Does this seem odd?  Perhaps, but many people have found that in their dreams their hands do not look normal.  Like anything else that requires detail, dreams have a tendency to distort, especially when a specific perception becomes a focus in the dream.  Thus looking at your hands can become a trigger while you are dreaming – a trigger that can help you become fully aware and awake when you notice that your hands do not appear right.  Suddenly you are having a lucid dream from this simple yet powerful technique!

People report that their hands look stretched out, or they have extra fingers, or are otherwise misshapen in their dreams, especially when they are focused upon.  Anything different from real life such as this can become a lucid dreaming trigger.  So concentrate today and over the next few days on looking at your hands.  If that impulse carries over into your dream life, which it likely will, you may find yourself learning how to lucid dream in no time.

Now, look at your hands again…

So our first how to step in lucid dreaming is taking a little while and using simple techniques to remember your dreams.  This can include suggestions made to yourself before you go to sleep, the use of a dream journal first thing in the morning, and even waking yourself up in the early morning hours during the time you are likely dreaming to make it easiest to remember.  Even these simple steps will help you more routinely remember your dreams, and only then will it be worth investing time into learning how to lucid dream.

Welcome to this site if you are new to lucid dreaming!  We hope you will take the advice in this post so you can actually remember the wonderful experiences you have when you begin to use powerful lucid dreaming techniques that we cover here.   

What you should be aware of, however, is that some lucid dreaming supplements can lose their effect of taken too often.  In fact, some even can have the opposite effect if the become relied upon.  You can check out the various supplements at our sister site here, but the point to be made is that taking these aids should always be in conjunction with doing all necessary techniques you would do without them, with the same diligence and effort.  You do not want to become reliant on these lucid dream aids, no matter how much effect they give, to help you learn how to lucid dream.

Another point should be made that lucid dreaming supplements can sometimes have unwanted effects such as interfering with the amount of deeper sleep you get, or causing you to wake up after particularly vivid dreams.  As much as lucid dreaming can be exciting and an incredible experience, be careful if using supplements that you do not let your lucid dreaming adventure interfere with your waking life.

A newer theory that we like here at Dream Doorway has been put forth that suggests that dreams are actually a form of self-analysis or self-psychology.  This theory suggests that dreams are merely trying to make sense of less-than conscious desires or thoughts - that it is emotional confusion and uncertainty that the person harbors about their current life or past that the dream world is trying to unravel and piece together to make sense.

Here at Dream Doorway we’ve dedicated a page to dream meanings.

After you stop using your journal you may gradually find that you are only remembering those dreams that are particularly dynamic and powerful, or those that happen right around the time that you wake up.  You may still remember most of your lucid dreams, but keep in mind that sometimes knowing your non-lucid dreams can help you visualize keys and pathways into lucidity – literally allowing you to plant the suggestion, “the next time I dream about that, I will be lucid”

Nothing has been proven to help you remember more detail and depth of your dreams than a good dream journal that you keep diligently.  If you stray from using a dream journal you take the risk that you will slow your progress toward having more, and longer, and more detailed lucid dream experiences.

One thing to rememeber when working with others is that everyone will learn and become effective at lucid dreaming at different rates, so do not be discouraged if your partners(s) learn more quickly than you.  Just learn from their successes, but be patient with yourself - lucid dreaming is natural and possible, and with hard work you should be able to be awake, lucid and in control in your own dreams so that you might share your own adventures with your supports as well! 

At our main site at “The Lucid Dreaming Center” we have a section dedicated to sharing the experiences of lucid dreamers like yourself.

One related piece of advice is that if you have not had any lucid dreams to this point and are just starting out, do not start taking lucid dreaming supplements.  One thing that advanced lucid dreamers are very aware of is that the excitement of your first few lucid dreams can actually cause you to wake up.  If you use lucid dreaming supplements to make your dreams more vivid, the chances that the dream will make you wake up are enhanced.  It may actually be better, in fact, for your first lucid dreams to be benign and serene.

Best of luck!

For example, imagine you are afraid of public speaking.  Once you get expert at lucid dreaming, guide your dream world to a place as similar as possible to where you might find yourself having to give a public presentation.  Then give the presentation and guide your lucid dream toward an environment where the speech is a huge success, and where you feel completely calm and excited about the experience.

You can even get creative with the lucid dream rehearsal technique.  You can imagine yourself in the audience for your own talk!  Look around and see people interested and exited about the topic.  Notice yourself up front looking calm and relaxed.  Or, imagine being at a gathering afterwards where you are thinking back on the positive experience of giving the talk, and having people come up to you to tell you how great it was.

Using lucid dream rehearsal for events and activities that you are worried about can be a powerful and effective way to work out anxieties!

Why are we making such a big deal about noticing reflections in your waking life?  In a lucid dream you will not be able to see your reflection, or your reflection will be distorted.  So one of these times you will be looking for your reflection, asking yourself if you are dreaming, and the image will become distorted…congratulations – you are in a lucid dream!  One further piece of advice: During this initial phase of the lucid dream do not rush into the dream world…as if thanking your dream state for allowing this technique to work, just relax and consider the distorted reflection for a minute.  Enjoy the fact that you are in a lucid dream!  Then slowly look around and see what there is to see…even if the dream does not last too much longer you know you are capable, and you know this lucid dream how-to technique worked.

Basically the problem of waking up during a lucid dream stems from our tendency to wake up when in a state of heightened arousal – it is a natural and protective reaction that would ensure that we would wake up if something urgent was going on around us.  Unfortunately for the novice just learning how to lucid dream, there is no easy way, beyond practice, to try to shut down our natural tendency to wake up when overly aroused emotionally while asleep.

So, our advice: Congratulations on having a lucid dream in the first place, and know that with a little practice you will get better at remaining in the sleep state.