work on. I think the really neat thing about how he structures his class is how you don't stop one lesson to go to the next, they blend together and build upon one another.

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## FryingMan

I like how sivason says his dream yoga exercises are all about transforming your brain into a lucid dreaming "SUPERCOMPUTER!"    It definitely feels that way, good observation: it's not just about balance, it's about sustained simultaneity, and that takes practice.    You have to get really really good at it while awake to have a chance to do it at an acceptable level with a partially impaired dreaming brain.

Many things all must come together for lucidity.  My dreams remain very highly vivid, present, ("alternate life level"), that comes from attention.  But reflection must be part of the mix, together with memory, remembering your goal to be lucid in the dream state (in order to remember to reflect upon your state).   Attention, reflection, recall, *simultaneously*, night and day.   While they're described individually, they are most effective when applied all together at once.

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## tblanco

Spent a few days on a company team building trip. Lots of drinking. No meditation, a few rcs, and journaling every night. Got to talk about LD to some people so that was nice. 

Had a great dream last night, building back up and will commense the hard training now.

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## tblanco

Woke for my WB2B but Just laid there for a few minutes.  Back in the motions of doing  stuff but yesterday was like climbing back out of that hole. Did some good reading and I'm back on track today with stronger intentions. 

I had one of those recall things where rather than actually remember my dream, I had a song stuck in my head. I know the song was related to my dream but it shut everything else out. I held still to try to remember but nothing came but the song. Anyone have any experience with this?

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## tblanco

LD night with 2 DILDs!!
WILD after a 5 hour WBTB. 
Nose pinch confirmation. 
Got to use some powers. 
Got to eat candy! Eating was a new one for me. I knew I could taste because i had a dream a few weeks ago where my dog peed on my head and in my mouth. (I told my kid about it and she still brings it up and laughs at me about it.) Swallowing was weird at first but i did get it to work.
I also walked through a wall. I thought I might get the jelly wall effect but instead the wall crumbled around my hands like it was made of ritz crackers.
PRETTY FUCKING COOL NIGHT.
I'm all jazzed up, and going about my day.
WE CAN DO THIS SHIT, YALL. 

Fry, Andrew Holocek's book is fucking awesome. Better than the Audio. I've been reading it every night to my 3 yr old. 

One more thing.  I can WILD now pretty well. but When i wild I end up back in the house. I need to go back to Sageous' class and read up on building my new place to go when i wild. Or figure out how to get outside. It's fun wandering around a house with superpowers but soon I'll need to break out of this world.

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## FryingMan

Yay, yay!    :Awesome Dance: 

Tony, your "stick-to-it-ness" is inspiring!    Consistent effort, confidence, experimentation, searching for a practice that clicks with you, and never giving up IS REWARDED.   And yes, Holecek is DA BOMB YO!   You see, I'm not just blowing hot air about it.   Yes, far superior to the audio version, way more information (I'm a visual learner, I go crazy on audio it just moves too slowly).  I just wish more people would discover its awesomeness.   I plug it every chance I get.  Also the original TYoDaS, *especially* the intro chapter to the practice section is basically "all you ever need to know about LDing."

Congrats, here's to many more!  p.s. you may want to look into the TOTM now the wings are redesigned, even snazzier, and more directly show progress.  TOTY badge now lasts all year and shows  how many tasks you've done.   

So what's the secret to WILDing for you?    It still eludes me.

For getting out of the house, you could try various teleports:  door, jump through the floor, draw a magic portal in the air/wall and step through, dive through the TV or a painting, etc.   Or even a spin teleport.

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## tblanco

https://www.audible.com/pd/Mahamudra...ook/B008DG8O8I

I worked on this course about 2 years ago and it goes through many variations of trance meditation. Later, I got Jamie Alexander's kindle collection and read through that. His version of tapping into that sense of focus to get to the trance just resonated really well with me. When I wild, I tend to trance out for a while and then roll over and go to sleep, then I'm sleeping but i'm dreaming and I can confirm and go about my business. But I am working on a few different kinds of meditation right now, sensory awareness, mantra, mindfulness and trance. Not all of them every day but i'm moving between them. 

oh yeahhhhh, teleporting. I was able to make portals a few years ago, or i could find a door. no shit. I thought it might take me out of the house when i went through the wall but i was more trying to just do the dream yoga wall thing more than go somewhere.

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## tblanco

When I set my alarm for the middle of the night, the hardest thing for me is to actually get my ass out of bed. Even waking up for a second to turn my alarm off will give me time to think about lucid dreaming in my bed but doesn't give me the necessary shaking off the cobwebs necessary to take an honest attempt at a MILD or WILD return to sleep. I do however, get good dream recall when i wake up in the morning. 

Tips for actually rousing for the WBTB for the momentum challenged? 

on another note, my kid has been making me tell her about my dreams, and has been telling me about hers. This morning she remembered 2 dreams... she's fricking 3!

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## fogelbise

I love hearing about a young person engaging in their dreams and it's wonderful that you two have that to share.

Yes, tips on actually rousing for WBTB. Have you tried the water method (my preferred method - forced to get up to pee)you just have to play with the volumes of water before bed. It also seems to catch me at what seems to be the end of REM most times. It seems that is when we are most likely to notice our physical body (and the urge to pee) during those mini awakenings. Reference "In humans, the end of a REM episode and the transition to non-REM stages of sleep may be associated with some body movement, and a very brief arousal; or the transition may occur with no movements at all and no arousal. Often there is a change in body position such as a rolling over or a series of smaller adjustments." (web source: end your sleep deprivation - 5 stages of sleep).

If you don't like the water method, I've heard of alarms that require you to do simple math to turn them off. You may also want to move your alarm during wbtb where you can't quite reach it, especially helpful if you have to get out of bed to reach it. Getting out of bed gives the strongest results, but I know people like Sensei mention sometimes staying in bed and doing math in his head to "shake the cobwebs."

Good luck!

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## tblanco

Headcold fucks with my sleep quality. I put my alarm across the room and i have been waking up to get it. Next question. I forgot what to do with my wbtb time that i'm up.

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## tblanco

Got lucid last night after a wbtb. Different routine. This time i had to do a few things and turn on some lights. It got me up and moving more than usual. I wilded and ended up getting lucid inside the dream after noticing some absurdities.

----------


## fogelbise

Congratulations!! I was typing the following up when I saw there was a new page to your workbook and must be a new post: 

Personally I have to wake up quite a bit so I need something to get my mind buzzing so that when I lay back down I can do some MILD or SSILD without falling asleep too quickly. Everyone is different though...

Anyway it sounds like that's what you did. I find the highest rate of success if I really wake up - but not too late in the morning. For me the sweet spot is in the 4-5 hour range. Wbtb at 6+ hours is a lower rate of success but everyone is different. As far as what to do, most people recommend reading, watching or listening to LD material. I say whatever really grabs your interest for long enough for your personal wbtb length.

----------


## tblanco

Did a wbtb last night but the phone was next to my bed, so i did not get up. FOG. You give great advice with putting it across the room. My dreams were crazy! I loved them, Lots of old people in my life showing up, i had shit to do and places to go and secrets to keep. I didn't get lucid but man i had crazy memories when i woke up. It was awesome. TOnight i'm going to wbtb again and put the phone further away to get a better response time.  Thanks for all the help this year. My goal this year is to keep my practice up and expanded so that by the end of next year, i'm still here and still plugging. I"m having the dreams, getting lucid, doing shit. If i can keep working, i'm going to get better and better. This time next year, I'll be much better!!

----------


## tblanco

I did extra work meditating last night and though my recall was poor, I did wake up with that tingle of boldness in my chest today. The air is crackling with a dreamlike quality. I keep checking.

----------


## fogelbise

> Thanks for all the help this year. My goal this year is to keep my practice up and expanded so that by the end of next year, i'm still here and still plugging. I"m having the dreams, getting lucid, doing shit. If i can keep working, i'm going to get better and better. This time next year, I'll be much better!!



You're welcome and I absolutely agree with your outlook! Keep up the great work!





> The air is crackling with a dreamlike quality. I keep checking.



Isn't that an awesome feeling?!

----------


## tblanco

My dream recall has been off for the last few days but last night I had a pretty good set of dreams. My nightly meditation practice has been working with mindfulness and a little bit with diffuse vision and some visualization exercises before bed. I just got to the sleep yoga chapter of the Holocek book, think i might go back to the Illusory form chapters. Holiday season was full of emotions and chemicals, difficult to get to the level of peace and focus required for optimum state. Things are getting back to normal now. 

Now i work again on developing right mindset, celebrating small victories, putting goals in place and putting the effort foward.

The best victory i have now is that I've done work every day over this spell, I didn't give up.  So now i can keep going without having stopped. My goal this year is to do this every day.

