How Do You Wake Yourself Up Enough to Record In Your Dream Journal?

[Ixidor]

I've recently started to give a serious attempt at keeping a dream journal, in the hopes of improving my dream recall (everything I have read says that this is what you need to do before you can do the whole lucid dreaming thing).

I used to never remember my dreams, but, after telling myself "I want to remember my dreams" before I go to bed, I usually wake up once a night after a dream.  The problem is, I can't convince myself to wake up enough to fumble around in the dark for my phone so I can record my dream (I have a voice recording app), and instead just go back to bed.

Does anyone else have this issue?  I would be willing to bet that it is a fairly common problem, and am hoping some of you posters can share with me how you (or how you would) overcome it.

Thanks for any help!  =D
-Ixi

[kurtykurt42]

If you ask me it takes way to long to type these darn dreams. I have stopped keeping a dream journal because I was spending all my time typing instead of training! 

[Timandra]

Most of the times I wake myself up to write the dream down, (pen and paper are next to my pillow) but sometimes I don't feel like turning on the light and I write a few words down in the dark. When I wake up the next morning I remember the whole dream when I see these words.
Sometimes I have too many dreams and then I only write down the ones that are very clear or have a clear message in them.
But I always write down a lucid dream or OBE right after I wake up from them.

Just put everything you may need close to you, so you don't have to get up. And have a small extra light to turn on so your eyes don't have to get used to a bright lamp. Then decide if the dream is worth writing down or recording. 

[Xanth]

I've recently started to give a serious attempt at keeping a dream journal, in the hopes of improving my dream recall (everything I have read says that this is what you need to do before you can do the whole lucid dreaming thing).

I used to never remember my dreams, but, after telling myself "I want to remember my dreams" before I go to bed, I usually wake up once a night after a dream.  The problem is, I can't convince myself to wake up enough to fumble around in the dark for my phone so I can record my dream (I have a voice recording app), and instead just go back to bed.

Does anyone else have this issue?  I would be willing to bet that it is a fairly common problem, and am hoping some of you posters can share with me how you (or how you would) overcome it.

Thanks for any help!  =D
-Ixi

Get a pen and pad of paper instead.
Put a string around them somehow and hang it on your bedpost. 
No more fumbling! 

Just reach around and BAM!  It's there for you to record your fresh dream! 

[Ixidor]

Get a pen and pad of paper instead.
Put a string around them somehow and hang it on your bedpost. 
No more fumbling! 

Just reach around and BAM!  It's there for you to record your fresh dream! 

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.  =D

I'll be doing this, as I found one of my biggest problems is working up the energy to actually find what I need to record my dream, this should eliminate this problem.  The writing down only a few key parts rather than the whole thing should also be great - I don't want to be writing a big long paragraph or two in the middle of the night.

[Xanth]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.  =D

I'll be doing this, as I found one of my biggest problems is working up the energy to actually find what I need to record my dream, this should eliminate this problem.  The writing down only a few key parts rather than the whole thing should also be great - I don't want to be writing a big long paragraph or two in the middle of the night.

Make it as simple as just writing down a single word.
Or a few "single word phrases".
Just something that will jolt your memory when you read it again later.