the only "energy work" I do is my Tai Chi (classes twice a week). I've never done NEW. And I was experiencing OBEs before I ever started tai chi.

Short answer...no you don't need to do energy work to have OBEs.

I do find that if one projector believes certain things aren't possible, then it has a 'domino' effect (belief-wise).

Very well said. I know there are a couple of things I used to do naturally, without thinking about it. ANd then started reading stuff and considering other ideas, and now I can't do those things like before. I don't believe what I read, but its almost like the thoughts remain in my mind as blocks or obstacles that I need to intentionally work through. Not sure if that makes sense or not.

I've gotten through most of my blocks...mainly because I got ticked off at myself and 'forced' them to change. But this last one is more stubborn than I am...so far...but I'm not finished with it yet!   

however they stopped me in mid-air!    I had to climb onto them and continue from there.

Really?!  I've never heard of that before. Although I guess it isn't too surprising, if you believe that all of this universe is varying types of energy...hmm...may have to try and find some electrical lines next time to play with this. 

I think it is more in-depth than what Stillwater explained. Again, this is my own personal opinion, but my sense is that you review your life, but as it reviews, you relive it through the hearts and minds of others. In other words, you see and feel how every person you've interacted with feels at the time. Not only how they feel themselve from what you did/said in that situation, but how they see you.

I've had something similar happen in a few dreams I've had. Where I will be in a group of people talking, then suddenly I'm another person in the group responding. At the time, I know I was just the first person and I know how that person is thinking and feeling. But now I'm also thinking and feeling like this person. Then I'll jump to the next and so on. It sounds confusing, I know, but in the dream at the time, its all perfectly normal to me. Sometimes I simply save the 'jumping' part and instead I remain in 3rd person and I understand the thoughts and feelings of everyone at the same time as I watch the dream unfold.

Because of those experiences, my sense is that the concept of a life review is much more useful/important if you don't relive your life as you, rather you live it through the eyes of others you have either wronged or righted.

Hope that makes sense!

This topic has been moved to Welcome to Book Reviews!.

http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/index.php?topic=26623.0

As for tips and techniques to OBE and AP, I would suggest you read the various methods in the Astral FAQ and Permanent Astral Topics sections.

Regarding your experiences, its hard to say. You are describing classic OBE signs (falling through the bed, seperate body, etc). From your descriptions, all of your experiences have been in the etheric/RTZ area. It is possible to see deceased people while out, although I've never experienced this in the etheric/RTZ, only in the astral.

However, I have seen other people who were asleep and OBE at the time, but unaware. They tend to walk around in the etheric almost like zombies. Other 'people' I've seen while OBE have been dream characters. This could be what happened with you. It all depends upon your awareness at the time. The more aware you are, the less likely you are to experience scary things because you are in control of your thoughts. When your thoughts stray, then the experience becomes distorted and you get an overlay of dream images/experiences.

One thing to remember in all of this is that they are all influenced and driven by thoughts and feelings. It's possible to OBE and be barely aware. At this stage, you may suspect or vaguely know you are OBE, but your mind is hazy and the experience is cluttered with dream characters and situations.

I've never had any scary experience like this while OBE or AP, so I can't tell you anything else beyond what I personally have experienced. You may want to post your "cloaked guy" questions in the Psychic and Paranormal board. Users there may have other suggestions for you.

I've never gone through anything electric. But I've done doors and windows and water. Water is the coolest -- at least in my opinion. Jumping into water is almost like getting ice water dumped on you, but not the feeling of cold. Its the instant jolt of energy that it causes. Its almost like the feeling you get when you splash cold water on your face to wake up. But I find it heightens my awareness a bit when I jump into water. And the refreshing sensation goes through my body, not just on the surface like you feel in the physical.

I've never heard of this before. Where have you read this?

Some people view OBE/AP as a spiritual progression, and in that respect they believe that a vegetarian/vegan diet is best (no harm to animals-type-thing). But I've never heard of a vegetarian diet helping beyond the spiritual belief.

Welcome Mr. Dood (my parents taught me to respect my elders)   

Actually you aren't much older than me or several others, so I won't be calling you 'old'!

There is a lot of info on these forums. The Permanent Astral Topics and Astral FAQ sections are good places to start if you are looking for more input.

We look forward to reading more from you!

