Lucid for just a few seconds. Any more tips for making awareness last longer?

[rainbowcity]

Okay, so I had a dream I was in a banquet hall with lots of balloon garlands and my son was there. He is only 3 and loves balloons.
I realized I was dreaming, so I decided to make a balloon garland for him. However it was a little gimpy looking. Then the balloons all
began popping like popcorn. It was an amazing sound, pure entertainment. Then I realized it was all nonsense made up by my psyche
so I chose to visit somewhere.

I said loudly, "Take me to God". I felt something like a vortex and energy was spinning around me. It almost seemed like a T.V. channel changing. When the vortex ended, I saw this beautiful city. It's buildings were tall and see through. They were these pink and pastel blue colors. Then just as I was
about to enter. SNAP! I blacked out and was sucked back into the unconscious dream world. So disappointing.


Does anyone have any tips for lengthening awareness in lucid dreams?

I somehow remembered to remain calm but I blacked out. I have read you can try to grab things to stay in the astral realm.

[Lionheart]

 Try "grounding" yourself there. This is done by engaging your senses to your scenario. Ex: You find yourself in a park. Look around, be aware of everything you see, smell or hear. Interact with it. Let your curiosity get the best of you and explore outside of the Dream script per say. You could bend down to pick up a leaf, go the bank of a river and stick your hand in it. Feel the leaf or the water in your hand. Let the sensation deepen and you will prolong your experience. But keep aware, many times the deeper you engage, the easier it is to just lose awareness in that Dream. You will find it is a very fine "balancing act" to hold your awareness for a prolonged amount of time.

I have successe with this with a thing called "rescripting", whereas I briefly awaken for real, then immeditately go right back and redo or join my last Dream scenario. Many times I do it also without control by what's known as a Looping Dream, whereas the Dream scenario keeps playing over and over again, but without an "conscious" intent on my part.

Many times when we become Lucid in a Dream, the first thought is "what is happening, how's my body doing?". You begin to fall back into the routine of having a physical existence, instead of just enjoying the one you are currently in.

Think of your physical body and the Dream immediately ends, just like a consciously aware AP (Astral Projection) would.

[Volgerle]

Commands like "Clarity Now!" or "Awareness Now!" are often recommended in order to stabilise the scene you're in.

Also looking at and rubbing your hands is a common technique.

[Xanth]

A personal example for you...

I found myself astrally aware at a train station, I flew into the air and the first thing I started doing was strengthening my awareness within that reality.
As I flew around, I took in as much as I could see while at the same time feeling the wind against my face and arms and listening to that same wind fluttering past my ears... bringing my as many senses as I can into the scene.  This LOCKS you (relatively) to the environment/scene/reality you're experiencing.  It won't keep you there indefinitely, but it will extend your experience.  The more you practice doing this, the longer you can stay within a non-physical experience. 

[rainbowcity]

Thank you for the tips =)

[rainbowcity]

Okay so I had another experience last night. It was an old house I used to live in. I have a lot of those dreams, visiting these old houses. Even my old dog was there. So I imagine it is one of the common themes in my dreams. Anyways I gained awareness for a few seconds. As soon as I became aware I calmed myself down and observed the environment carefully. I noticed there were rocks and they became more clear as I looked at them. I looked at the neighbors house and saw the wind blow the tall grasses and heard a chainsaw. I remember thinking, wow this sure does look real. I picked up a piece of plastic in the environment and felt it. It felt real, like solid. Then because I felt the urgency to go explore something different. I asked to go to Barbados. A silly on the fly request as I was reading a Rihanna ad the night earlier. Everything went black and I woke up.

How do I successfully leave the dreamscape and go where I consciously want to go? I really wonder what causes me to snap out of awareness so quickly. Maybe I will try that warming technique, and just observe patiently for longer.

[sheriff_rango]

It's a bit difficult to verbalise this stuff for me and I don't know if these will help but here I go...
I think that the more you lucid dream the more proficient you get at it (unless you are a dolt like me and get stuck ).At the very least the lucid environment becomes more stable and sort of legitimate -something tangible almost rather than something flighty and 'dreamy' y'know? So LDing regularly is a start.I think your intent is important here.  Before I sleep I just expect it to happen and its a semi-regular thing now.With this in mind here are my 'tips'
One useful thing I think is to familiarise yourself to the 'feel' of the LD in a physical way, from the perspective of your dream body I mean. some folk say rub your hands together but what I do (more as a LD 'trigger' though) is I stick my hand through a glass window   and it shows me I am dreaming and sort of solidifies my presence or something... But hand rubbing is probably a safer bet.Yeah so remember that feeling.I also usually have some variation of a head or neck ache or just lightheaded-ness in LD. Pay attention to these or any other sensations.
These things normalise the dreamworld or state and make it somewhere real. Rather than hoping or trying to get somewhere, the NPR becomes somewhere reachable cos you've been there and experienced it, felt it. So before you sleep make an intention to lucid dream and recall these details and you'll get into the habit.
I hope this helps (or is at least readable)!

[rainbowcity]

I know what you mean by it being difficult to describe because everything there is not really solid and always changing. So much of it seems like nonsense. I get frustrated in that sense. It is so different from waking reality where things are so tangible.

[Lionheart]

How do I successfully leave the dreamscape and go where I consciously want to go?

By further practice and simply changing your intent.

But, if your "higher self or Guide" has a purpose for you being in that scenario, (which is usually the case), you must seek out that purpose before you can end it or else you may find yourself back in the same scenario again soon.

If the lesson here was just to get you consciously aware of what is happening, (which happens quite a bit in the beginning of this practice), then you can use it as a Launching Pad and go anywhere your heart desires.

Keep a good Journal on everything that happens. You will find that after about a month you will see patterns and will also be able to see how you are progressing.

Good Luck and Safe Travels! 

[CFTraveler]

The only thing that has ever worked for me is to focus on something from the dream when I start to feel I'm waking up.  Not a character, but an object.