How Can You Improve Dream Memory?

[shaman]

Hello Manitas,

Well you are actually doing pretty good at remembering dreams, so it looks as if it has to do with the way you wake up. On the week end you wake up by yourself, slowly, take time, stay in bed and take pleasure at remembering your dreams. ON the week days you are waking up with an alarm clock or someone is pulling you out of your bed, and you are not taking the time you need to fully remember your dreams. That/s the first thing I can recommand you: wake up slowly, do not open your eyes, just lay there in your bed and remember you dreams the way you can (even backward if it is easier for you).

Now if you want to improve your memory Rosemay and Lavender are supposedly helping. Rosemay works best by inhaling its volatile: that is to say: put a "dream pillow" full of rosemary (sleep on a little pillow case that you fill in with rosemay). Or put a rosemary plant in your bedroom. During the day put it at the windown and at night  put it next to  your bed so that you can smell it. The same with lavender should work (I tried the rosemary but not the lavender). I also drink rosemary teas and put rosemary as an herb in some dishes, but that's up to you.

It is said that Mugwort (Artemisia Vulgaris) should give you vivid dreams. I tried (pillow, teas,...) and it did not seem to work for me.

Memory and sleep are both regulated by melatonin and some say that taking melatonin before going to bed should help. I tried, but did not notice something particular. It should help you sleep if your sleep pattern has been disturbed.

These days I have many little rosemary plants in my bedroom and put then next to me at night. But still I have to wake up slowly to remember my dreams. If I jump out of bed and go about my day, then the memory of the dreams is lost....

Good luck! and have nice dreams!

Shaman - the dreamer [|)]

[Manix]

Thank you very Shaman! Those are the sort of things I was hoping someone would suggest. I have such a hard time getting myself to write down the notes from a dream if I wake up from it directly afterward. Many times I actually dream that I have written down the notes, then wake up the next morning to find and empty notebook! So anything that can possibly be of help is greatly appreciated.

"Manitas" sounds like spanish =)

[nitetravler]

Hi Manix,

In addition to what Shaman suggested you might also want to try taking herbs that nourish the brain such as Ginkgo Biloba or Gotu Kola. Rosemary, besides inhaling it as Shaman suggested, can also be ingested. It's a terrific brain stimulator. I suggest taking all three of these herbs if possible. If you have to take one I'd go with Ginkgo, though you can always experiment to see which one works the best.

Another excellent brain food is lecithin granules. If you go here (Swansons Vitamins) you can get the stuff very cheap.

http://www.swansonvitamins.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?SourceCode=INTL012&storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=10051

My brother, who is also a member here (elbuscador) has had pretty good success with taking supplements for dream recall, as well as encouraging lucid dreams.

Exercise can also play a factor in memory, in fact whenever I had my experiences I was almost always on an exercise program (usually running). Aerobic exercise has a tremendous effect on the brain, not just the muscles.

I see you're an avid dream journaler! I wish I had your patience, because I've never been able to stick with it. If you get tired of writing try using one of those micro cassette recorders.

And then...there's the Shakti Helmet [:O]

http://www.innerworlds.50megs.com/shakti/

[shaman]

Yes, manistas means hands in spanish.

Your icone looks like the hand of an alien and your username "manix" reminded me of manita-hand. So I just felt like calling you so. I hope it is OK. Is that OK Manix?

I am taking gotu kola and GInko Biloba for a few weeks (together with other things.. - I'm just experimenting on my very own self!).

I must confess that what works best when taking all these, is actually your disponibility of mind in the morning when you wake up. If someone wakes you up and you have to get out of bed, then the dream is lost - at least for me. Sometimes I wake up in the night and start remembering the details of the dream I just had. The problem is that then it often happens that I cannot go back to sleep... []

As to melotonin it is safe to take daily before going to sleep, it can be found any pharmacy without prescription as it is an over the counter thing usually found on the same shelf with the vitamins.

And of course it is important not to be tired, to sleep 8h a day. If I sleep only 6h a day for several days, then I cannot remember anything, I'm just too tired (and each time I try to practice meditation, I fall asleep ).

Shaman - the dreamer []

[Nick]

Hi Manix,

Since your topic has to do with Dream memory I have moved it from obe discussions into our Dreams forum. I hope you don't mind. If so, please pm me and we'll see what we can work out.

