HELP: I Can't Stop WILDing After WBTB

I have a problem. I can't prevent WILDing after WBTB.

WBTB is generally really easy for me if I have the motivation (to write down a dream because I had a cool one, etc.). When I do have this motivation, I wake up in snap, can get out of bed, and instantly feel totally awake. But not "awake and ready for the morning" kind of awake. It's still a night-time kind of awake.

Anyway, I tried using WBTB in junction with WILD, because that's always something I've wanted to do. All my tries have been successful. I get the hallucinations, the sensations, then I either leave my dream body, or am straight into a dream that I have pictured. And it shouldn't take long at all for the feeling to start. I get up for ten to twenty minutes, do my stuff, then when I get back to bed I feel like I can sink straight back to sleep.

Now, thing is... sometimes, I DON'T want to WILD. Because .... It's strange. Sometimes I'm still frightened of the hallucinations. They're not scary at all. Just weird. In fact, when I'm "in the moment," it's even less scary. It's only slightly unsettling when I think about it prior to sleep / or in the morning. But the fact that I had these... fears keeping me back... THAT FREAKIN' KEEPS ME AWAKE. So I end up losing sleep because I feel myself slipping into REM Atonia... the sensations start creeping up on me and I force myself to snap awake because I don't want to experience the rushing sensation or the being-crushed-into-a-soda-can sensation or whatever... all the things I've had in the past. I don't want to hear the weird robotic vocoded voice talking to me... Even though whenever I DO experience it, I know it's all cool and I don't care, I think "ughhhhh, fine!! Lucid dream then. Yay!"

But the whole process of snapping in and out and in and out and then finally thinking "ugh, fine" takes a while. It takes away my sleep time. And I know it's all my fault because I'm being a chicken. I need to stop being a chicken.

But just in case I need to in the future... how the heck do I stop WILDing after WBTB???

I know you can say, "Just stop WBTBing"... but thing is, what if I need to? What if I need to write down a dream? Or get up and use the bathroom? Or something?? I will inevitably start WILDing later.

It's happened... when I did WBTB for just 30 mins... and another time for just 20 mins... the last few nights, I didn't even get out of bed. I woke up, turned to my side, blinked my eyes a couple of times... a total of a few minutes. And it still happened. WILD.

What the heck? Is it because I'm expecting to WILD? I also try to coax my mind out of it, thinking "Don't think about it... think about tomorrow... think about ... something..." but then I end up always being aware enough to experience the process of my body falling asleep then I think "screw it, let's go with it." The second part is never bad. It's always the wasted time prior.



Sorry that was a long post, but if you have any help, that would be GREATLY appreciated!

Some people are more sensitive than others, so a little bit of extra awareness during wakes may translate into frequent lucid dreams. A lot of natural dreamers experience situations like this, it also may begin to happen more often as you become proficient with intentionally inducing lds. It is normal to feel scared, especially in the beginning or if one is not mentally prepared to deal with an ld when it occurs. If this happens too often, in the short term I would suggest to reduce the frequency of wbtbs. Also, try your best not to worry during wilds. Try focusing on the interesting and positive side of the experience when it happens and deal with your dream world with confidence. Good luck! :)

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Originally Posted by NyxCC

Some people are more sensitive than others, so a little bit of extra awareness during wakes may translate into frequent lucid dreams. A lot of natural dreamers experience situations like this, it also may begin to happen more often as you become proficient with intentionally inducing lds. It is normal to feel scared, especially in the beginning or if one is not mentally prepared to deal with an ld when it occurs. If this happens too often, in the short term I would suggest to reduce the frequency of wbtbs. Also, try your best not to worry during wilds. Try focusing on the interesting and positive side of the experience when it happens and deal with your dream world with confidence. Good luck! :)

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Hey, thank you very much for your response! I think you've pinpointed it... I started all happening after I figured out how to WILD. And yes, thank you for the suggestions too! Though, could you perhaps suggest a way to avoiding WBTBs? I keep unintentionally waking up (around 3 AM to 4 AM) and feeling alert and all... Even if I lay still and don't get out of bed... and close my eyes for a bit.. WILD happens. >:U

And thanks again! Yes, I'll try to focus on the positives... it's strange, the half-awake state. You kind of stop caring once you're there, it's just scary before and much after. xD

WBTB can be difficult to avoid, I think. I do it every night, without fail. When I used to WILD accidentally as a child/teenager, I would struggle to avoid sinking into the dream. I was really afraid that I would suffocate and die. But now that I know the mechanics of WILDing, getting through all the initial "noise" is so much easier than trying to fight it. I would suggest that you spend some waking time thinking about how badass you are that you can do this! That you can actually put aside your very natural fear and delve right into it. You have done this many times already! Once I started thinking about it that way, I actually began to enjoy it, and last time I WILDed, it felt as if I was sliding down a water slide, and it was so much fun. To think that I used to hate and fear this!

So first: bottle your ability and sell it! :D
And second, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Try to anticipate the ride and what lies ahead. I promise you, all the unpleasantness stems from how you approach it. I still have the exact same sinking feeling, the same difficulty breathing, all the same buzzing and swirling and loud noises. But while those things used to terrify me, now that I know what causes them, and that it will take me only 10 seconds to get through to the other side, I'm not scared at all anymore. It's a thrill ride now, and a fun one at that. It will be for you too, I'm sure of it. Embrace your awesomeness, because this is a great thing that you are able to do. :rockon:

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Though, could you perhaps suggest a way to avoiding WBTBs

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It might be possible to be a bit less alert if you avoid thinking about it, so that you don't wake yourself too much and just allow yourself to fall asleep into oblivion rather than wild. Hope that helps!

Also, the advice from Sibyline is more than perfect and inspiring! I'm really looking forward to the super awesome lucid dreamer you will become and share your adventures here. Sweet dreams! :)