Since you posted here and not in the OBE board, I'm assuming you are more interested in phasing, which is my preferred method as well. With phasing, you don't focus on energy surges or body seperation. Frank's phasing post is kinda considered a 'golden oldie' here.

http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_the_astral_faq/what_is_phasing_and_how_can_i_do_it-t17413.0.html

He bases his off of Monroe, but notes a few of his own modifications/adjustments. If you can reach the hypnogagic (seeing images) then you should read and practice what's in this post. You are very close, believe it or not. Relaxation, or the lack thereof, is one of the largest stumbling blocks for everyone trying this. Most people who think they are fully relaxed, are still very tense. Your body feeling heavy is a good sign. It should then feel light as a feather, like you are floating away. Eventually it will melt into nothingness. You don't feel like you have a body at all. I've never had much success with the tense/release method myself. But what does work for me is doing this after some type of physical exercise. Get your muscles really tired, then grab a hot shower. Afterwards lie down and relax. If the muscles are already tired and ready to relax from the work out, it requires a lot less effort on your part to 'force' them to relax (not to mention the health benefits to you from the exercise).

The second biggest stumbling block with phasing is focus. The vast majority of people have a very hard time focusing on one thing, to the exclusion of all else. A big part of the problem is our society, particularly in the west. Its very much based on sensory overload. The idea with phasing is to ignore all physical senses and shift your focus of attention, or your awareness, completely inside yourself. The goal being to shift your focus as your body relaxes itself. So the two are key to making this work.

The only thing that seems to work with me, and everyone is different, is to practice mindfullness throughout the day. Mindfullness is the buddhist concept of being completely aware of what you are doing when you are doing it. Like the exercise I mentioned above, mindfullness has many benefits beyond helping you focus. Regardless, if you make this a habit during your daily activities, it carriers through at night. So when you are practicing phasing, it becomes much easier for you to focus only on the images and block out everything else. It also allows you to become more objective during experiences, thus prolonging the experience. The clarity of your experiences is also enhanced because of your heightened awareness -- which results from your focus. Of course, focus benefits a lot of physical life activities as well.

Hope this helps!

Steve, you don't mention how long you've tried any one method. Nor do you list which methods you've tried. And your request for results within two days is extremely unrealistic. There are multiple techniques because there are multiple types of people. Since this is your first post, I would suggest you read the different posts in the Permanent Astral Topics and Astral FAQ sections (links below). Each of them contains various methods for both OBE and AP.

http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_permanent_astral_topics-b44.0/
http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_the_astral_faq-b46.0/

As for your domain names, they really don't interest me in the least. Although others may feel differently.

If you would like some assistance, it would be useful if you posted specific problems you are having. Or at least posted what you have tried and what you've achieved thus far. That would help us better suggeset things to try.  

Regardless, I would recommend that whatever technique you choose, you regularly practice it daily for a minimum of a month before deciding it isn't the technique for you. This stuff isn't like a drive-thru. You can't order "one super-sized OBE" and pick it up at the next window. It requires time and effort.  

what the hell is AP dammit!?!!?! is it dreaming/lucid dreaming or more?!?!?!" lol hehe.

One problem you are finding is that there are multiple definitions of AP/OBE. Some people lump them all together. Some seperate lucid dreaming from OBE/AP. Some seperate all three. Some don't believe in any of it.

I think your best bet is start experiencing these things for yourself and draw your own conclusions. In the end that is all that matters. You will doubt what anyone else tells you until you experience it for yourself (or at least you should).

I'm personally not positive how all of these relate to one another. I have some thoughts, but as usual they are dynamic and change with any new info/experiences I have. At present, I do agree that each of these are somewhat different. I would probably concede that what most people define as a lucid dream is limited to saying "hey I'm dreaming" and doing some flying/floating/walking through walls type stuff. But that's about it. Lucidity fluctuates even during the experience and most cannot sustain any type of lucidity for long periods of time. I admit that when my lucidity is low this is typically all I do.

However, if my awareness is high enough, I never stay in a dream. I phase to other people/places. Now here's the ambiguous part for me. I'm nto sure how I can define the difference between lucid dreaming and AP. I think they are similar but possibly vary in degrees of awareness, similar to your initial post. But I could be wrong. This is simply the way I personally interpret them at present.