----------


## fogelbise

> The best victory i have now is that I've done work every day over this spell, I didn't give up.  So now i can keep going without having stopped. My goal this year is to do this every day.



I love this! You can do it! Anytime you seem super busy, simply slow down but try not to stop altogether and look for the joy in as many of your practices as possible.  :smiley:

----------


## tblanco

I had good recall last night. I remembered a long and vivid dream about working backstage at a theater. It was nerve wracking. I was filling in for the bell in "sure thing" by david ives. I woke up excited that my recall was so on point. I also did a brief wbtb, (alarm went off and i went back to sleep) but i noticed wild colors behind my eyelids before drifting off again.

----------


## tblanco

Sick as a dog
Still journaling
This is a dream
My goal is 5 lds a week 
Consistently 
None since xmas
I will not be deterred

----------


## FryingMan

You have nice goals there
I wish I could reach that count
I'm sure I will soon

----------


## Azaleaj

Same goal here, 5 LDs a week. Let's do it!

----------


## tblanco

0.jpg

So the above is my dream incubation locale. it's got a lotus tree on a hill in a meadow. there's a bench and a pillow on the right of the tree and a cinched sack on the left. In the sack is whatever you want. There's also a door that operates as a portal to other dimensions and areas. One of my long term goals is to go here in my dreams. 

Still dry but recall is improving. Several dreams rememberred last night and they all bleed together, elements keep reappearing in other dreams later in the night. I woke up with many dreams. and wrote down as many as i could.

----------


## tblanco

Standard procedure, 930 meditation for 15-20 minutes. Drink a fuckload of water. Go to bed with alarm set for 330am. Alarm placed across the room. At 330 i wake up groggy as fuck, make it across the room, pee. Walk around for 5-10 minutes and let the dogs outside. Go outside and look at the sky. Mentally prep myself to wild.  LAy down and start breathing until I can go to sleep.


I get to do this 3-4 times a week. There may or may not be a lucidimine. This was working around xmas time but stopped around there. I'm going to go back and look see what has changed in my routine. 


Ok, i checked out the routine of my last 5. All wilds. All after getting up and actively doing some shit. I do need to get some energy up. That's an important part. I need to know what i'm doing this shit for. Part of it has to do with the Daytime benefits of awareness and meditation. part of it is, I WANT MY TIME ON THE HOLODECK. I want to experience inhibition free behavior in a public social setting. I want superpowers. I want to engage all of my senses in a cornucopia of crazy shit. I want those fucking wings, mother fucker! I'm going back and doing all the fucking tasks. And i'm going to learn to orgasm in the dream without waking up. 

Statement of intent motherfucker.

----------


## tblanco

WBTB WILD attempt last night. I went a little too far in the other direction. I  turned on a bunch of lights and looked at pictures and movies for 20 minutes before going back to bed. Took me forever to fall asleep. Was able to get into trance and get some hypnogogia going eventually but then  my kid woke up with a recurring nightmare about bears. she crawled on top of me and I was done for. I was closer and I will get back to the wild style That i was rocking a few weeks ago. That's what works. that's my pathway. I'm all about it. 


What makes me think I am awake right now?

----------


## fogelbise

The "I WANT MY TIME ON THE HOLODECK" line caught my attention. It got me thinking about my recent demo of what I consider the best consumer VR system out there at the moment, the Vive VR. The demo really impressed me and I like the idea that it is an experience that is basically "on demand" but it just can't compare to lucid dreaming. In lucid dreaming we can activate visuals that aren't there in VR until the software is developed, and there are just so many possibilities requiring endless software programming. In ld's we can also activate multiple sensations that just aren't available any time soon in VR. VR can allow the visual of your hands to touch things, but you aren't going to feel those things or the softness of a dream characters skin like you can in a lucid dream. You won't feel your stomach drop like you can in a lucid dream's fall or roller coaster dive. Although if the brain can be tricked well enough, perhaps in the future, VR should be able to have the brain send signals that replicate sensations. There's an idea for any VR developers out there.

Basically, I want my time on my lucid dreaming holodeck too...and I know this is where it's at! 

Good luck getting back into your groove. You can definitely get back there with the right focus.

----------


## tblanco

My day work is on point. Remembered 3 full dreams two nights ago which is a lot for me right now. This morning i went for a wbtb after 7 hours of sleep which isn't ideal. I was able to get to the trance state but not actually in the wild dream. I'm getting closer. I've been sketching my dream goals in a separate notebook, what things i want to do and what they might look like. My skills are rudimentary but I'm working on my visualization in different ways. I'm getting better at my sense of daytime wonder and reflection. That's important. I'm going to be back in the momentum soon. Staying motivated. I keep trying every day.  I keep reminding myself of my goals every day.

----------


## fogelbise

> This morning i went for a wbtb after 7 hours of sleep which isn't ideal.



Have you found a personal sweet spot (ideal number of hours) in the past?





> I'm getting better at my sense of daytime wonder and reflection. That's important.



Definitely!..and it has it's daytime benefits as well.

----------


## tblanco

Dry Spell Broken!

Did some supplement research. Did a WBTB with Melatonin in the first half and Galantamine in the second half. 

Here's a link to the journal. 

I've been keeping a notebook notebook and have been writing affirmations and goals and drawing little sketches of dream powers I want and A few of them i manifested in the dream. pretty cool will keep this notebook up. Plan to draw up sketches of the TOTM and TOTY and others.

----------


## fogelbise

Congratulations on breaking your dry spell Tony!

----------


## tblanco

I did a WBTB last night but only for a second. I was so Tired, I went right back to bed rather than try to get myself up and moving around. I went to bed an hour earlier and actually woke up at 2 am by myself but had the alarm set for three so i figured i'd wake up when the alarm went off. I should have gotten up with my natural self.  I did wake up with 3 vivid dreams in my head. My recall is getting better. I'm also carrying around a notebook with me where i'm making notes a sketches of what i'll do with my Lucidity making me get creative in places while i imagine what i'm doing with my powers in the supermarket or walking down the street.

----------


## fogelbise

That's been me lately, not getting in my normal WBTBs. I definitely like that sketch notebook idea, especially since it gets you thinking dreamily/creatively while out and about!

----------


## tblanco

Interesting development last night.
set alarm for wbtb for 315 am
I woke up on my own at 304 (!!)
got up and moved around a bit, took the dogs out to pee and took out the trash. 
after 20 min I went back to bed
couldn't fall asleep for 1.5 hours, did get into trance for a little while but didn't sustain it. 
eventually woke up did some reading and went back to sleep at 530
had a great complex dream.
I think i went to far on the wake up side of the WBTB

----------


## tblanco

not posting in a while. going through the motions, but my motivation has been slipping.  Dream recall has been interesting, better than a couple of months ago but my mindful living needs work.

----------


## fogelbise

> not posting in a while. going through the motions, but my motivation has been slipping.  Dream recall has been interesting, better than a couple of months ago but my mindful living needs work.



I am experiencing a bit of that as well. Things I find that help in these situations are: 

-tweaking one or more of my practices to find a new way to view the practice, especially if it makes the practice more fun or it gives me more insight or a sense of childlike wonder.

-revisiting prior practices that I like so that I can mix them in with those practices that I don't particularly enjoy (assuming I feel that they are helpful, despite not being particularly enjoyable).

-reading through my favorite dreams, especially lucid dreams for this particular situation.

-celebrating mindful living successes during the day, recognizing that it isn't only about lucid dreams.

-and celebrating the interesting non-lucid dreams along the way.

----------


## tblanco

I am trying to keep it together but my motivation is fading fast. I'm doing fewer and fewer reality checks daily, I'm not thinking about LD, My recall is  getting worse and worse. Over the last few days I'm not even able to meditate as well as I've been otherwise. Not sure what the issue is here but I do know my goals remain the same, even if the thought of working toward them is very difficult. 

Not sure where to go to regain my mojo.

----------


## FryingMan

I think it's hard to stay at full burn all the time.   And I think we shouldn't expect that we will.   I've noticed over the years that recall and lucidity come and go in high and low cycles, depending a lot on what's going on in waking life.    I keep coming back to the notion that mindfulness is not at heart an exhausting focus, but a quiet, opening relaxation that gives you the ability to see/hear/feel what's going on inside and around you.

Sometimes you just need a good night's sleep without trying to do anything, and just looking forward with joy to the dreams that will come in the night all on their own, without you having to "do" anything.

Also I find that as a goal, "being lucid a lot" is not terribly motivating for me.   Concrete, specific goals are much more so.    Looking forward to the night and allowing yourself to be open to fully experiencing your dreams instead of "trying hard to get lucid" can be both refreshing and very effective for enhancing dream experiences!    Some of my favorite LDs come when the only intention I set at bedtime is "to have beautiful dreams!"

