Hello everyone. I’ve been practicing LD on and off with mixed success - I’m quite content with my progress.
I’ve always wondered if my choice of the exact words I use when performing MILD, or intention reflection techniques are critically imporant (e.g. “Next time I’m dreaming, I will remember to recognize that I’m dreaming”) . If I simply repeat “Dream” as I fall asleep, and visualize finding a dreamsign, and then carrying out a dream action, does this suffice? Is it the symbolic nature of the words, or does the actual phrase itself enhance the reinforcement of ones intention?
For example, I’ve recently been trying to incubate dreams coupled with MILD. I visualize finding my hands in my dreams, and then recognizing it as a dreamsign and becoming lucid. Instead of saying “Next time I’m dreaming, I will find my hands and then remember that I’m dreaming”, I simply repeat the words “Dream hands” as I visualize finding them in dreamlike situations. I’m finding this technique just as effective as using a full phrase. My intention is the same, however it’s easier to repeat 2 simple words versus an entire sentence as you drift off to sleep.
If it works for you, it’s good. Mostly it is adviced though not to use too lengthy phrases, and to use an affirmative way to get what you want (so not like, I will not wake up with no recall). Further more the symbolic meaning is very important (you also have to visualise what it means what you are repeating, dont do it mindlessly). The actual phrase itself matter too because it might just pop into your head while dreaming (because you repeated it so many times). Anything beyond that, just use what floats your boat! Good luck with it.
The important thing is to suggest yourself the result. It can be in a symbolic way, or through the meaning of sentences. In my case, I prefer sentences which make sense. But a friend of mine uses to say a name which has been weighted by him with a specific meaning. Do you have good results with isolated words ?
About the other points, I agree with Xetrov. I just would like to add some comments:
using a sentence at the imperative form is dubious: some very suggestible people can have good results, but sub-c of other people can reject this order.
it’s better to say (mentally) the sentence during exhalation.
He means a “bossy” grammatical form (you will, you must, etc), that your subconscious may percieve as an intrusive order, and therefore resist complying with.
I would say that it is not so much the words you use that are important but how you feel while you are saying the words. The real intention is in your thinking at the time, and this is what really creates the carry-over into your dreams. In fact saying the same thing every night may have a bad effect because your subconscious mind has a habit of dismissing repetative thoughts, and will start to ignore them after a while. In my opinion you should keep it fresh and say something new each night but put real feeling and intent into it. If you believe what you are saying and expecting it happen then it will. This is much more important than your choice of words.
I agree with nickspry to some extend, because in my experience, if you repeat one and the same sentence every time you MILD, somehow you lose attention, get bored, or whatever, it just seems to lose it’s power. I try alternating the words during my MILD, and also use different languages now and then, which keeps me focussed. This helps actually pretty well in my experience, but I don’t think you need to say something new each night. Just keeping it a bit random seems to do the trick, because it is indeed the feeling and intent that counts.
Just a supposition, or do you found this opinion about something? The more I’m thinking about that and the more I disagree… 