How do I know when I'm AP and not just in a dream, because I consciously shift my awareness. I have full control over the dream. I can start it, stop it, replay it or leave it altogether. There is no doubt and no 'trying' to do this. I simply do it.

My experiences while AP vary in quality from lucid dreams on multiple levels. One, where/who I visit is driven by my intent, so its very focused and not randomly changing/fluctuating. Two, colors, textures, experiences are more vivid and 'real' than lucid dreams. And as I've mentioned here in the past, in several instances, those experiences were more real than any physical experience I've ever had.

Yeh I agree with you on that point but to say it becomes as real as everyday life? no.

Hmm...I think there's a difference between what feels real and conscious awareness. When you are dreaming (even if completely unaware) the dream is absolutely real to you at the time. It's only once you wake up that you realize it wasn't 'real'.

And I think we all experience varying levels of conscious awareness while awake just as we do while asleep. I know I'm not the only one who's gotten into a car to go somewhere, had my mind wonder during the trip, only to blink and realize I'm where I was heading but I don't remember a single thing about how I got there! Ever walk through a mall towards a store and not remember a single thing in any display window you passed? These are just two examples, but people in general go through life fairly unaware, except for perhaps their immediate needs/surroundings.

Reality and conscious awareness are not tied to physical life. Meaning the two exist within the physical, but are not bound to it. So I do not believe you can tie those two to physical life and use that as a guage on experiences. I think you need to isolate them from the environment in which they occur (physical, dream, AP) and go from there.

1. When in the astral plane, is it possible to look at your physical body or anyone's physical body to see if there is any growing sicknesses like cancer or fever or anything? If so, is it possible to heal it using spiritual energy?

It is possible to see your physical body, but I don't see mine all of the time (although I rarely look). However, I think it also depends on your level of lucidity at the time. When I do see my body, I see what I perceive to be the physical body. It looks like itself. I think the disease you are attempting to see are things that are not visible on the physical body but rather reflections/links with the energy body. Theoretically you should be able to see them as well. However I have never done that so I can't be certain.

. I had a brother that passed away 4 years ago, and I feel that there were things we never got to discuss that I feel I need closure with. Is it possible to see and communicate with him?

Yes you can. I have communicated with my deceased father and a deceased pet. The issue is that you need to remain as neutral as possible emotionally. Meaning if you are too distraught or too excited at the meeting, it will end instantly.

3. I understand animals can see spirits. Is it possible to communicate with animals through your spirit in an unkown way? I have one cat with an eating disorder, and I'd like to help her.

I have only ever communicated with a deceased pet. I've never tried with one still alive so I can't answer this one.

4. Is it possible to meet your Twin Flame/Twin Soul? Or would you just see yourself?

I've never heard of twin flame or twin soul before. Do you mean soul mate? If so, then I don't know. I've never tried to meet one simply because I don't beleive in the concept of a soul mate.

For some, yes it is normal. I had read somewhere, forget where, that the pains you are feeling are you bodies way to get the mind's attention. Essentially to check and see if its still awake before the body shuts down. Now, I'm not saying I agree with their interpretation, but I have noticed that occasionally I will experience an odd pain at different places in my body as I try and relax it. I view it as a test of will-power. I know that my body isn't 'really' hurting. In other words, nothing has happened to it since I've been sitting/lying in the position I am at the time. So I know its fine.

Any attention you draw back to your body will lose the mental state you have reached up to that point, as it appears you discovered. The next time this happens, you can start by being vaguely aware of the pain, but ignore it. Don't allow your mind to focus on it. This will take time, but you can do it. I rarely experience odd pains anymore. So perhaps these things dissapear with time/practice?? Not sure.

Things like this have been done here before. I believe Nay had one going in the Validation thread (a sticky in this forum).

Based on my experiences doing this, Cobalt is correct. I have not been able to successfully link with someone I don't know. However, if I have a personal relationship with someone, I can link with them fairly easily. And maybe its just me, but when I link with them, I focus on the individual's 'feel', not so much on their face. So for example I may know what Cameron Diaz looks like, but I don't know her personally. So when I try and link, I may picture her face, but I won't really 'move' towards her until I focus on how she feels. I'm not sure how else to describe it.

Others may have different methods for linking and had success doing so with strangers, if so, then maybe they can comment.