Jayme
13-05-2013, 05:06 PM
Hello! I haven’t seen any guides on lucid dreaming here (If there is one I apologize for missing it), so I’ve decided to write my own to help any of you struggling with achieving the lucid state! I will be writing guides on every LD technique I have practiced, starting with WBTB (Wake-Back-To-Bed). While this isn’t exactly a technique in itself, it can be used as an aid for other techniques that I will write about soon.
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Jayme’s WBTB Guide For Lucid Dreaming - Intro
WBTB is when you wake up after a few hours of sleep when you’re in REM sleep, which would usually be around 3-6 hours into sleep. If you’re sleep deprived you could go into REM instantly, so keep this in mind when you are doing WBTB. After waking up, you go back to sleep. It sounds simple, but you must remember to keep in mind your own sleep cycle and what works best for you.
Things To Keep In Mind
Everyone has a different sleep cycle. I sleep between 11 p.m. and 6:30 a.m., sometimes waking up between 3 or 4. What you want to do is wake up near the end of a REM cycle, so you want to schedule your sleep accordingly. If you wake up too early you won’t be completely in REM, if you wake up too late you’ll have difficulty getting back to sleep (I do this far too often). Because of this, you must practice. You cannot expect WBTB to work on the first try because you have to know yourself.
The Guide
1. When you go to bed set your alarm to go off 4-6 hours later. As you drift off to sleep, focus on how you want to lucid dream and how you will accomplish WBTB. For example, you could visualize what you want to do in your lucid dream that night, and repeat mantras to yourself in your head such as “I will succeed in WBTB tonight”.
2. When your alarm goes off, get up and turn it off then perform a reality check (You can also do these throughout your awake time if you plan to stay in bed). If you don’t know what a reality check is, it is performing a certain action that would normally be impossible in real life but possible in a dream. Here are some common reality checks:
* Pinching your nose tight and trying to breathe
* Trying to push your finger through your hand
* Trying to stretch your finger (Don’t pull too hard, you could dislocate it)
* Trying to turn on a light switch (I don’t recommend this one for WBTB, don’t wanna strain your eyes :) )
If you're not dreaming these won't work. But if your finger suddenly stretches like putty or you're able to breathe through your nose, congratulations, you're already in a lucid dream. Now just hope your alarm doesn't wake you up too soon. If your RC was unsuccessful, continue going through with the "technique".
3. Now it’s time to become aware! You can stay up for as long as you want, but try not to go past an hour. It really depends on who you are. During this time become excited for your lucid dream, believe that once you go back to bed you will lucid dream. It’s good to read up on lucid dreaming or listening to some soothing music, but avoid bright lights. Like you did before going to sleep, visualize what you want to do and repeat mantras to yourself.
4. Finally, it’s time to go back to bed! Keep repeating mantras to yourself and visualizing as you drift off to sleep. Don’t focus too hard, you don’t want to keep yourself awake.
And now you're asleep! If you're 'awake' again, do an RC because it could be a dream. Keep that in mind; your brain loves playing tricks on you!
If it doesn’t work the first time, don’t sweat it! Make any adjustments you need, like I said everyone is different. Some people enjoy taking a snack break during the time they’re awake in the night, while others enjoy reading. Just keep your mind focused on having a lucid dream, and don’t lose hope. Believe that you will have a lucid dream, and you will succeed.
Good luck! Please let me know if any of you succeed! I'll be happy to write more guides in the future if this one receives a good response.
Cheers.
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Jayme’s WBTB Guide For Lucid Dreaming - Intro
WBTB is when you wake up after a few hours of sleep when you’re in REM sleep, which would usually be around 3-6 hours into sleep. If you’re sleep deprived you could go into REM instantly, so keep this in mind when you are doing WBTB. After waking up, you go back to sleep. It sounds simple, but you must remember to keep in mind your own sleep cycle and what works best for you.
Things To Keep In Mind
Everyone has a different sleep cycle. I sleep between 11 p.m. and 6:30 a.m., sometimes waking up between 3 or 4. What you want to do is wake up near the end of a REM cycle, so you want to schedule your sleep accordingly. If you wake up too early you won’t be completely in REM, if you wake up too late you’ll have difficulty getting back to sleep (I do this far too often). Because of this, you must practice. You cannot expect WBTB to work on the first try because you have to know yourself.
The Guide
1. When you go to bed set your alarm to go off 4-6 hours later. As you drift off to sleep, focus on how you want to lucid dream and how you will accomplish WBTB. For example, you could visualize what you want to do in your lucid dream that night, and repeat mantras to yourself in your head such as “I will succeed in WBTB tonight”.
2. When your alarm goes off, get up and turn it off then perform a reality check (You can also do these throughout your awake time if you plan to stay in bed). If you don’t know what a reality check is, it is performing a certain action that would normally be impossible in real life but possible in a dream. Here are some common reality checks:
* Pinching your nose tight and trying to breathe
* Trying to push your finger through your hand
* Trying to stretch your finger (Don’t pull too hard, you could dislocate it)
* Trying to turn on a light switch (I don’t recommend this one for WBTB, don’t wanna strain your eyes :) )
If you're not dreaming these won't work. But if your finger suddenly stretches like putty or you're able to breathe through your nose, congratulations, you're already in a lucid dream. Now just hope your alarm doesn't wake you up too soon. If your RC was unsuccessful, continue going through with the "technique".
3. Now it’s time to become aware! You can stay up for as long as you want, but try not to go past an hour. It really depends on who you are. During this time become excited for your lucid dream, believe that once you go back to bed you will lucid dream. It’s good to read up on lucid dreaming or listening to some soothing music, but avoid bright lights. Like you did before going to sleep, visualize what you want to do and repeat mantras to yourself.
4. Finally, it’s time to go back to bed! Keep repeating mantras to yourself and visualizing as you drift off to sleep. Don’t focus too hard, you don’t want to keep yourself awake.
And now you're asleep! If you're 'awake' again, do an RC because it could be a dream. Keep that in mind; your brain loves playing tricks on you!
If it doesn’t work the first time, don’t sweat it! Make any adjustments you need, like I said everyone is different. Some people enjoy taking a snack break during the time they’re awake in the night, while others enjoy reading. Just keep your mind focused on having a lucid dream, and don’t lose hope. Believe that you will have a lucid dream, and you will succeed.
Good luck! Please let me know if any of you succeed! I'll be happy to write more guides in the future if this one receives a good response.
Cheers.