Good advice. I find it the hardest to recall details in conversations I have in dreams so hopefully my brain will get the message soon.
Sometimes I get the gist or a detail about something that happened in a dream is just on the tip of my tongue, but I usually have a hard time putting it in words while I’m writing in my dream journal.
Yay! Person who wrote this, you have inspired me to write my first entry in my dream journal! Status: normal dream. Rank: step 1.
I’m glad I could help out!
In the past month or two I have not been keeping up with my lucid dreaming at all and have lost most of my recall and have not been lucid dreaming at all. However, I see this as a chance to start fresh; close to where the beginners start (only difference is I have experienced a lucid dream and know the feeling).
I will be following through my guide and recording my progress in this topic. I think this will provide an interesting addition to the guide as well as provide a good comparison for people who are also following my guide.
If anyone else is willing to join me in this, let me know! The only thing I would require of you is to allow me to post your progress and DJ entries in the topic.
Reply in this topic or send me a PM and we can arrange something!
Im completely new to ld but im very exited over the prospect and i have decided to collow this guide religously as it seems to have got many compliments. thanks for posting it. I do have a few questions though , personally im not very good at remembering dreams (think im pretty much at stage one) will keeping a journal and adding my one dream a week see my dreams increasing in frequency or just vividness because i would love to have them more regularly. and another question i have been advised from someone not to look in a mirror which has me worried , is there anything in them? haha sorry for the long post any help would be appreciated
thanks 
this is gold… “If you have increased your vividness enough, you will automatically become lucid.” i have done some wbtb with wild, with good success(but short dreams). but i dont like taking naps or going up 4 hours earlier just to go back to bed again : 
it would be awesome if i could ld when i sleep “regularly” i will definitely write down my dreams in the future
Hi ritchie222 
In regards to your journal, keep it ready at all times. Whenever you wake up write down anything you can think of, even if it is just a setting, a feeling, a picture or just a though. Anything will help. I also suggest you wake up about 5 hours after first going to sleep and then going back to sleep. This will drastically help your recall.
As for the mirror, there’s nothing wrong with looking at one. Some people have said the image can be disfigured, but for many others it’s perfectly normal. Just don’t freak out about it and it won’t bother you. If you want some real fun you should walk through the mirror 
thanks for the help and putting my mind at ease haha
as for the journal im going to keep a pad next to my bed
hi I´m very glad I read your guide because I´we try´ed almost every method there is with little to none progress.
And I have always been very lazy in the DJ stuff simply because I did not think it was as important as ppl claimed it to bee, but in my opinion what you just wrote makes a lot more sense than I ever thought it could make when I first started to read it.
Anyways I have decided to follow your guide as well as I can but there is a little problem, when I´ve written in my DJ in the past,
I´ve had no problem remembering at least one dream that has had me writing like 2-3 pages (my handwriting is weary poor and in big letters so for normal ppl it might actually be like 1 and a half pages 
).
Anyways what I´ve been wondering is this, which should i pay more attention to when I´m first starting out my DJ the details of the senses like the smell,sound,sight,surrounding,feeling and touch etch or the storyline it self like what happened or what it was about and so on and so on, because as I said those 2-3 pages where all about the story but if I would add the senses it would probable add another 2-3 pages if not 4 and I´m afraid that trying to do both @ the same time or one at a time would increase the risk of forgetting a big part of the dream story or sens I would otherwise have remembered.
And I would like to add one thing (if I´m not already making you insane with my unnecessarily long post-replay 
) I have always had a slight memory problem as in I can be thinking of something (day dreaming) and even thou I´m really in to what ever it is I tend to all of a sudden forget it and be like trying my very best to try to remember what the f*** it was to finish it sometimes even for hours, and that is what I´m a bit scared of happening if I take to long trying to remember my dream 
well thanks for reading my post-replay and if you see it fit to replay to it I´d like to thanks in advance for it
Thank you Rathez, this is really an Ultimate Guide.
Quoted for truth.
