So close yet so far

Quest for Lucidity
1

Was looking for some advice on things to try next to achieve lucidity.

I’ve had some success with DILD before and try to keep the habit of doing reality checks throughout the day but what I really want to learn how to do is WILD and I feel like I’m getting close.

My general progression usually goes as follows;

Brush teeth, make cup of non-caffeinated tea, dim the lights other than my desk lamp and read for ~1/2 hour to 1 hour.
Put down book, turn off light and spend a couple minutes getting into a comfortable position. Usually this winds up being lying on back with arms at my sides although sometimes I’m lying on my side.
Go through relaxation techniques. My current favorite is the 61 point relaxation technique found in “Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming”. Although I do find myself lighting up my chakras from time to time or just playing with mental energy to stay conscious.
Eventually, and it can be in minutes or quite longer, I start feeling the “vibrations” where it’s like a warm pulse running up my body from my feet to the top of my head. And this is the stage I can consistently get to without trouble.
If I wait longer I get this feeling of restlessness and I start heating up. Sometimes it’s just in my head but others I’ll stop and I’m soaked in sweat.
If I push it further I feel like I’m really…REALLY small in an indescribably vast open space.
Just recently I’ve started getting this feeling of a glowing, radiating warmth that flows through me and a sensation of a bright light but I get that restless feeling again and it fades.

I’ve tried pushing it further but I’ve just been getting increasing intensities of the warmth and restlessness until I can’t stand it anymore and I HAVE to move. Or at least that’s what’s being screamed at me from the back of my mind. I know I can push it further as that feeling’s been there since I started this stuff and that was so limited compared to what it feels like now.

Any advice? I feel like that warm glow/light might be the start of getting into a dream but is there an easier way than just focusing harder on relaxing and letting go? It hurts a lot and takes a long time; I’ll be in this kind of state for close to an hour before my willpower caves. (found by checking the clock after)

On another note; The above is when trying WILD from a cold start; with WBTB method I find myself fading out of consciousness before I get close to the same state. Any tips on how to keep yourself from just drifting off?

2

WILD from the beginning of the night is considered very hard. It is far easier to get a LD from WILDing in the morning or after a nap. Do you fall asleep too quickly after WBTB? Maybe music or some other slight disturbance could help with that? Restlessness and heating up is what I get too, if I try to force myself to sleep without being sleepy enough.

3

WBTB after a nap is actually the only time I’ve managed to LD other than through RC’s. I fall asleep way too quickly when I try to WBTB in the early morning. Might try the music thing though, or maybe binaural beats. I’ve yet to try that combo for it.

4

I do have some advice, actually.

The restlessness, some say, is a “roll signal” from your body. (Nick Newport from Lucidology came up with that name, I believe.)

So, yeah, your body is basically testing whether you’re awake or not before fully entering the sleep state (usually heralded by full-body paralysis). The signals can be quite intense and uncomfortable.

One thing you can do is wait for the first sign of restlessness, the first roll signal, and wait until it’s maximally uncomfortable and then switch positions. Then, you relax as deeply as again, and wait for the next signal to build up to discomfort. Then you move a third and last time and relax again.

The idea behind this is that the body, after the third move, will fall to sleep more quickly and you’ll enter sleep paralysis and a visionary state. From there you’ll be able to have a classic out-of-body-like experience or watch or push into mental imagery.

Also, the theory behind all this is that the body creates a sensation of restlessness, and sends a “roll signal” because it perceives the mind as still conscious.

So another solution is to respond to the restlessness by trying to completely clear your mind. Make the mind as still as possible and the body may simply enter paralysis.

Personally, I get around the restlessness by bringing myself to the point that you’re at—warmth, vibes and a sense of vastness—and then rolling over and letting myself fall asleep. I sometimes go straight from waking to a dream, but more often I use WBTB, do relaxation and strongly orient to my intention, and then let go. More often than not when I do this—especially if I get to that feeling of vastness, etc.—I fall asleep and then wake a few minutes later in the midst of sleep paralysis and move into a lucid dream experience.