By the way, a good website that you may be interested in is: http://www.lucidity.com


Very best,

[Manix]

Hi Nick, no worries. I had meant for it to be a memory in general thread, but since I'm more LD oriented, I think it may do better here anyway.

Shaman, I just finished taking some college Spanish courses and I thought it sounded familar. And of course it's ok!

Nitetravler, thank you for the additional ideas. I'm going to see if I can find some Ginkgo soon. I'm pretty sure I can find that locally.

Thanks everybody!
EDIT: OH! and thanks for the link Nick, I added it to my favorites list.

[nitetravler]

Just curious Manix, you wouldn't have happened to get your moniker from this guy would you?



This guy played a detective on a very popular show in the 60's and 70's, 'cept I think he had 2 N's in his name.

[Manix]

quote:Just curious Manix, you wouldn't have happened to get your moniker from this guy would you?



This guy played a detective on a very popular show in the 60's and 70's, 'cept I think he had 2 N's in his name.

Well, I don't know what Moniker is, and the image you have is broken. But I think I know what you're talking about lol! My mother once commented on the signature I use in my paintings, Manix. She tells me that Manix is the name of a fella from an old TV show. Well, No, that's not where the name came from. I picked up the name during a ... delusional episode I had one very lonely and insane summer. The little voice told me it was actually pronounced Manic. No more lonely summers for me! That was too weird. I took up talking to myself to cut the silence. I liked the name though, so I kept it =). When I told my mother a little voice gave me the name, she just eyed me funny and walked away. I don't blame her ...

[nitetravler]

LOL

Ahh, so that's the ticket eh?

Your mom is right, 'Mannix' was the name of a very popular show in the 60's, but of course if you're under the age of 40 you probably wouldn't remember it, in fact I as about 7 or 8 when this show aired on television.

This guy made me want to be a detective BIG TIME. []

[Manix]

I was born in 82, so I had never heard of him.

I have a new question! Came up after reading that Lucidity site Nick gave me. If it's true that your have a dreaming episode every 90 minutes or so, and that each episode get's longer, the longer your asleep, aproximatly how many dreams could you (if it were possible) recall in a 10 hour period? This would include everything from false awakenings, short five minute dreams, the dreams you think your having when your half awake, OBE's/AP's, LD's, and just regular dreams. There we go, that should be easy to figure out HAHAHA!!! Seriously though. What would be the most events you could recall?

Also, is the 90 minute idea based on REM sleep only?

[nitetravler]

That's a good question, but I haven't the slightest. You could probably find your answer in Stephen Laberge's book, which is excellent. He's also got a video that looks pretty interesting.

[nitetravler]

Another brain enhancer, this stuff sounds almost too good to be true but I'll post it anyway...

http://www.piracetam.com/

[Manix]

How can I improve my memory? I can normally remember the jest of things, but can never remember those fine details that make all the difference. I'm referring to dream recall of course! I've been keeping a dream journal religiously since late April. I usually slack at keeping routine activities up, but I'm determined to improve and lengthen my Lucid Dream experiences.

I've noticed the nights I can actually recall three or more dreams seem to come in phases. Mostly I will have one night a week (Friday Saturday, or Sunday), where I remember at least 5 dreams in massive detail. The dreams are not always lucid, but always seem long and are packed with detail. Somehow, I remember almost every moment of these dreams without ever having to make a note of it.

The rest of the week is a different story. The dreams through out the week are brief and very vague. The number of dreams I remember have no pattern. I can remember one dream every night to 3 dreams every night for no apparent reason. There is no pattern to the lucid dreams I experience unless I've been incubating that intention.

At first glance at this, you might think I remember more on the weekends because of work or school. That's what I would think, but I am not currently employed or enrolled in school. Weekdays are no different from weekends, work wise, for me. I did not even notice the odd pattern until I made chart using excel yesterday.

Well, back to my question. I would like to be able to improve my recall during the week. However, I'm afraid there's something more than coincidence with the recall pattern I mentioned above. Never-the-less, I would still love to hear (and maybe try) some of the ideas you use to help recall details and dreams. If you have any ideas about what the apparent pattern I mentioned might suggest, I'd love to hear those as well.

Thank you!