Any lucid dreamers out there?

[krunkedout]

I'm working on a project involving shared lucid dreaming and landscape design. So are there any of you out there? Unfortunately I can't lucid dream yet, and I have to in order to bring my theories to life, so any tips would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Crunked]

Krunkedout,
You probably already know this, but there is a great forum here. I have been trying for a while, but as soon as I realize I'm dreaming I wake up. (Cry)

I can recommend some books and resources if you are just starting.

 

[Nihilist]

Try the am I dreaming thing.



Set your cell phone to beep or something. Every time it does ask "am I dreaming" maybe look around at stuff. You'll brain will start doing it on it's own eventually.



I used to do it a lot. If you feel like you're losing it try spinning in the dream. It actually worked when I tried it.

I kinda gave up because I don't get enough sleep. It was hard for me to control them sometimes. I don't have a very vivid imagination so they wouldn't be very clear. I guess it has something to do with my lack of creativity.

 

[kl.midas]

I've heard that 5 HTP induces lucid dreams. It's an amino acid that increases the production of serotonin, it shouldn't be mixed with SSRIs, apparently.

 

[Buddhacide]

I get them from time to time. I have a sleep disorder and have taken a range of medications trying to treat it, so I get all sorts of weird dreams, lucid among them. I hear piracetam can be used. B12 also I believe.

 

[August West]

The instant I realize i'm dreaming, I wake up. I've controlled my dreams maybe a few dozen times in my life. With that being said, rem sleep seems to be a lot more active during daytime naps, and i remember a lot more of it. And if I wake up, I can quickly attempt to fall back asleep and sometimes start dreaming where I left off. So if you're practicing, consider a lazy saturday or sunday nap.

Edit: you mentioned landscape design. What zone do you live in? I've designed quite a few gardens now, and I realized if I were ever to move, I'd have to learn all new plant material. Lately i've been incorporating a lot more of native species. They're hassle free and generally take care of themselves, due to the fact that they're native. Later.

 

[kl.new2kava]

I lucid dream pretty frequently and have learned the line between a lucid and a nightmare is very fine. At least half of my lucid dreams turn into horrible nightmares that can't be escaped.

I will force myself to wake up and go back right back to sleep and wake up exactly where I left off in the nightmare. For me lucid dreams are simply more enjoyable forms of night terrors.

The crappy thing is there is no way to end the nightmare loop once it's begun, even realizing that it's a nightmare only makes it worse. I actually really wish that I could go back to normal dreaming after the constant nightmares I get as opposed to the sweet lucid dream states I enter. I use phenibut for sleep which is similar to most nootropics except it actually crosses the bllod brain barrier and activates the GABA B receptor resulting in sedation and putting me to sleep. I highly recommend against because it is addictive and the dosage curve is like a ski jump and it results in tons of lucid dream/nightmare states.

 

[Buddhacide]

^^^i agree about phenibut. I don't get lucid dreams from it but they are some of the most realistic dreams I have had - very noticeably so.

 

[krunkedout]

I've considered trying phenibut. I'm really not worried about addictive ness though because I'm not an addictive type of person and am able to control any urges

 

[kl.new2kava]

If your gonna do it just follow the directions on the package and never take it more than 2 days in a row without a 2-3 day washout in between. This keeps the addiction from happening. GABA agonists are just plain nasty and will addict anyone and everyone. Also the stuff takes a silly amount of time to kick in 3-4 hours and leads to people taking way too much which in combination with the 30 hour half life leads to being totally fucked for days. It's quite allot like GHB or GBL and should be treated carefully. I started to taking it only for sleep and a year later my dosage is 5+ grams just to sleep and any less and I can'r sleep and have total anxiety attacks, basically has the same addiction profile as benzos. It's actually a prescription drug in Russia for anxiety and insomnia.

 

[kavalover]

Yeah, actually. I absolutely hate it. I do it all the time uncontrollably, as I suffer from sleep paralysis. In fact I use kava to counter it. lol. For most people, when the brain induces the state of muscular atony to prevent you from literally acting out dreams while in REM, they'll sleep right through it. For me, I will become absolutely aware that I cannot move and it is terrifying. It either leads to me having the ability to wander worlds that I can create in an instant (while I will admit, is pretty cool. there is a lot of potential for self - therapy in lucid dreaming I think) or I will be locked in a state of absolute panic whilst visualizing terrible, terrible things and beings (shadows, demonic figures ect) with auditory hallucinations resembling that of high winds and screeching. The latter is more common that the former unfortunately and I can't stand it. Even the good times, suck, because I wake up feeling as if I haven't ever slept in the first place. Thank the kava gods that kava has eliminated this curse.



