Dream journal decreases dream recall?

Yes, I know I'll probably get screamed at for not knowing what I'm talking about, so I'm just giving you the facts:

I usually have pretty good dream recall, about 2-3 long dreams per night.

I started keeping a dream journal about a week ago to try and do better.

Since starting the journal my recall has plummeted, and each entry is literally about a paragraph (or more) shorter than the one before it.

Last night and the night before, I had exactly zero recall whatsoever. Not even a feeling or a weird concept. Zero. It was as if I had closed my eyes for a while, opened them, and no time had passed. This NEVER happens to me.

Has anyone else had anything like this affect your recall? Is there a connection or is it a coincidence? Any general information about DJs and recall that I'm obviously ignorant of?

The main reason I keep a dream journal is to determine dream signs. If you don't write your dreams down on a daily basis then you will only have the last few night's dreams fresh in your memory and may miss some of the more subtle dream signs.

As far as recall ability goes, in my opinion the strongest contributing factors for this are mental effort and practise. In other words, priming yourself before you go to sleep at night to remember to lie still and think about what you were dreaming of when you wake up, and forming the habit of doing so. I find some nights I can recall five long detailed dreams, then other mornings I wake up and can't remember a single thing. I don't know why this is.

The current theory I'm testing is whether what I have for dinner affects my dreaming. My theory is that if I have a rich, heavy, meaty meal then a lot of blood will be drawn to my digestive system and my dreams won't be as clear/vivid (apparently the brain uses a HUGE amount of energy to dream). So I'm going to experiment with having light, vegetable stir-frys for dinner for a few nights and see if that affects my recall. So far my theory seems to be proving correct but I need a few more weeks to be sure. I have noticed in the past that I feel a lot more energetic in the morning after a light, healthy dinner whereas after a big, fatty dinner I tend to feel a bit sluggish and drowsy. It makes sense that this would affect my ability to lucid dream.

You're pressuring yourself. If I do that, I can't remember a single dream.

Keep it natural ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ThreeLetterSyndrom

You're pressuring yourself. If I do that, I can't remember a single dream.

Keep it natural ;)

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Agreed.

Stress, especially physical stress, often acts as a poison towards dreams, and thus decreases one's normal abilities in terms of dreaming.

Have you any kind of job or school you attend daily? If so, that might be partially why you are having trouble remembering some of your dreams, as school and work can be rather stressful at times. Then again, I could be wrong.

Throughout my experience in engaging dream recall, I've come to realize that the occasional absence of ability is not a strange ordeal. It happens. I have gone months without remembering or recording a single dream, without having any comprehensive grasp upon them. Then just like that, overnight, all resumes.

It could be the contribution of situational factors affect as the rest of the members have suggested. I don't doubt the possibility, but I have not observed or experimented to know for myself. Although I certainly can vouch for the fact that dream recall sometimes becomes an impossibility. And thankfully, not a permanent one. Don't worry, give yourself time and patience.

Always try to remember all you can. Even the seemingly insignificant features, items, settings, themes can prove to be helpful in triggering memory - so record them. Even if it only amounts to a sentence.