Thread: Loss of Motivation

I joined this site over three years ago, and when I first joined, I was really pumped and excited. I was motivated and I posted and answered and participated in stuff, I joined the DV Academy when it first started, took multiple classes. At one point, I had pretty good recall, from like 2-6 dreams a night, everything was good. Except lucid dreaming. I tried DILD and MILD over months, first DILD and then MILD. But I always seemed to fail at that. I don't really feel all that aware or in control in my dreams. I sometimes just see it in 3rd person. The few times I became lucid the dream fell apart and ended pretty quickly. I just don't know what to do to become lucid. I eventually lost all my motivation, my recall slipped, and I became inactive. I have come back a few times, but never for long, I basically gave up by that point. So... any advice or tips or good posts to look at?

Well i've basically had the same problem for my first two months so far. I tend to have decent dream recall but my MILDs never work. I had 5 crappy DILDs where I woke up right after becoming lucid, but the last one was a few weeks ago.

Start by developing good recall again. Keep in mind some things that you want to do when you become lucid. As far as lucid induction goes, find a technique that you find fun to do, even if you don't succeed. Learn to appreciate the non-lucids. Enjoy them and learn from them if you can. When you analyze them think about what happened that was unusual that could have made you lucid. Then replay your memory of the dream again, only you becoming lucid when you see the dream sign. As you continue to do this, your awareness will begin to build as you'll be paying more attention to the non lucids. This, combined with a more positive mindset and better recall will create a better base from which you could develop your lucid dreaming skills.

In short, learn from your non-lucids and keep it fun!

I did keep in mind things I wanted to do once I became lucid. And none of the techniques are fun, they are simply necessary. And I do enjoy them, I love them. They are nothing like real life. All of them were unusual in tons of ways, not quite as much anymore. My dreams are not of real life. They are of fantasies and nightmares(though I kill the things, I don't get afraid, I fight), so that's not really helpful to tell me to analyze it. I don't really feel like I'm part of my dream, even if I am. And I did have a positive mindset. Not so much anymore. So basically, I had good recall, a positive mindset, and tons of things to point out I'm dreaming, and I failed, and now I have little recall, a ehh kind of mindset, and only a few things to point out it's a dream. Not really good motivation .-. Though perhaps once I remember my dreams again, I will find they are still amazing and I just don't remember them. *shrugs* That's about the only hope I will have for now.

Seems someone needs the Triforce of Courage.

Joking aside, I used to use the DVA Academy to just get myself into the mindset of actually being in an academy (mostly Sivason's and Sageous' classes, which really got me into getting more perspective on lucid dreaming techniques and such). I saw them as mentors, the same with Opheliablue's classes as well, and that helped me in some way to get a few lucid dreams, and I don't know how it helped, but I guess it's because the mindset of seeing it as an actual academy gave me psychological predispositions to be more aware of my dreams.

Which only validated to me how building conditioned responses and triggers where we imagine ourselves of where we want to be and get to (lucidity) works when we can get into those self-induced trances (whether it's dream incubating or setting up dream archetypes as some conduit to become aware of your dreams more or whatever).
And even when people tell you to write down goals in your lucid dreams, we find ourselves at loss of what to do when we're actually lucid, we were so bothered in actually gaining the lucidity that we forget the goals altogether.

But to make this post short and sweet,

Just like how Link perseveres in saving Zelda from Ganondorf time after time after time, we'll have to persevere with our lack of being able to have lucid dreaming consistently until we get good at it. How we get good at it is just taking into consideration of the lucid AND non-lucid dreams and just seeing what we can do to increase our awareness. And you already know the concepts that follow along with that:

- Dream Journal
- Applying lucid dreaming techniques into your own foundations
- Developing awareness in your state of consciousness in reality and dreaming (both non-lucid and lucid)
- And all those other stuff you know about

Trust me, it's frustrating having to go through 1,000+ dreams in my dream journal only to have like around 60+ lucid dreams (I don't update the lucid dream count on my profile as much), but the thing is, after going through those trivial and nonsensical non-lucid dreams and knowing how I act in dreams in general, it's getting easier for me. I literally don't have to try as hard (no WBTBs), and I end up recalling a dream or two with decent recall. But I'm still aiming for doing WBTBs and having a plan with sleep in the near future so I can recall 6-8 dreams like I did before.

So even in all your failures and attempts that ended up being a passing moment of stability, persevere with that and keep doing things that can help you become aware. The lucid dreaming goals don't really matter if you don't build those conditions where you find yourself consciously and unconsciously learning your dreaming self and how you interact within the confines of your mind. Keep at it Link, or else Zelda is going to find a new hero.

I'm never afraid in my dreams, I slay things most would consider nightmares, so I'm afraid I don't get it ^^'

And when I first did the DV Academy, it really motivated me and I tried really hard, my recall improved and I thought about dreams and such more often, though I had no lucids still.

I tried to do such things, but the incubating dream thing... well, I suppose I didn't do it for long, so that might be my fault, but I dunno, my dreams jump around to all kinds of things. Just like how I make all kinds of things in my imagination.

And I suppose so. The only frustrating thing is that I rarely feel that I'm really in the dream, almost more like I'm viewing myself. It doesn't feel like real life, it simply doesn't feel like anything. The dream simply runs its course. So... I dunno how I can be aware if it's always like that.

Oh, when we find ourselves spectating the actions and plot of the dream, I guess one way you can work towards that is how you usually feel when you're spectating. For instance, if you have a dream where you feel like you're watching over a set of dream characters and even a dream character of yourself, focus on your emotions when you're spectating, like:

- Do you find yourself pausing more and gazing and letting the emotions of the dream characters run through you?
- Does it feel like watching a movie? Being at a theater?
- Do you find yourself speculating and having occasional ramblings in your dreams while you can still see what's happening?

I have a lot of dreams where I eventually see myself observing and even control what's happening in a lucid dream. And even to the point where I shift myself to that dream character and go back to myself observing everything on a high platform. It is a challenge distinguish our emotions as spectators in our own dreams, but if you continue doing what you're doing, and observe how you're feeling as the observer, you might be able to get better at being aware of them.

Aim for habits that can help you question:

- Am I adding anything to this dream?
- Am I even in the dreaming environment?

There are a lot of exercises you can do where you get used to adding yourself into your imagination, so maybe when you attempt a WBTB, or even before sleep for the start of the night, just imagine your dream body being part of the dreaming environment. The more we start attaching ourselves to the environment, the less we feel detached from them (obviously ), so maybe that's something you should try out and make exercises of.

I don't feel anything, I suppose it's more like a movie then anything. Or watching someone play a video game.

And alright then, I will see how that goes.