Hello people -
I guess this is the “no LD for a while” post of the day ; I’ve read a lot of these, and usually the question is always the same - as is the answer.
I hope I can hear from other people with similar experiences though :
I read about LDs about a year ago, but I was too scared to try - too scared of what I might find in the back of my mind, maybe ? It took me almost a year to try. I had three not-so-vivid LD’s, but they definitely were lucid, and all of them were triggered by WBTB, with a few common RC’s.
It’s been two months ; I really try often, but without any success. The most encouraging sign i’ve had is that my dream recall has improved a lot (I keep a DJ which I update irregularly), and I noticed that my dreams were more and more related to my day life. I also had a few interesting WILD attempts before going to bed - without becoming lucid, though.
I have a feeling that this failure despite so many tries is not just bad luck ; I am still feeling frightened at the prospect of seeing my dreams face to face. (the more i remember my dreams and the less I feel confident). I know that LD’s are supposed to be a great way to fight nightmares ; but maybe i’m not ready to fight yet ?
There are many things feared, but only physical things deserve to be. Lucid Dreaming is all about YOU. The dreamscape itself is YOU. Every character in your dream is YOU. There is nothing magical or dark about dreaming. Do you fear yourself? Why do you fear yourself, if so. If you even DO encounter anything bad in a lucid dream, you can will it away. The only thing to fear is the gaining of knowledge and understanding. I hope this helps.
As long as you keep a clear mind you have nothing to be afraid of. I sometimes have trouble realizing that I can’t be hurt even though I’m dreaming, once you come to that realization you will have more control over your dreams.
Any doubt whatsoever could be a hinderance to your ability to enjoy your LDs.
(Sorry about the long delay - i didn’t notice the replies until today !)
CZChilla : Yes, i think I am afraid of what the dreams might reveal from the back of my mind. My childhood wasn’t very easy - not that anyone would have noticed from outside, but my parents weren’t easy to live with. I have very little memories from before I was 11, and that might be related to my LD “anxiety”.
Basilus West : Yes, for a while. It also increased the vividness of some non lucid dreams. For instance, last night, I had a dream where I distincly remembered a curve from an oscilloscope that I had seen last week and I also remember very clearly some conversations I had with the dream characters.
Darxide : There is nothing magical about dreaming, but I think the problem is that I have passively forgotten a lot of things in order to stay sane (sort of). The same defences that prevent me from looking at these memories make me afraid of my dreams - at least it is the most reasonable explanation I can think of.