Remember, there is no such thing as "good" or "bad" meditation.   If you're finding yourself distracted a lot, just keep acknowledging it and returning gently to your chosen center of attention.  If you find yourself getting frustrated at the distractions, look squarely at the feeling of frustration and know it for what it is.   Then return again to your center of attention.

I think burnout comes when we're out of balance and trying too hard to force progress.

----------


## fogelbise

^I really like this FryingMan! Especially beautiful was: 



> I keep coming back to the notion that mindfulness is not at heart an exhausting focus, but a quiet, opening relaxation that gives you the ability to see/hear/feel what's going on inside and around you.



Tony, you know you have it in you.  :smiley:  Perhaps give yourself a day off. Start the following day after by reading through the suggestions and establishing a written game plan for that day, one day at a time.

----------


## FryingMan

A few more thoughts: motivation is usually made up of a combination of the carrot and the stick.    The carrot is perhaps the more productive approach, but every once in a while we need a bit of stick.   I really like (and employ) Sensei's approach.    He designates a single day during the year, his began-LD-practice anniversary day, as the only day during the year that he will allow himself to quit the practice.   On no other day is quitting allowed.    I find watching youtube motivational videos also helps to regain focus.

----------


## tblanco

I continue to read "dream yoga" and I'm meditating every day. Last night I was able to reach mind awake body asleep and was so impressed with myself I snapped out of it. I'm gradually working my way back into the awareness, reflection, recall and building momentum again. I'm proud of myself for not giving up while going through a lull.

----------


## FryingMan

Attaboy!     WILD-stuff is tricky.   The balance of keeping awareness but staying slightly aloof from what is happening takes practice (to avoid that "YEAH HERE WE GO BABY...oops I'm now wide awake..." scenario).  Keep it up.   Capture moments, practice "stop" throughout the day.

I highly recommend "Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life".  In particular the opening several chapters are incredibly profound about what mindfulness is and what we're aiming for.   We're aiming for a way of being, not a way of doing.  I equate the quality with Holecek (and even maybe slightly better in some ways!).  Really great stuff!

----------


## tblanco

I am loving the Holocek. I've been reading a little bit every day for a few months and it's just friggin great. That was a spectacular recommendation. and truly better than the audio book.

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## tblanco

HI there. Touching base.  It's been a tough couple of weeks but I've had a few neat dreams, I haven't been active in my LD practices but I am meditating every day, doing mindful, trance and visualization excercises and I am doing my dream journal every morning.

----------


## FryingMan

Keep it going as much as you can!    Your future self will thank you later!

----------


## tblanco

3 dreams remembered last night. one of them was a FA where i got up and wrote into my dream journal. I love those!
I've been sitting every day for 5-10 minutes and also working on 21 breaths meditation at the onset of sleep. 
I think i'm about ready to start WBTBing again.

----------


## Azaleaj

Do it! I've be n off schedule too but back on this week. At least you are meditating which is more than I can say.

----------


## tblanco

Spontaneous DILD last night! Only saying spontaneous because I didn't DILD or MILD but I am doing the Dream Yoga Lotus technique going to bed, Sitting practice, reality checks and Journalist intentions during the day so there is some work happening on my end every day. 

I am at a party and a friend of mine gives me a drug laced cookie. It DMT's me into another world and I know that I'm dreaming (now here's the thing... I don't know if i'm dreaming in dream drug trip dream or if I'm in my bed sleeping dreaming)  but the world is vivid and I know i Have super powers. I go flying. I proposition tori spelling for sex and instead of penis I have two clear plastic balloons that work like penises. It doesn't faze me.  Afterword, I'm looking at a magazine in a doctor's office and I see pictures of a bear in a space suit floating in space. I fly up to meet him and we have a bit of a wrestling match. 

I will continue the path of dream yoga. Work every day. Keep doing awareness and recall work during the day, keep sitting practice, keep working on my lotus. I don't have much time for sleep so i don't think I'm at a point in my life where I can WBTB, i think that takes away from my REM right now. 

but this can work!

----------


## fogelbise

Nice job Tony! It's great to hear that you've found something that works for you even without WBTB.

----------


## tblanco

Visualization training going very well. I keep working on the 4 petal lotus with the different color symbols, I've drawn it several times and I'm working on creating it in my mind, and working on putting it together at night time. I've also been doing the whole "am i dreaming" thing more naturally during the day and working on the sensory awareness. Less stress about it but I'm thinking about it more every day. I am almost ready to go back to full scale WBTB practices.

----------


## FryingMan

Just wanted to let you know I've started reading Holecek again from the beginning, this time I plan to finish it!

----------


## tblanco

Last week or so has been very work heavy. repairing tornado damage to my house and having a house full of inlaws who know how to build things ( thank goodness for them because I'm all thumbs ) 
Recall has been waining, but i journal every day
not getting to sit meditate like i like to 
but have been doing a little bit of trance work going to sleep.
I've been working on visualizing tracing the lotus and building the different color symbols on the petals. 
I'm getting better at that. 
Now that I'm more in the clear, I'm going to work on day time awareness and questioning and visualization exercises. 
I'll be lucid again by the end of the month. My goal is to eat something either from a pantry, a tree, or a refrigerator.

----------


## FryingMan

> ^^^ let's do this shit together, lucid as fuck, living a sharp life that we consciously choose



Amen, bruh!

Lucid eating and drinking is awesome and majorly stabilizing.   I've barely done either one.    I just get a bit distract... hey babe, how's it going?

Always remember:   THIS IS THE GOAL!




> This is the sequence: awareness in the first moment of experience, in
> response, in dream, and then in death. One cannot just start at the end. You can
> determine for yourself how mature your practice is: as you encounter the
> phenomena of experience, examine your feelings and your reactions to the
> feelings. *Are you controlled by your interactions with the objects of experience
> or do you control your reactions to them?** Are you thrown into emotional
> reactions by your attractions and aversions, or can you remain in steady
> presence in diverse situations?* If the former, practice will cultivate the presence
> needed to free you of karmic conditioning and reactivity.* if the latter, you will
> ...

----------


## tblanco

20170320_133334.jpg

I practice drawing this when i can, and think about tracing the symbols. I'm looking for something on line that can give me more information, but I've been using them in my trance as it goes.

----------


## FryingMan

I've barely touched on the lotus work, but started back on my first (partial) read through of Holecek.  Will continue once I reach that point again.   Time for pre-bed LD reading and meditation!

----------


## tblanco

My recall has been on point lately. I haven't had an LD in over a week but my dreams have been epic and fun. I plan on going back and doing a full read of my dreamjournal over the last year and look for signs.

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## FryingMan

Good recall is good times!    Epic, fun, that's what it's all about.    Review of dream signs is very good, fogelbise has a lot of experience in that.  I think dream sign review, like meditation, right before bed, is very conducive to lucid dreaming.

----------


## fogelbise

> Review of dream signs is very good, fogelbise has a lot of experience in that.



Some experience…let me know if you have any questions on that Tony.

----------


## tblanco

I've been reading about Holocek and the Clear light mind. I'm about 45% of the way through the book and currently deep in the weeds of the more esoteric behavior aspects of the book. What do you guys thing about the three layered strata of mind he presents?

----------


## FryingMan

It's complex and I didn't grok much of the mind layers the first partial-read through (I got up to the middle of the actual dream yoga practices, I think which was seeing-oneself-as-a-deity practice).   I'm focusing on the "easy" fundamentals right now: mindfulness, being present, developing a steady presence in the face of diverse experiences.  That's quite a challenge right there already.     When I get there again I'll let you know.

I sent Holecek an email about question I had about mindfulness, let's see if he answers!

----------


## fogelbise

I don't have the book yet, but I plan to get it before too long.

----------


## tblanco

My "life" has been very stressful over the last couple of weeks with several transitions happening all at once. I can feel my goal slipping out of the sights as even my recall has drained to a trickle. I'm making this post to recognize that I see the long term benefits to this daytime and nighttime practice and to affirm that this is not something i want to let go. Lucid dreaming and Dream yoga is a lifestyle for me and one I will continue to practice until my turn on this reality is done.

----------


## FryingMan

Stick with it!    I understand how life challenges can drastically affect dream life, I'm experiencing it myself in 2017.   But I've also raised awareness recently very high and I'm working on all-day mindfulness and being present.    Mindfulness actually helps with the challenges!  So keep it up as best you can!     Now if I can only get myself to get to bed before midnight on a regular basis.    Short nights of sleep also impact dreaming, try to get enough sleep!