Great guide, and you’ve motivated me to finally start writing a DJ! ^^
Yeah, I’ve always assumed that it’s probably beneficial for your Lucid Dreaming abilities if you allow it to take some time.
For example, rather than being all “it’s about time I’m having a lucid dream tonight!” you are more like “ok I will record my dreams and it’s fine if this takes a month or so, getting lucid at once is not a must”. 
Thanks Rathez it a great Guide/Tutorial
I`m so tired reading 
about different techniques. What i think is the most important (for a rookie) is a Journal and recalling dreams. Now you and your guide just proved it to me.
Thank you, utah
The techniques are still pretty useful, though;
if your dreams become super-vivid then reality checks will let you know that it is in fact a dream.
I think that’s how you’re really supposed to do it - my little brother gave up on this because his reality checks didn’t work, but he would probably succeed if he knew about the technique mentioned in this thread.
Oh wow! I JUST read this guide last night and I must say, it motivated me SO much to keep track of my dream journal more! It’s weird, just last night I had a dream where I wrote in my dream journal. The dream wasn’t that vivid though. Boo.
Anyways, my question has to do with the senses. When I dream, I really don’t take notice about senses like taste and smell. If you’re vividness increases, will those senses increase too? How can I really feel these senses when I’m dreaming? I’m basically talking about everything BUT seeing and hearing. Thanks:)
First of all, the senses will only start to appear more often if you place emphasis on those specific senses.
What you need to start doing then to bring the senses into dreams is to start recognizing them when you’re awake. Your normal daily routines is the vessel that carries over qualities to the dreaming world. If you make smelling the air a normal routine action for you, you’ll start doing it in a dream.
Then from the dream, you just have to record it like you would with vision and hearing. Hope this helps!
Ok…Ok!! I can understand that i am like farting!!in my country
we have such a phrase for guys like me…I like criticism and i act like
a “know all” jackass…the most of my posts will be like that i guess…
i feel sorry if i make you feel uncomfortable…they are just thoughts…
the bad side of democracy…i am free to say them…
Let me begin…
A proven thing that we need to know is that when we sleep we
storage memory…so don’t try to memorize something in WL
which you can store it while being in a LD…(I wrote it again…
try to use memorizing methods when you are in the LD…)
such as connection of real and lucid memories…this will make
you remember when you will wake up…am I right?NO??why??You
know the answer…to the most of you have happened a story like
this…
A dream’s scene-story was like a scene-story of your WL…and
what happened?you got confused about what is real…for a second
and then you keep remember this dream…
why this happens?because there is a bridge between this 2 memories…
build the bridges!!!or laugh at me…
there are also stories of many people who remembered a dream they had
after many days or months by a similar situation that happend
to this dream and WL!!is it not funny??this specific dream was
memorized by them but they couldn’t reach it…I am not lying…i guess
So as a conclusion to memory…dont panic with diary in my opinion…
keep diaries and journals for other purposes!!and there are more
important purposes to do this…such us write down what you understand
about yourself in a LD…or what you did and like it…like flying!!
You should realize that LD is not an adventure…it is just adventure too!!(greek way of expression)
this is mostly your mistake…i am new to the community
and i didn’t know that other people have LDs until some days ago…
keep this in mind…but keep also in mind that there are massage devices
which are used by women to masturbate…LDs are mostly talkings with
some different angles of our own thoughts…like a multi-personality ego…
but this happens when dreaming so it’s not bad…because it’s like YOU+you…
YOU are the master and you are the assistants…
secondly and goes on…dreams are coordinations of our sound card
graphics card etc. LDs are orders we give to this parts of human brain…
so i disagree with this guide…because…i believe that is foolish to
start LDs by waiting more vivid dreams…may this is the first reason
but its the wrong path…why?because dreaming is not made for that!!
Havelok Ellis said that dreams are real as much they last,more than life!!