If you want to induce sleep paralysis though, I've heard a successful technique to be setting an alarm somewhere along the lines of 3+ hours after you intend to lay down to actually sleep. Wake up, quickly take a piss or something, keep the lights off, and immediately go back to sleep and crash out. Once paralysis sets in, it's pretty easy from there. But by god I hope you find a better way. lol.

 

[krunkedout]

My general goal here is to collect a group of experienced and talent lucid dreamers. After that I would like to design a dream landscape with them as a meeting ground, and when we are all lucid at the same time, we visualize that place and go there. The idea of shared dreaming has always fascinated me. I think there is great potential in lucid and shared dreaming and think it should be further explored. Another thing that fascinates me is the ability to slow down time in a lucid dream.

 

[kl.midas]

Yeah, actually. I absolutely hate it. I do it all the time uncontrollably, as I suffer from sleep paralysis. In fact I use kava to counter it. lol. For most people, when the brain induces the state of muscular atony to prevent you from literally acting out dreams while in REM, they'll sleep right through it. For me, I will become absolutely aware that I cannot move and it is terrifying. It either leads to me having the ability to wander worlds that I can create in an instant (while I will admit, is pretty cool. there is a lot of potential for self - therapy in lucid dreaming I think) or I will be locked in a state of absolute panic whilst visualizing terrible, terrible things and beings (shadows, demonic figures ect) with auditory hallucinations resembling that of high winds and screeching. The latter is more common that the former unfortunately and I can't stand it. Even the good times, suck, because I wake up feeling as if I haven't ever slept in the first place. Thank the kava gods that kava has eliminated this curse.



If you want to induce sleep paralysis though, I've heard a successful technique to be setting an alarm somewhere along the lines of 3+ hours after you intend to lay down to actually sleep. Wake up, quickly take a piss or something, keep the lights off, and immediately go back to sleep and crash out. Once paralysis sets in, it's pretty easy from there. But by god I hope you find a better way. lol.

I get sleep paralysis now and again too. You're right, it's absolutely terrifying to be conscious but unable to move a muscle. I start panicking that I won't ever be able to snap out of it and I'll be stuck that way forever. I always try to open my mouth to scream but no part of my body works!

 

[Kojo Douglas]

Lucid dreaming takes practice. Start with something small and work to bigger and better things. It is one of the only "new agey" things that I actually think deserves recognition.

 

[kavadude]

I tried lucid dreaming for awhile, but I have sleep apnea so I wake up constantly while sleeping. Hoping to try again after I get it fixed.

 

[Vekta]

I had a few lucid dreams in the past. They were horrifying. I don't know if it being a lucid dream was a good or bad thing. It's as close to this as I want to come... (skip to 2:30)
(flash video)

 

[kl.metacog]

I gave lucid dreaming an honest effort a year or so ago, and had great experiences (controlled flight, so badass) but more often than not I just ripped myself out of REM multiple times a night. It's a commitment to your waking as well as dreaming life.



Nowadays I almost always have self recognition that what I'm experiencing is a dream, but usually whatever is going on is pretty interesting, so I just...let go of the reigns. I do need to work on my recall though...

 

[krunkedout]

I'm slowly getting closer to being lucid. I now recognize that things are really weird but I don't realize I'm dreaming yet.

 

[scampo]

I've been able to do it a few times, but I struggle with 1) realizing I am dreaming, and 2) keeping in the dream once I realize it.



The spinning thing has worked for me before. A couple of tricks I have used to realize I am dreaming are to look at clock faces - if they are gibberish or you can't see them, it's a dream. The other is to take your finger and stab the palm of your other hand - if it goes through your hand, you are dreaming. I'm sure this is all on the forums that Crunked posted - but I can verify that it has worked for me.



I never can get the flying thing though - I also tried to shoot lightning / fire out of my hands, and that didn't work either...

 

[kl.Lanake]

I do it quite often and sometimes I'm able to learn something about myself or come up with a solution to some problem that had been bothering me. Can be problematic at times. Last night I had a dream that I was in a post apocolyptic landscape being chased by Vincent D'Onofrio (his character from Full Metal Jacket) who was trying to smash my head with a rock. All to the sound of Maidenhair Fern by Don Tiki.