----------


## fogelbise

I'm sorry to hear about the transition stresses Tony. I come across quotes from time to time about struggles making a person stronger, but it is difficult for me to relate to those kinds of sentiments even if I feel they must be true. I really like what FryingMan said and strongly believe that mindfulness helps with so many different challenges. Mindfulness is definitely a journey though. I send thoughts of loving kindness to you both, for whatever it's worth.

----------


## tblanco

As I hold on loosely but do not let go this occurs to me
I think about the breath
And come back to that
And pull myself into the moment
I think that's the core of everything
Remember to breathe
Notice the breath
Hear the sound of the air
Feel the lungs expand
Touch the moment right now
And remember that right now is right now
Everything else
The expectation, 
The flying
The fighting
The fucking
The rubbing your hands together
It all comes
It's all there
A million times there
But just remember to breathe.
That's the first step. 
I did not let go
Of intention
I did not release my practice
Just holding on 
Loosley.

----------


## fogelbise

Beautiful verse Tony! It really spoke to me.  :smiley:

----------


## tblanco

Lucid dream last night.
after i got lucid i pushed my hand through a vending machine glass and ate some twix bites
a couple of big goals there
DILD no WBTB 
just meditation and day awareness 
and illusiory form practice

this is a dream right now
all this world is in my head

----------


## fogelbise

> DILD no WBTB 
> just meditation and day awareness 
> and illusiory form practice



Very nice Tony! This shows the power of good awareness work IWL. WBTB has become a bit of a crutch for me. I know that I have the strongest lucidity when I have paired WBTB with strong awareness work and I should never put the awareness work on the back burner...something I have to remind myself from time to time for some reason.

----------


## tblanco

I've been on a cruise with my family, terrible sleep. just getting back into the full routine now. I did dream journal every day but I'm just beginning to get all the pieces back in place. My goal is to bring my recall back up to speed, get better with my daytime awareness, set more full intentions and then reintergrate wb2b when I've gotten more settled in my practices. 

yall i got some dreaming to do,
great to be back

----------


## fogelbise

Good to see you Tony  :smiley:  I hope you had a nice cruise vacation.

----------


## tblanco

my recall is in a bad place. I need to figure out what's happening there. I'm going to go back to FRY's tips and start all over.

----------


## FryingMan

It's good to review things periodically!   I've returned to being in a very happy place in waking life, so dreaming is starting to pick up again.   My favorite thing to review is the two page intro to the practice section of TYoDaS.  It is so inspiring and clarifying on exactly what leads to excellent dreams (stability in awareness).

Waking thoughts are also key.    Make a habit of delaying waking day worries, tasks, etc. until physically out of bed.  Reserve waking thoughts only for dreaming and recall.   That helps a LOT if you can think immediately of dreaming upon waking.

----------


## tblanco

I'm taking a couple of moments to rengage my intent before i let it slip away too far. I understand the value of mindfulness and awareness training, both as a precursor to special superpowers and the lucidity of dreamtime and as something that has inherent value in traditional waking life.

----------


## fogelbise

That is good to hear and it is good to see you around the forms again  :smiley:

----------


## tblanco

one of my goals is to train myself to do the prospective WBTB without an alarm.

----------


## tblanco

I've been doing a good job of state checking ma little more every day and writing in both my dream journal and dream intention journal every day. Finding the motivation to do pure sitting meditation has been tough but it's def something I know is on the line.  I also want to go over the materials some more for motivation.

----------


## tblanco

I drank a metric ton of water before bed and successfully did an alarm free wbtb. this could be game changing.

----------


## fogelbise

This is definitely the way to go for people that don't like to use alarms. I also like that it is a more natural awakening and is the only method I use to wake me up for WBTB.

----------


## tblanco

Been a while, things got a little crazy in my personal life, then settled down, i started journaling again, and i found a way to convert the PDF of etwold into my kindle paperwhite format so i can start working and reading again, I’ve been doing the reality checks, reverse checks, and have been trying to meditate for several months before... I had my first lucid in a while a couple of days ago and it’s pretty exciting.

----------


## FryingMan

Congrats, and welcome back!   As always, working on the fundamentals always brings great results over time: dream recall, awareness/attention/mindfulness, setting strong intention to recall and get lucid in dreams.

----------


## tblanco

I'm working on the prospective memory excercises straight of the leberge textbooks. I'm planning on doing a full court MILD press. Recall important, awareness, questioning, and of a high priority in this early state, becoming familiar with my dreams, what patters are there and what needs to be done.

----------


## tblanco

finished the Leberge prospective memory excercises, began setting them for myself before bed
namely remember to remember dreams and journal them  working very well
starting to remember to WBTB myself and that's been working too!, now i just need to remember to actually GET OUT OF BED
I've collected about a months' worth of data on dream recall - up to 2-3 dreams a night most nights - i want to build my own prospective excercises based on dreamsigns and recurring dream elements
Also I have a few set goals of what i'm going to do the next time I'm lucid! I'm thinking about them, imagining myself doing them while i'm doing the RC's to keep motivation up
no lucids yet since vacation but the work is there!

anything I'm missing here?

----------


## fogelbise

> anything I'm missing here?



There are so many different paths per the individual, but you have a good start there and you may not want to overload yourself. When you are ready, you might look at practices that you liked and/or you noticed worked well for you in the past.

----------


## FryingMan

> finished the Leberge prospective memory excercises, began setting them for myself before bed
> namely remember to remember dreams and journal them  working very well
> starting to remember to WBTB myself and that's been working too!, now i just need to remember to actually GET OUT OF BED
> I've collected about a months' worth of data on dream recall - up to 2-3 dreams a night most nights - i want to build my own prospective excercises based on dreamsigns and recurring dream elements
> Also I have a few set goals of what i'm going to do the next time I'm lucid! I'm thinking about them, imagining myself doing them while i'm doing the RC's to keep motivation up
> no lucids yet since vacation but the work is there!
> 
> anything I'm missing here?



What I found with PM exercises is that "4 targets per day" I found too few.   I wanted to have an always active set of targets.    So I modified the practice to maintain a set of active targets all throughout the day.  When I hit (or realized I'd missed) one, I replaced it with another.    This eliminates the relaxation of the goal-seeking center of the brain once all targets are exhausted.

On those days where I gave my attention to PM exercises and went through 10-12 targets, I frequently had lucid dreams...

----------


## tblanco

> What I found with PM exercises is that "4 targets per day" I found too few.   I wanted to have an always active set of targets.    So I modified the practice to maintain a set of active targets all throughout the day.  When I hit (or realized I'd missed) one, I replaced it with another.    This eliminates the relaxation of the goal-seeking center of the brain once all targets are exhausted.
> 
> On those days where I gave my attention to PM exercises and went through 10-12 targets, I frequently had lucid dreams...



 Did you make a new list for every day of the week? 
And I made a list of 12 for today

----------


## FryingMan

Just coming up with a list like that every day is challenging and I found I would burn out fairly quickly.   So I'd just choose some general and some specific short-term targets.    The specific short-term ones would be those where I'd be 100% or nearly 100% sure of encountering the target.  The general one were ones that may or may not happen.   I found I didn't have the energy for really creative new targets so I'd tend to re-use some.    Some I also included where I expected to be distracted, like during my commute ("the moment I set my foot on the bus....").   Even though I tended to re-use those a lot, I'd miss them frequently (or hit them with a delay).

The main thing is to be always reflecting, always keeping your eye out for the goals, which helps to keep dreaming on your mind.

----------


## tblanco

With the Leberge targets, you hit them or miss them once a day.  Would your targets be evergreen all day long?

----------


## FryingMan

No, I'd move on, but again, I'd keep a set of 4 active targets, some of which I'd be almost sure to encounter, some of which are less likely.    It's really not very important to follow precise rules.    The main thing is to get your goal-seeking center turned on throughout the day, with thinking about dreaming at least on the back burner a lot of the time.   Make up your own practice, there's no reason to stick only to LaBerge, it's just a starting place.

----------


## tblanco

I have built a google doc table and i'm adding a list of targets... the goal then is to organize by category and then i can just drag and drop a new list into my email before i start my day. i had a good epic dream last night, a wbtb (natural style, glad you taught me how to do that) and a couple of false awakenings after milding before bed.

----------


## tblanco

so i'm building a list of targets and morning time for me is writing a few down to keep in mind over the course of the day. memory is big too. I've been getting better at that dream memory "spark" where there's nothing then all of a sudden it all starts flowing in...  nothing since the early part of may yet but my intention is to get lucid before july starts. I plan to wbtb 2-3 times a week, keep working on my memory, prospective and recall, and work on intention and goals for inside of the dream doing visualization whenever i do reality checks. I know i'm going to make this shit happen. I've hit some really great LD streaks in the past, when i find my rhythm (it's my least favorite word to spell)  it's going to slide into place.

