I APed for the first time, now I cant get even close! HELP!

Hello,

You may have seen in my previous thread that I managed to AP for the first time. It was great.

But now Im facing some difficulties. I cant even seem to get into a deep relaxation stage anymore. My mind drifts too easily from what im trying to achieve and I end up just falling asleep. I try every night before I sleep. Maybe tiredness has something to do with it?

Thanks in advance,

Tom

[astralsuzy]

We have to keep trying different ways until something works. People do say, to AP before going to sleep is not a good idea as you will fall asleep. There are a couple of options you can try. If you want to AP before going to sleep, you need to keep yourself awake. If I meditate before I sleep I will always fall asleep without fail. If I lie on my back I have a chance to stay awake. If I lie on my side, I always fall asleep. You have to work out what is best for you. You can lie there without moving and count to yourself or something else. When you are forgetting to count, it means you are falling asleep. You will need to wake up and walk around to wake up and then start again. Your mind needs to be relaxed, otherwise you can be counting for hours without APing. I have found it is extremely important to relax the mind. When the mind is very relaxed, the body will follow.
The other suggestion is, you can wake up after you had some sleep or a few hours sleep and then try to AP. When I try to do that I always get impatient and I turn over to go to sleep. If you are like me, it would be a good idea to go into another room and try to AP. Still try to AP when you have had all the sleep you need. You never know, you could surprise yourself and AP.

[nephesh]

You did it once so know you know you can do it. Tiredness could have something to do with it since your more likely to fall asleep. Since you have achieved getting out of body maybe you are expecting it too much. Try and relax and not think too much about Aping just let it come but try not to be upset/frustrated if it does not happen. Maybe you can try doing it during the day. You might also try doing relaxation exercises.

[Xanth]

There's usually a small hurdle when someone projects once... it then puts an expectation upon them, which, when isn't immediately met, the person becomes disappointed, or even worse, begins to question their initial experience... asking themselves if it was even real.

Well, suffice to say it WAS real... and also remove that expectation from yourself. When you practice, don't practice with any particular goal in mind... just enjoy the sensations that come along with quieting your mind. Allow your consciousness to do the rest. :)

Agree with Xanth. Also, I AP frequently, but sometimes I have really long dry spells (a month or longer) with nothing. It is frustrating, but you learn to go with the flow. What works best for me is to just notice the blackness behind my eyelids. Also, feeling my body 'sinking' like you mentioned in your last post. But, you will find what works best for you too. In the meantime, just relax and enjoy the peacefulness of the quiet that occurs even if you don't AP.

Angie

The first time, maybe you needed to project to prove something to yourself. But in the bigger picture of your life, what is the need in you to project about?

Originally Posted by xxheatherxx

The first time, maybe you needed to project to prove something to yourself. But in the bigger picture of your life, what is the need in you to project about?

Paralysis is the reason I long to astral... Would be awesome if it happened :)

[astralsuzy]

I agree with the others. I realise that these five things are probably making AP a lot harder for me. They are:

1. doubt that I can do it, even though I have AP lots
2. it will take too long
3. thinking about relaxing when I should be forgetting about it and letting it happen
4. expecting AP to happen
5. not concentrating so I end up in a dream.