How many people actually become proficient lucid dreamers?

**Patjunfa** · 02-03-2015 09:54 PM

Im curious from the amount of people that probably come and go on this forum, what percent get to a good level of lucid dreaming? Regularly able to sustain long enough quality lucid dreams? There was a thread one time here polling how many LD's had that year. I wonder what % of those were of good quality. People talk about needing to have a positive mindset, believing that one CAN have lucid dreams. However it's also a given that a lot of people do find it hard, and of those who start lucid dreaming, it seems a much smaller number that sustain the motivation and become proficient. In Sensei's audio, he gives an intersting picture on the amount who drop out out before 100, or 200 LD's, realising it's not as easy a journey as anticipated and seeing the sustained work needed ahead. In one book it was saying lucid dream practice shouldn't be oversold. I thought that an interesting point as its easy to make it sound awesome however most don't seem to get that far. That said life is a journey not a destination, so hopefully its be useful/interesting, even for those who don’t become proficient

I'd be interested to know a few things

1) what %of people attempting LD'ing get a point of regular quality lucids? Either currently active on this forum or from the numbers who have at some time started…Guessing there are no statistics on this.

2) what are the key factors in progressing from beginner/ intermediate to advanced practice? And What were key factors for anyone here in making whatever progress they have made?

3) are there any common timeframes for LD'ing development?

For me,
1) My impressions are it is a v small % who actually develop proficiency.
I have generally 1-2 lucids a week, probably a decent length 10-15 min lucid every 2-3 weeks, and more high quality sporadically. My goal is to be able to have access to long lucid dreams weekly. Alan Wallace says it wont be of much use to you if the lab (internal sleep laboratory) is open only once or twice a month and then only for a few minutes at a time. Makes sense

2) I'm guessing one factor, being just staying at it and having the motivation and determination to do soiven how relatively few seem to master it, it seems like a hard enough skill. However it seems so often that after telling someone what Lucid dreaming is, they go and have an awesome LD. Also there are times in practice when they seem pretty consistent. Maybe its actually easier than it seems and its just a question of priming the mind correctly? Also finding the techniques that work for individuals and sticking at it long enough to suss it...
I’m still a beginner/intermediate. For me to reach where I’m at has to do with having strong motivation for this practice and a commitment to maintain my efforts even if it takes years to get where I’d like to. Also consistent dream journaling/RC’s/interweaving practice with mindfulness practice as often as I can/setting intentions/WBTB’s/Reading and keeping inspired. Motivation and enthuasism are v necessary, yet it feels that if I intend too strongly, I either don't get back to sleep or just don't LD...

3) I know enough people who have occasional lucids but don’t know enough people who are committed to this as a practice
Personally I think it originally took me around a year of daily looking for my hands to have my 1st lucid dream. Years later I restarted a Lucid dream practice and had about 1 LD per week for around 2 months. Since Last summer where I restarted practice I’ve had about 50 LD’s of very varying quality. A number like 50 doesn’t seem a good way to gauge this tho, as some have been v cool, many have been v short, and lots of the interesting parts of it haven’t even been dreams but the stuff that happens in different stages of sleep.

**11Greg** · 02-03-2015 10:02 PM

This is not a question i'm qualified to answer, but I will say this.

Lucid dreaming still has some ways to go for a flourishing percentage of the world's population to be decent lucid dreamers. Like you said, the main factor is determination and making it a lifestyle choice. If you apply that logic to other lifestyle choices such as eating healthily or going to the gym, doing something so consistently that you are not used to doing is not easy, even if it is something you really want. You just have to work hard, and with such a low number of proficient LD'ers its very hard for people to stay motivated to find others to draw inspiration from to continue it.

By the sounds of it though, it seems like you are trying to compare others experiences to your own so you can judge your progress or see where you are on that spectrum. Generally, I think there is not enough info for that strategy to be effective, I think you really just need to convince yourself that you are going to try your best for as long as possible to achieve the results you want.

**Xvaiuer** · 02-03-2015 11:25 PM

When I used to be active on this site 2 years ago (which Im trying to do again), I worked my way up to having 2-3 LDs a week usually after only 2 months. It just came very easy to me, but that's not the case for everyone.

**GetDreaming** · 02-03-2015 11:26 PM

Like you said, the commitment and work involved deter the masses. We live in a world of instant gratification.

**Arnov** · 02-04-2015 04:22 AM

I definitely agree with you that lucid dreaming practice should not be oversold. It's a lot more challenging than people realize.

Here's my take on the 3 questions you asked:

Q: 1) what %of people attempting LD'ing get a point of regular quality lucids?