----------


## FryingMan

> so i'm building a list of targets and morning time for me is writing a few down to keep in mind over the course of the day. memory is big too. I've been getting better at that dream memory "spark" where there's nothing then all of a sudden it all starts flowing in...  nothing since the early part of may yet but my intention is to get lucid before july starts. I plan to wbtb 2-3 times a week, keep working on my memory, prospective and recall, and work on intention and goals for inside of the dream doing visualization whenever i do reality checks. I know i'm going to make this shit happen. I've hit some really great LD streaks in the past, when i find my rhythm (it's my least favorite word to spell)  it's going to slide into place.



You example has sparked a renewed interest in PM exercises!  I set a few the other day: some I hit, and some I missed.   Having daily PM targets, even if it is a repeated day-long target ("every time ...."), helps keep that important goal-seeking center activated.

It's a great idea to have concrete goals.   I find goals like "I want to get lucid by <date>" or "I want to have <N> lucid dreams per week" are not effective for me.   But goals like the TOTM club, and plans of doing very specific things in a lucid dream, are highly effective.    Some of my all-time favorite LDs came from active TOTM goals, and performing those goals in sequence helped maintain the dream, keeping it vivid, and giving me something to look forward to doing next.     Typically, as soon as I run out of "things to do," I will wake soon thereafter.  

That's great that you've been successful with improving your recall.   It's important to schedule enough time after waking to let those sparks fire and the memories to flow in.   I had a nice recall morning this morning that started off with a blank slate, and I was sort of bummed, but finally ended up recalling 7-8 scenes from multiple wakings over the course of the night.

----------


## tblanco

saw this comment  from Sivason and i'm making it my main LD goal... Also, Stabilizing the dream and flying. 

What was a powerful training routine for me, was to have only this one primary goal, and keep going this until it is not too hard.

Dream Goal: Stop and try to remember where you are sleeping. Then what were you doing at bedtime. Then what phase of your life you are in, such as retired, in summer school, recently involved in a new relationship.

It is not as shiny as flying to another planet, but as goals that lead to better LDing this is what I suggest.

----------


## tblanco

> That's great that you've been successful with improving your recall.   It's important to schedule enough time after waking to let those sparks fire and the memories to flow in.   I had a nice recall morning this morning that started off with a blank slate, and I was sort of bummed, but finally ended up recalling 7-8 scenes from multiple wakings over the course of the night.



memory really is a muscle, and it's tied to patience.

----------


## tblanco

I'm emailing this to myself to review before bed. 

JUNE'S BEGINNER TASKS: (Anybody feel free to have fun with these, but you'll get wings only if you are a beginner. Some will change each month!)
Dream Goal: Stop and try to remember where you are sleeping. Then what were you doing at bedtime. Then what phase of your life you are in,
1. Slow down, look around, describe what you see.
2. Touch the ground. What is it? Grass, asphalt?
3. Look at your body. What are you wearing?
4. Find a DC and shake their hand.
5. Run your hands through your hair. How does it feel?
6. Find text you can read, then look at it again. Has it changed?
7. Cross your eyes and stare at the tip of your nose.

----------


## tblanco

i've been setting an active target of going from outside to inside and i'm missing it over and over lol
i notice like 5 minutes after that i was supposed to be triggered then i check

----------


## tblanco

> i've been setting an active target of going from outside to inside and i'm missing it over and over lol
> i notice like 5 minutes after that i was supposed to be triggered then i check




No hits yet but i keep working. Trying to stay dedicated to a limited number of things.
RC plus prospective memory tests
Dream Journal
Mild intentions
Visualisation and imagination of lucidity - getting that excited feeling in the chest.

Im also meditating daily and yoga a couple times a week, but thats for me more than for the lucidity. It should be helping but its a seperateish thing.

----------


## fogelbise

> No hits yet but i keep working. Trying to stay dedicated to a limited number of things.



I like this plan in order to avoid getting burned out while you build back up your practice.

Are you still doing WBTBs 2-3 times a week? If you are doing WBTBs, do they involve getting out of bed (if you can get back to sleep reliably) and for how long?

----------


## tblanco

> I like this plan in order to avoid getting burned out while you build back up your practice.
> 
> Are you still doing WBTBs 2-3 times a week? If you are doing WBTBs, do they involve getting out of bed (if you can get back to sleep reliably) and for how long?



I haven't been getting out of bed, though this week i've had a sick kid who's getting up to vomit. I have gotten out of bet for that but i wasn't thinking of LD. I have people i share a bed with so i can't do the alarm, so i either incubate an internal alarm (which has proven successful) or i just go to sleep.  One thing i've been doing is writing down 15 times a day at various times (i will have multiple lucid dreams tonight) to keep up intention and to inspire visualization. yesterday i was painting with my kid at what USED to be our kitchen table and i took one of those pages and painted a beach scene i daydream about LD teleporting to.   When i think about it, i try to get the full 360 panoramic, including sounds of waves and gulls and the feel of wet sand in my feet and the wind and the salty smell of the ocean. the shimmer on the water from the sun, the squinting, the heat on my skin. 

Capture.JPG

So fogel, you think i should be getting out of bed? can you give me tips on my wbtb procedure?

----------


## fogelbise

Yes, if you are able to reliably go back to sleep after getting up, then i would get up and experiment with how long you stay up. Getting up during WBTB will wake your brain up more and thus increase your chances of becoming lucid. If you do awareness work while up, that also increases your chances. I'd save these "full" WBTBs  for times when you can sleep in, at least while you are still experimenting with how awake you can get and still go back to sleep relatively easily.

I like the detail you use in visualizing your beach scene with all the senses.

----------


## tblanco

> Yes, if you are able to reliably go back to sleep after getting up, then i would get up and experiment with how long you stay up. Getting up during WBTB will wake your brain up more and thus increase your chances of becoming lucid. If you do awareness work while up, that also increases your chances. I'd save these "full" WBTBs  for times when you can sleep in, at least while you are still experimenting with how awake you can get and still go back to sleep relatively easily.
> 
> I like the detail you use in visualizing your beach scene with all the senses.



5 minute wbtb
Got up walked around
Sensory work
Big time memory of my dream
Lay back down
Visualize back in the same dream
Mantra i will have many lucids tonight
Lay on my back for a long time
Eventually roll over and go to sleep
Wake up paralyzed on a beach
Lucid
Frozen
All i can move is my eyes

I feel the sand, i hear the water, i look around with my eyes
I remember im in my bed asleep
Fade to black.
I think about dield but cant hold still


BIG WIN

----------


## fogelbise

> 5 minute wbtb
> Got up walked around
> Sensory work
> Big time memory of my dream
> Lay back down
> Visualize back in the same dream
> Mantra i will have many lucids tonight
> Lay on my back for a long time
> Eventually roll over and go to sleep
> ...



Congratulations Tony! Great work - keep it up! And you got the beach too!  :smiley:

----------


## tblanco

I've had a slight lapse in motivation as work and family has consumed me. I successfully have been meditating and dream journaling but the day work has lapsed. Today is a good day. I woke up and set goals. I have a plan.

----------


## tblanco

This morning i woke up a few minutes before my alarm went off and I put my head back down and was halfway back in my dream. It was this un formed thing where a couple of the elements were floating in space, i was able to do a few things in a groggy half lucid state but i didn't quite go back to sleep. Several of my successful LDs from the past were in that DEILD area of waking up and shutting back down.

----------


## tblanco

1 minute long LD last night. I took off a scarf, felt a breeze on my face and went flying briefly. It was very good.
Im doing wbtb and mild 3-4 times a week right now
Taking b6 at bedtime and a little galantamine 1-2 times a week
Interesting development for resetting my intention for prospective memory 
Next time i see my hands i will do a reality check and then i do it, and then i reset the intention
Then when i wbtb, ill meditate for several minutes, then use next time i see my hands i will do a reality check for my mantra
Then roll over and go to sleep
So far one success
Another thing, Im deliberately taking days off during the week from day work and night work (i keep journaling tho)
This is to prevent burnout. 
One hit. Lets keep working!!

----------


## FryingMan

Awesome, keep it up.  Finally got a good long night of sleep and it was full of detailed dreams with emotional and visual detailed presence.   No lucidity, though.

----------


## tblanco

couple of things here - I've had 3 successful LD's this July  so far. Loving it. making progress. I"m tracking my attempts, what methods, what timing, supplements, dream recall, quality etc. 

Nunber of dreams remembered
On a 5 point scale
Time of bed
Time of awakening
Supplements taken
Day work
Medidtation
MILD
What position i wake up, what position i fall asleep

also, i'm taking days off a couple of days a week to prevent burnout. and you can see through my history in this thread, this is a necessary thing. 
Next on the agenda is to get some stability and control in this  dreamworld...

----------


## fogelbise

Great job Tony! Great you are keeping records also.