He is true but…
I advise you not to “take” this path…if you want LDs read about dreams and
the procedures are made during them by your brain…read Michel Jouvet dream book…
Firstly dreams are exist during REM so dont try some methods
which may confuse your brain shedule they work but are pointless…just sleep…and when REM
comes then have a LD…
How?are you joking?tell a friend when sees you to be into REM(it’s easy to understand)
to kindly remind you
to lucid dream!!what i mean is that when we are in REM we don’t feel something of the surroundings
only when something is “strong”…like a bell…gets into the sound card!!and then there are some “paths”
first we wake up…second having a False awake… third fall again into deep sleep…pick your path…
in the 2 of this 3 paths you can achieve a LD…if you know about dreams
you will better understand my writing…i’m sorry for my english…
I will not stop until everyone be a lucid dreamer!!
So realize that some specific sounds…which you pick…can give you a LD…
RC is also good…diaries are good…but all are only good…what you should do
is to be friend with the dreamaker who is in your brain!!!read some post i made and you will
understand what i mean…all you need are a few LDs…after the first steps(right one’s)
you will be fully able!!
Also the time that i have a LD i can remember other LDs…try it…the next time a LD is happen to you
dont make it adventure…make it an introspection travel in your brain…and ask to see him again…
when you ask this the centre of dreams is touched from your willing…that’s how we work…
Our neurons are like pixels with the RC and DJ you put more pixels in the picture it’s true…
but it’s better to entirely create this picture-order…
AND A TIP WHICH HAS TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS CAPS-WAY!!
IN YOUR NEXT LD OPEN A DOOR AND GO BACK TO A FAMILIAR ROOM(BEDROOM)
when you wake up you will remember anything…this happens not from a dream in your bedroom…
but from a LD in which you choose to go to your bedroom…
that’s a novice way of memorizing…and this is brain exercise for me…build the bridges again…
it’s wrong trying to make sense of your dream…why?because is false-sense…its only good
for memorizing but i told you better ways to memorize…if you want to make sense ask
this question while dreaming only!!and then tell me if you could forget something!!!not remember…forget…
The only thing which is right about the DJ is that makes you curious into your dreams…this wakes you up…
but there is a better way so…it’s up to you…Imagine (and it’s almost true) that when you are dreaming
there is a maestro who beats the tone of dreams…parts of our brain like a “graphics card”,“sound card”,
and other “cards” which give us senses…are obey to the maestro!!you have to be friends with him…
then the brain us body part will get used to have the part of conscious awake while dreaming…this is LD!!!
I dont know the language properly and i am confused myself!!so it’s better to write them in Greek
and someone who can translate them post them…i will reply to any of your questions…
I feel that i am write…i dont believe it…but i do believe nothing in general…
I have a problem while editting so i post an add-reply…
When i am writing false awake i mean FA but in my opinion in the forum is not complete as it should
the translate of the FA…FA may happen any time
REM cycle starts again!!! the only true experiments are made in animals who dream
on have shown us that almost every dream starts while we wake up in a “place”…due
to the confusion is made after LD we have FAdreams…this means that the most times
something conscious(like our mother trying to wake us up…or after LD)inserted into
dreamlife(REM) then we may can memorize this dream and call it FA and this dreams are “directed”
in more real tones…
try to find the experiment with the cat while she dreams…you may realize that if any dream
starts in a certain way…the only thing you should do for LD is to make RC when you wake
up or change enviroment(change room)then…who knows?LD may be easier…and also
you will be lucid from the beginning…and maybe then you can plan your dreams…maybe
I have forgotten many things to write maybe some other time…
I was doing the alternative to journaling -which was reviewing the dream in my mind through the morning -which worked okay at first. I have even become lucid a couple of times. But after reading this -I get it. And journaling this morning was 100000% better than my other approach.
The journaling approach in your thread should be a front and center guide -up there with the translation of the abbreviations in this forum. The WHY to Journaling as well as the HOW to Journaling is all here. And now my journaling has purpose -to get the next dream more vivid. Like working out the mind!!!
Thanks so much, that was a brilliant read!
I will be taking all this into account tonight and hopefully move closer to lucid dreaming!