A: I don't have the stats for lucid dreaming, but a study from the University of Scranton found that only 8% of people keep their New Years Resolutions. I'm not sure if that exact number is applicable to lucid dreaming as well, but it gives you an idea that most people don't stick to their goals.

You can find the study here: New Years Resolution Statistics | Statistic Brain

Q: 2) what are the key factors in progressing from beginner/ intermediate to advanced practice?

A: The key factor for going from beginner to intermediate is building the right habits. The people who really succeed realize that becoming a good lucid dreamer is a lifestyle shift. You will not be a proficient lucid dreamer overnight. You must consistently perform reality checks, keep a dream journal, and learn to become more mindful throughout the day. Plus more difficulty techniques like WILDs require a lot of practice to hone down.

For me the biggest shift was when I stopped being attached to the outcome. Rather than being frustrated about whether or not I had a lucid dream, I focused on developing the habits that would make me successful in the long run. As long as I made sure to keep my dream journal, perform reality checks, and practice WILDs I considered that day a success whether or not I had a lucid dream. Once I had that mindset shift I began to have lucid dreams a lot more often.

Q: 3) are there any common timeframes for LD'ing development?

A: There aren't any common time-frames for lucid dreaming development. There are so many individual variables such as age, motivation, individual mindset/ psychology, brain chemistry, intelligence, how they approach learning new skills, amount of free time (a busy person will find it more difficult to practice), etc.

**Cobalt Storm** · 02-04-2015 09:14 AM

I'm at 502 LDs, still trying to pass the "barely lucid, but don't care enough to continue" roadblock in a majority of my LDs. Based on your definition, I'm not proficient yet. BUT I'm getting there.

**JustASimpleGuy** · 02-04-2015 11:48 AM

Originally Posted by Arnov

Ihe key factor for going from beginner to intermediate is building the right habits. The people who really succeed realize that becoming a good lucid dreamer is a lifestyle shift. You will not be a proficient lucid dreamer overnight. You must consistently perform reality checks, keep a dream journal, and learn to become more mindful throughout the day. Plus more difficulty techniques like WILDs require a lot of practice to hone down.

For me the biggest shift was when I stopped being attached to the outcome. Rather than being frustrated about whether or not I had a lucid dream, I focused on developing the habits that would make me successful in the long run. As long as I made sure to keep my dream journal, perform reality checks, and practice WILDs I considered that day a success whether or not I had a lucid dream. Once I had that mindset shift I began to have lucid dreams a lot more often.

Bingo. and as it is with all life's endeavors, unless one has exceptional natural ability. It's all about the journey, not the destination. A well planned and executed journey infused with humility, enthusiasm, integrity and earnest effort is much more likely to bring one to the desired destination.

**Patjunfa** · 02-06-2015 04:41 PM

Thanks for replys. At one level I probably am trying to compare where I'm at with a general trend. Also though, I'm doing an essay on lucid dreaming and just recognising how inspiring some of the books are, yet how many people find it difficult and dont continue. Lots of books foucs on how to start lucid dreaming, how to stabilise and then do lots of awesome stuf. It doesnt seem like they mention the middle part of development much. I'd love to see some study giving a picture on the different trendes in lucidity development. That said I'm sure there is great flucuation due the the individual nature of it, and the many factors such as varying motivation etc.

"As long as I made sure to keep my dream journal, perform reality checks, and practice WILDs I considered that day a success whether or not I had a lucid dream." Thats a lovely way to look at it. Setting the conditions is about as much control as you actually have. Like drawing a bow and arrow, with full intent, but once the arrow is flying, youve done your job, wait and see what happens. I think thats part of the positive mindset needed for sustaining practice in the face of naturally varying results.

**TravisE** · 02-07-2015 11:50 AM

Even though I've “naturally” had LDs occasionally as a child, I've been seriously pursuing LDing for about ten years (though not always at a maximum level of effort), and I still don't consider myself anywhere near where I want to be in terms of quality, duration, and dream control. But I know exactly the sorts of things I really want to accomplish with the practice, and I'm willing to spend the rest of my life getting there. After all, learning to walk, talk, become a good sports player/writer/singer/whatever doesn't usually happen in just a couple of years either, but look at how worthwhile it is when someone spends enough time on it.

Besides, even though I'm not quite there yet, that doesn't mean I'm not still having plenty of fun on the journey!

I can't comment on techniques for moving beyond “beginner” status, because, honestly, I'm still trying to work those out for myself. But I try to look at that, too, as being part of the fun of getting there.