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## tblanco

2 LDs this weekend, I've been stacking techniques - I do a simple Day intention  for Reality check... then WBTB + galantamine 8mg twice a week (3-4 days a part).

I think the biggest thing that's been adding to my success is that i've specifically taken off 2 days a week (no more than 2-3 days of practice in a row) to keep from burnout... 

newest goals now are have longer dreams/remember goals (STABALIZE) and to get back on that DEILD train (CHOO CHOO M-FWORD)

----------


## fogelbise

Very nice! Everyone has to find what works for them so that sounds like a good plan to keep practices up long term. 

Galantamine (8mg) has almost always had a great effect for me. I always combine it with choline bitartrate (500mg).

----------


## FryingMan

Great work, Tony!  Keep it up.    Every time I've gotten back to sleep on galantamine, the dreams have been super vivid and very present (and I've gotten lucid every time pretty much).

----------


## tblanco

2 big LD's Last night

1000 bedtime
1:30 first wake up
300 second wake up
540 woke up for good
4 dreams
2 LDs. One high quality non lucid, 1 FA
Day work (reality checks and prospective memory excercises), pre bed meditation, post wbtb meditation, MILD
8 mg galantimine

I’m at my brother’s house for some kind of a family function, maybe a wedding.. Wood paneled shelves covered in old books but when i look closer they are boxes of food. I do a nose pinch and I’m dreaming. I start walking through the house and find a huge turkey leg and I take a big bite out of it. I chew it up and it tastes like turkey. I grab a box of cake mix off a shelf and rip the top off of it. I pour the powder into my hands and form a cake with magical powers. I try to find icing but only find an icing powder packet. I dust the cake with icing powder and splash it with water hoping it will become icing. Doesn’t work, so i eat take a bite of the cake before  it gets soggy. Good yellow cake, soft moist. Wake up.

Back awake find my journal and start writing things down.. notice it’s the wrong notebook and I wake up..

I mild and try to imagine myself back in an earlier dream where i was on the deck of a yacht, but end up back in the house where I was cooking. I am around a pile of presents with a couple of kids and I try to do the trick with the box again but it’s just a pile of powder, I wake up quickly.

----------


## FryingMan

Great job, Tony!   I had success with MILD (first time in a while I've tried it) after WBTB just the other night.

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## tblanco

I had some interesting lucid moments in an attempt on sunday. I've had a big goal of making the ET glowing finger and using it to heal things. I was able to make my finger glow but it was like using the dodge tool on photoshop.

----------


## fogelbise

Congrats on the continued LDs! I like the ET finger idea. Are you planning on attempting healing things that need healing in waking life? I would never rule out the power of mind over matter, at least in healing certain things.

----------


## tblanco

I know there are people studying whether or not lucid dreams have impact on physical health, so i figure that would be a good thing to work on in my life. 

also.. interesting stuff from last night

10:00 
3:15 (fitbit worked)
up and across the house, took 8mg of galantamine
18 min meditation before bed
no day work
4 dreams 1 lucid all quality in the 3-4 range

the lucid dream was crazy, I was in the audience of a theater production, It took several tries to do the nose pinch, i had to try really hard to get it to work. I knew i was dreaming but i couldn't prove it. one of the people sitting next to me got angry at me for doing a reality check. He said "I don't want this to be your dream, I like my life" I get the NP to work and I'm immediately in the empty space and it's wild. 

Now i'm lucid in the black space. I can feel cozy and asleep in my bed but also i'm drifting in and out of the memories of the dreams of the night and i shift between out of body watching the dreams segment and then i can control my body from my bed and then i'm in my body then out again. there are different scenes in different fields of vision like portals?

----------


## fogelbise

> the lucid dream was crazy, I was in the audience of a theater production, It took several tries to do the nose pinch, i had to try really hard to get it to work. I knew i was dreaming but i couldn't prove it. one of the people sitting next to me got angry at me for doing a reality check. He said "I don't want this to be your dream, I like my life" I get the NP to work and I'm immediately in the empty space and it's wild. 
> 
> Now i'm lucid in the black space. I can feel cozy and asleep in my bed but also i'm drifting in and out of the memories of the dreams of the night and i shift between out of body watching the dreams segment and then i can control my body from my bed and then i'm in my body then out again. there are different scenes in different fields of vision like portals?



Glad you seemed to enjoy the empty space/void...I sure do. The different portal-like visions sounded cool. 

"I like my life" - that's classic! That's a good one for the DC's say the darndest things thread: https://www.dreamviews.com/dream-vie...hings-113.html That kind of goes along with the way some scientists propose that we could all be living in a simulation but we may not want to believe it.

----------


## tblanco

I've been steady working the LD system since I last posted. I've been reading https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5RVXTF...ng=UTF8&btkr=1 the complete guide to lucid dreaming by clare johnson and I LOVE IT. She is a beautiful writer and her whole mindset on dream control and induction is very inspiring. I'm also working through some Daniel Love who certainly has unique and creative application of dreamwork. 

I've also been working with a LD coach! This person has been helping me to stack techniques and build a regimen with rest days built in to prevent burnout.  My goals lately are to try to hit 4 lucid nights a month and i've been reaching for a 5 minute lucid dream.  Last night I hit 4 DEILD chained  with 2 of them being long epics. One of the craziest bits was when i was following some people down a hallway and i saw a fridge out of the corner of my eye and said "hold up guys, i'm a little hungry" i walked around the corner and there was this old mexican lady cooking tortillas with masa in a small homey kitchen. I ate pastor tacos with her and her son. FING CRAZY. 

Anyway, this is the year i take this practice seriously. I'm meditating more and more regularly, making serious attempts multiple times a week and doing once weekly supplement dosages.

----------


## FryingMan

Awesome, Tony, so great to hear!    That's some very solid success right there.   I think working officially with a coach is setting extremely strong intention that will bring continuing great results.   Goal setting (and continuous monitoring and adjusting of goals) is one of the most powerful psychological factors in increasing performance in any discipline.   

You've given me a new dream goal...I LOVE al pastor tacos.   How were they?  :smiley: 

DEILDs are awesome.    Did you specifically work on intention for DEILDs with your coach?   Long epic LDs?   Wow.    Truly inspiring, keep it up and report back here with the latest!

----------


## tblanco

this is from a couple of days ago. those tacos were good btw

6 lucid dreams chained together (at least)
Galantamine and Choline
They moved fast, some of them lasted longer than others, 
it took me some time to fall asleep did the SILD but never felt it taking hold, didn't trance
laying on left side
I had so many lucid dreams, at a couple of points i thought about pulling myself out of it to write them down but instead decided to just remember what i remember and go on with it. 
The dream would fade and I would Chill until the next one started, first couple I was doing the breath and clear excercise but after that i just knew where i was and started going.

when i did the look around on the first dream there was cobwebs, which is the second  time recently that cobwebs have been present as i'm getting lucid, these were crazy b/c I examined them and they multiplied and some of them looked real and some looked computer generated and they were covered in red spiders, a few that looked like cartoons, i passed my hand through them and there were spiders on my hand and i just kept on walking b/c i didn't want to deal with that.

THere was also another one where i was outside on a clear day with clouds and i tried to fly but couldn't get off the ground, then i looked up to see if i could see pictures in the clouds and the whole sky morphed to form the image of the Hindu goddess Kali surrounded by flowers and pinwheels made of clouds, crazy. 

working on just having longer lucid dreams, better awareness, DEILD chaining, and just going along with the experience that's happening as lucid (rather than trying to force goals or scenes or whatever) is the big push right now.

----------


## fogelbise

These are great results Tony! I need to get back to experimenting with galantamine and choline (need to refresh my stock). That combination gives me very similar experiences with multiple periods of lucidity, going into and out of dreams.

----------


## tblanco

That day after feeling when you have a lucid dream, like light and tingly, more energized. Is this universal? Why does it happen?

----------


## fogelbise

> That day after feeling when you have a lucid dream, like light and tingly, more energized. Is this universal? Why does it happen?



I know that I've felt it and have heard/read of many other's having similar experiences. I think that it is very similar to when you are very joyous after experiencing anything really special, but I would not completely rule out some other explanation.

----------


## tblanco

Great night a couple of nights ago - Chained 5 Lucid dreams together with a WBTB + DEILD combo - Daytime prep was dream checks and some yoga and meditation at bedtime. I was on the G+C tip, but i'm trying to do 2 G+C dives to every 1 Clean dive - and My goal is to have some clean lucids in the next 2 months.

