I have a lucid dream probably every 3 months.
An interesting thing to note is that a few weeks ago I read an article on lucid dreaming, and when I was laying in bed I told myself I would have a lucid dream. Then I tested reality by looking at my watch, noting the time, and looking at it again a short while later.
The next thing I know, I was dreaming and somebody was smoking this really odd-looking cigar. I thought to myself "that's weird, I should check reality and see if this a dream". So I did, and I realized I was dreaming. Just to "prove" it, I did a really awesome backflip over a huge statue that was there.
If you want to have a lucid dream, I would suggest to start doing reality checks in real life. Throughout the day, make a point of proving to yourself that this is reality. If you have a piece of paper in your pocket that has words on it, read the words, put it back in your pocket, and read the words a short time later. If you read the same thing both times, it's probably reality. In a dream, the text would probably be way different the second time. The same thing works with a digital watch, or really anything else that might be inconsistent in a dream.
The idea is that if you make a habit of this in real life, you might someday think to do it in your dream. It's not guaranteed to work though. I have had several dreams where I did a reality check and I came to wrong conclusion.
I've also noticed that my lucid dreams almost always happen in the morning. The pattern I've notice is: wake up at 7:00 or 8:00, go back to sleep, have lucid dream, wake up at 10:00. I've heard of people intentionally waking up a few hours early and then going to bed a short while later.
You should also start keeping a dream journal to help you with dream recall. If you write down as many details as you can, you will be more aware of the patterns that emerge, and you will have a greater chance of recognizing a dream when you're in it.
Randomulus said:
I also seem to have a problem keeping myself from waking up. Does anyone have any tips on how to induce a lucid dream and keep yourself asleep?
That's the problem I usually have too. One thing I've noticed that helps is to not even think about your eyes. If you consciously blink your eyes during a lucid dream, you might wake up. If you rub your eyes or try to open them wide, you will probably wake up.
One thing that has worked for me is when I start becoming too lucid to just relax and let myself get sucked back into the dream. Just try to go the way it pulls you, and act like you would in real life. The drawback is if you aren't careful you will just end up back in a normal dream. The trick is to walk that fine line. Don't get too excited, and don't try to do a ton of stuff in your dream world, but at the same time, maintain lucidity. Though I have noticed that I almost always wake up from a lucid dream. I can only remember one instance where I didn't wake up.