G+C - galantimine and choline- 


saw this in a comic i was reading... and realized "the room" is one of my biggest dreamsigns... anyone else feeling it? 

alanmoore.jpg

----------


## tblanco

https://i.imgur.com/d1b01AQ.png

couple of nights ago i chained 5 LD's together with a WBTB and DEILDs. I was on Galantamine and Choline. I've been doing 2 G+C attempts for every 1 Clean attempt and i expect to see some clean LD's over the next 2 months. 

saw the image above in a comic i'm reading and realized "the room" is a huge dreamsign for me. 

day work is RC + meditation and/or yoga + Smaller dinner. 

RC - nose pinch followed by  - calming breath, looking around, engaging with the world, announcing my lucidity, recalling a dream goal.

----------


## tblanco

lol i thought i deleted my first post and rewrote it.

----------


## tblanco

2 nights ago 3 Lucid dreams including a WILD. 

my wild - after a shudder, i feel my body is light and stand up  out of bed - it's blurry foggy, i'm very tired, struggling to stay awake. I'm clearing - nose pinch - i'm dreaming - looking around the room - i walk to the wall by the bathroom and touch it - i'm saying "I'm lucid, I'm lucid" the light blue of the wall fades to white and i'm back in my body. It's several minutes before I fall back asleep.

----------


## FryingMan

Tony, you are absolutely rocking your LDs!   Congrats on your efforts and results!  Keep 'em coming!    Intention and attention are king....

----------


## tblanco

You'll notice that i've passed through solid objects twice this week. Last night had some long as hell lucid dreams even though not a lot happened. I plan to try the "2 nights in a row" tonight and go for the clean wild. Wilding is happening.... how long do you think the Galantamine and Choline take to kick in? I'm usually back in bed within 10 minutes or so. 

12/2/2018
10:00
2:00 (before my alarm)
G+C
2 lucid dreams
3 dreams total
5:30 wake up 

lucid nose pinch, then fall backwards into the earth, through concrete, through gold, flying backward feeling the hard pull. seeing the scenery change like a reverse 2001 star child scene.   

12/5/2018
10:30pm
3:15 
5:30
30min meditation and yoga before bedtime
G+C
1 FA non lucid where I write my dream down and then wake up
1 WILD - where after trance i start zipping fast horizontally and i look down to see my body fade into existence
1 FA where i do a nose pinch, it works, and i think something is wrong with my nose, then i pinch a few more times, then i look at my hand and it's giving me the Jacob ladder effect so i finally realize i'm dreaming.

----------


## fogelbise

Congratulations on the long lucids Tony!





> how long do you think the Galantamine and Choline take to kick in? I'm usually back in bed within 10 minutes or so.



I highly recommend Yuschak's Advanced Lucid Dreaming Supplements book (easily found as a free pdf). He says Galantamine reaches it's peak at about 1 hour. It's about the same for Choline except it's levels in your blood drop off much quicker than the Galantamine. The Galantamine graph in the book looks like it still at about 80% 4 hours after taking it whereas the Choline is down to 80% after less than 2 hours. That said the graph of the "peak plasma levels" of the combination of those two substances shows a "lucidity window" of over 4 hours.

----------


## tblanco

thank you for the heads up on that PDF.

----------


## tblanco

945
300 (before alarm)
610
G+C
yoga before bed

All night lucid dreams - several of them taking place in this warehouse/movie studio situation. couple of highlights. I am doing nose pinches all night long. Sometimes i start doing wacky shit before the nose pinch and think "i better nose pinch before this gets too out of hand". 

I am standing outside, with a mountain range on the horizon. I start breast stroking up into the air with my arms first, then I remember to add the kick. I notice how it FEELS like swimming in water, same resistance. I get up in the sky a little bit and off in the distance I see a brown and white barn up in one of the mountains. I visualize what that building looks like up close and suddenly with a fast zoom effect, I'm there. I'm standing in front of the barn and the dream goes away.

I'm in a green room next to a hallway. There's a box of unicorn pop tarts on top of a microwave small table. I grab a foil pack and open it. I break off the crackery outside and take a big bite of the iced jam part of the pop tart. It tastes very good, but i can't swallow. I don't remember how to swallow, i try to spit a little bit of it out. I hit the numbers on the microwave but when i press start, nothing happens. Then i walk into the hallway and see several microwaves on tables down the hall.

Lots of sex in these dreams. I don't remember the order so some highlights separated by ellipses. I remember one woman with a pixie cut wearing a shiny shirt in a deep v almost like like a robe that tied at the bottom. She's smiling at me and has her arms playfully up as i lean in to kiss her. I open the shirt and her breasts are exposed. I start kissing her chest... The whole scenario is like a movie set, there's trash on the floor and a couch. I wonder if it's a porno. Steven Guidry is there and he changes into Alex Wayman... At one point I'm having sex doggy style with a woman but we don't thrust and our bodies meld together like a centaur... At one point i'm fooling around with a woman and she turns into a giant white cat, then i push the cat off me and it turns back into the woman. This happens a few times.... I remember at one point in the night fading in and out of the dream several times and wanting to keep looking for the same woman again, finding her and the dream fading during sex. This is where I'm nose pinching a lot.

----------


## fogelbise

You got the triple-C: centaurs, celebrities and cats...but seriously the centaur thing sounded different/unique. Congrats on all of the lucidity!

----------


## tblanco

On a dry spell.  2.5 weeks. Took a break. Came back Choosing the data of how awake I am at the wbtb.  How long in up,  what I do in the break. 

10:00
2:55 
Wake quality 2 (almost totally awake)
10 minutes up - light stretching and sitting meditation
sat in light hypnogogia for hours,
never fell back alseep
changed positions 3-4 times
got body heavy 2-3 times
some light images but nothing came through.
6:15 wake up

----------


## fogelbise

> On a dry spell.  2.5 weeks. Took a break. Came back Choosing the data of how awake I am at the wbtb.  How long in up,  what I do in the break. 
> 
> 10:00
> 2:55 
> Wake quality 2 (almost totally awake)
> 10 minutes up - light stretching and sitting meditation
> sat in light hypnogogia for hours,
> never fell back alseep
> changed positions 3-4 times
> ...



Not being able to fall back to sleep is no fun. Were you trying to WILD here?

----------


## FryingMan

You're doing great, Tony.  Keep up the practice!  You'e made great progress.    The most important thing is to find the balance to maintain consistency.

----------


## tblanco

set up a multi step plan to get back on track with my coach. wrote it out for here...


my steps for getting through a dry spell.

1. take stock of what's changed.  refer to your notes of what was working and what has stopped working, changes in process, supplements, sleep cycle and changes. 

2. Lucid day dreaming process. Add this to the Mindfulness day work. 
Noticing daydreams, recognize and explore them. 
Don't disrupt, visualize going lucid, go about the daydream lucid

3. Switch to MILD - start incubating dreams and dream signs, prepare mantra, 

4. Positive affirmations. "I am a fucking awesome lucid dreamer"

5. Read journal to remember prior lucids. and find dream signs. I found that my dreams were taking place at parties and in theaters. one of my lucids last night took place in a theater. 

so i broke the dryspell about a week and a half ago, then i set up a couple of specific dream goals for the next few weeks. 

last night i had 2 lucids and 4 dreams total big lucid below


I'm in an all white field. i can feel my hands. I'm reaching in front of me and I find a string, I'm grabbing and pulling on the string, now I'm Climbing the string. It turns into a small rope and i'm using my legs and whole body to pull myself up. I realize that the whiteness i'm climbing is actually a cloud and at the end of the rope is a big clear balloon. I climb to the top of the balloon and a gust of wind blows us free of the cloud. Now, I'm flying around, holding tight to this balloon, feeling movement and wind, I can look down and see this big forest below. I remember my dream goal to swim in a body of water and i start to look for one. I think about how i can propel the balloon to where water would be and tore a small hole with my teeth thinking i'd get the bugs bunny rocket ship effect. I get that fart whistle noise of air escaping from a balloon and as i shoot away the dream fades again into white. 

this will be a good post for me to look at so i can see how i got through the dry spell of january 2019

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## fogelbise

Congratulations on breaking the dry spell and getting the lucids including that nice one above! It sounded like a neat experience.

I also like the game plan you outlined. It is good to record it here for easy retrieval and it will also likely help others...maybe even years from now.

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## tblanco

big lucid dream last night. Long one. probably 8-10 minutes.

I'm in a dorm room putting things away. I am going back to college as an adult and I'm afraid of what this experience will be like. I have my dog frank with me and i'm wondering how i'm going to deal with her peeing on the floor. I try to find her leash but i can't and use a rope belt to fashion a leash for her. 

Now i'm walking through hallways and looking for some orientation information. I am stopped by a couple of beautiful women in the hallway and they flirt with me for a second.  I get weirded out and make my way to another room with a long table full of papers. I find my schedule and start to look at it but then i leave instead.

now i'm walking through a courtyard at night that's lit up by streetlights and i find a building with columns and i know it's a university building holding orientation. I go inside that there are videos playing on screens around a big empty room with shiny brick floors. 

I'm watching a video about the cultural makeup of this town and they have a food segment where they show the layering of a taco and it's like a commercial with topping after topping and they start getting more absurd and fast, orange slices, cheese, a full gyro sandwich, an encyclopedia and at this point i know i'm dreaming and do a Dream Breath. 

I look at the screen and say "freeze." the image freezes. I say "reverse" and it starts going backwards. I say, "show me naked women" and the screen starts flashing images of paintings and statures very fast. I'm smiling.

I start looking around the room and remember that I wanted to use healing energy to fix my back. I hold my hands out at arms length near my midsection and think about a healing energy going into my lower back pain. I can feel a warmth emanating from my hands and pulsing into my body. I know in my heart that this is working. after a few minutes i start moving outside.

I walk outside and look up at the big beautiful moon and bright stars. I float up into the night. I get up very high and look aroudn and suddenly there are moons and stars everywhere i look, I start flying around and the scene destabilizes and i wake up into the void.

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## tblanco

LD from Valentine's day

10
3
530
2 LD WILD

Laying on my back.  Saying a Mantra (calm down, look around, engage, announce, recall) I hear voices, I hear Carmelite's voice calling my name. I hear cats fighting. I feel the shudder and hear the reverberation of giant angel wings passing over me. That's the sign of the wild passing fully into the dreamland. 

I wait a moment then get up, I'm in my room and all of the color is washed out. Everything is a light grey. I walk out of the room after a nose pinch. I want to go outside and can't find the door, only a window. I punch the window, the window is made of plastic and it cracks. For a second i'm fearful that i'm awake and jsut broke my window. I do another nose pinch and I'm reminded that i'm dreaming. 

Now I'm outside my house and i start floating up  into the sky. in teh distance i see a downtown city scape, large buildings. I see the biggest building witih the most lit windows, yellow light, and i want to go there. I make a "come here" gesture with my hands and now i'm flying faster toward the buildings but they aren't getting any closer. I imagine being closer to the building and now i'm right in front of them. 

I see in the window, it's a hospital. Women are walking around in old school nurses uniforms. I'm inside and i see they are in a room with filining cabinets. I'm looking at these older women and one is younger and attractive. I pull her to  me and start kissing, she pushes me away and says, "no" 

I say, "ok, do you want to talk" she says nothing and walks away with a disgusted look on her face.  lieave the room  I pass through a waiting room with a large bookshelf. I see two women on the couch and i take one by the hand over to the doorway and we start making out and having sex. 

i wake up, stay in my body and go back into the dream.

I'm in the same place, and i go to the book shelf and grab a book i remmeber to ask a question "what is my new name" not sure of what is my question,  and my voice starts choking up as i say it. then  i open the book and see the strange symbol of the two ms. 

Then i go outside, i'm in a car in traffic, i'm trying to figure out a way out of the traffic and wake up. 
-----------------

Last night i had 3 lucids but they kind of blended together
will make more notes on them later

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## fogelbise

Terrific job Tony! Keep up the great progress!

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## FryingMan

Excellent, very inspiring, congratulations!

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## tblanco

from 3/4
Woke up at 3am
Wide awake
G+C
Wild into a floating consciousness,
Green landscape with white lines, like tron
I feel like i can move, and i push my soul into the landscape and now im inside the digital world. 
I Pull myself back into the void because I dont have a body.
Now im in a dormatory in a hallway, I take a look at a bookshelf. Theres an unfamiliar soft cover DND manuel with a lavendar cover, I open the book and se something about a spell potion
I walk to one of the rooms and there are two ladies sititng on a bed, They are large brown and Hairy. One of them asks me to sit down, i do and shes kissing me, scratchy face and shes biting me, and its hurting a little and I want to get away.
Fade into the void. 
Back in the hallway
I find a room with mood lighting, three guys standing and sitting around. I ask them to go get girls and i look back in the room after a second and the guys are gone but now there are beautiful women. I charge in and start humping one of the women, and our bodies meld, i fee a sharp feeling of pleasure. Its building and before i climax, i wake up. 
I sit in the void for a second remembering and then decide to wake up rather than go back in so i can write down some better detail in my space

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## fogelbise

Nice work! G+C is quite effective at helping to catch dream transitions, like into and out of the void. It's definitely possible without it, but it takes sustained, consistent practices which I am currently not doing too well but know I can get back to. Shorter and less multiple LDs at the moment here.

I look forward to reading more of your adventures.

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## tblanco

3/19
1000
meditation and yoga before bed
300
G+C

1. I wild into my bedroom. nose pinch. Now i'm outside in my neighborhood. I'm flying down mimebark street. I look over at my hand and my fingers have fingers on them. I remember i want to use my weird dream hands and reach out and grab at leaves on a tree. I can feel the tree and touch leaves with each weird finger on my hand. fade out
2. . I'm in a dorm room. Knock on the door. Elliot comes in and says "surf's up. what do you want to do?" I say "let's go surfing". Now i am outside looking at a dark red sky on a dark gray horizion. I know i'm looking at the sea. my feet are in sand. THe sea is very calm. I lift my hands and do a "come here" motion and a huge wave forms off in the distance. I watch it crash. I lift my hands again and as the wave comes I run out into the water and land on my belly. Cool water. I reach down and feel for a board and it's there. I stand up and feel wobbly but gain my balance. Now the tube is enveloping me, it's endless, i'm zoming through it and I can hear the water crashing and feel the spray of the salt water on my skin. 
3. non lucid - sitting in my bedroom with an old lady in a chair, i have my journal in my lap and I'm trying to rmemeber my previous dreams. I'm smacking my forehead. 
4.Censord.
5. Party at the land of the dead. I'm at a party in a funeral parlor but there's a bar where the coffin would be. Ben Blanco walks up to me he's holding an Icee asks me to pour some rum. I tell him to say when and he does. I tell him i poured a lot of liquor there - he says, "why didn't you save me?" I'm shocked for a second and then he start's laughing and says "nah i'm fucking with you it's ok  don't worry!".  I see elaine outside, and tell her to go in that it's ok. it's a party for the dead and she says she just wants to wait outside.

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## fogelbise

Nice! The surfing sounded fun and dream 5 sounded interesting and possibly meaningful. Party for the dead would make a great name for a band, movie or story.

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## tblanco

Big Lucid goal right now is to complete a vinyassa series of poses in the lucid state. In my last few lucid dreams, I've gotten so far as to get a couple of poses before waking up but even just getting into the deep purposeful breathing just has such a crazy effect on the way my dream body feels. It's awesome. Part of it is also designed to gain a better understanding of my dream body for purposes of stability, memory and control in the dream state.

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## fogelbise

I like your big goal and hope to see more on it.

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## tblanco

thanks, this workbook has been a major source of motivation and inspiration. Fogel and Fry, thank you so much for staying helping on my journey.

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## fogelbise

Thank you for the kind words Tony! Those words also serve as a source of motivation and inspiration for me. I had taken a few weeks off, so my apologies for the slow reply. I hope all is well!

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## tblanco

It's been over a month since my last LD. Some of my stronger practices have slacked off a bit but i'm trying to build them back slowly. I come here today to set intention to build a few major behaviors (night time screen time cap, daily yoga/meditation, sucessful WBTB)  that will not only increase my chances to LD but also increase my confidence and desire to follow through on this work. 

one step at a time. I'm coming back baby

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## fogelbise

I wish you luck building on those desired behaviors and could use some of that myself.

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## tblanco

2  big lucid dreams last night. I've been getting back in the habits.
cutting off screens after 9pm
20 minutes of yoga/meditation before bed
more yoga classes
and ACTUALLY FOLLOWING THROUGH ON MY WBTBS

on the second lucid of the night, I'm in a second floor apartment
i remember that i'm dream chaining. 
i jump through the window
but as i do i do a nose pinch and think "i should have done this before jumping through the window"
but i can breathe so it's ok
when i hit the street the ground stretches under me like a trampoline and i bounce into the air.

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## fogelbise

Nice work Tony! Keep it up!

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## FryingMan

Great to see you still persevering!

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## tblanco

I've had some family issues and new responsibilities come up since my last entry so my LD work has slowed down considerably. However, I'm still at like about a 50% success rate for WBTB to LD. Had a couple of good ones last night, biggest areas of improvement right now is keeping up on dream recall and actually getting out of bed on a wbtb. otherwise, I think i've reached a level of confidince that if i want to have an LD I can have one.

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## FryingMan

That's an awesome achievement, Tony!  Really glad to hear it.   What does your current WBTB look like (at which waking [how many hours of sleep] do you get up, how long do you stay up, where do you go/sit, what do you think about, etc.)?

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