Can't remember dreams

[beanster]

why is it that some nights I feel haven't dreamt at all, and can't recall a thing?

Also how do you all think over sleeping affects your dream recall ability/overall astral and spiritual abilities?

[CFTraveler]

You go through many phases during sleep- light sleep, deep sleep, light again and wake.  And then you do it again.  When you wake up at the first 'wake' state, you remember the last dreams you had before waking up- even though it has been experimentally shown that people do dream during deep sleep, it is hardly ever recalled- so if you don't surface enough during the 'wake' time of the cycle, you will not remember what you dreamed.
Most of the time people don't remember what they dreamed on the first 'wake' phase because they go back to sleep and have another cycle- and the countless dreams they have are piled up on the previous ones, so that what they actually recall is what they were dreaming right before they woke, literally seconds before waking up.
If you are a deep sleeper, chances are you remember less than a person who sleeps lightly and wakes up more often.
If you want to increase recall, keep a notepad and a pen(cil) next to your bedside, and as soon as you become conscious think of three words regarding your present dream, and write them down.  Then later, when you truly wake up, take a look at them and see if they bring back the dream.  If they do, write them down immediately.
If they don't, put your face in the pillow and think of the words and see if something comes back.

[CFTraveler]

In my case oversleeping gives me a little more REM sleep, and it's a wonderful opportunity to try to project.  I project better when I oversleep than when I don't, but that hardly ever happens.... oversleeping, that is.

[Rudolph]

I agree with CFT almost completely here.

Writing just a few keywords in the middle of the night is very helpful. I have to know that I am only going to write for a few seconds otherwise I blow it off and then the dream is forgotten.

Try to write down dreams every night and morning.

I blow it off now and then but I have been keeping a journal for decades and my dream recall is pretty good for an old geezer. Even when I do not write them down. But that is because I have spent so many years sticking to the dream journal discipline, imho.

[beanster]

Great thanks, I actually jotted down a sentence this morning and I still remember fragments of the dream.

we'll see how it goes tonight

[CFTraveler]

Looks good.

[Lionheart]

 Nicole Sebastion was on Coast to Coast AM Radio today talking about dreams and how to remember your dreams. She was using the techniques of keeping eyes closed body still immediately upon awakening, then giving yourself a moment to just lay still and remember. She also talked about something I do often, I never knew there was an  actual word for it though. She called it Dream Scripting and Re-Scripting. It's when you either start a scenario your mind before falling asleep or wake up afterwards and immediately go back into the dream changing the outcome of it. Here is her website, she also talks about using the word "HU" as a mantra to have peaceful dreams. http://www.trustyourselfsystem.com/

[Xanth]

Nicole Sebastion was on Coast to Coast AM Radio today talking about dreams and how to remember your dreams. She was using the techniques of keeping eyes closed body still immediately upon awakening, then giving yourself a moment to just lay still and remember. She also talked about something I do often, I never knew there was an  actual word for it though. She called it Dream Scripting. It's when you either start a scenario your mind before falling asleep or wake up afterwards and immediately go back into the dream changing the outcome of it. Here is her website, she also talks about using the word "HU" as a mantra to have peaceful dreams. http://www.trustyourselfsystem.com/

That's a method I use to do Phasing with. 

Ironically, I call it the "Eyes Closed / Body Still" method.  lol

[Uraotoko]

I know most of you know this, but this cant be stressed enough: Keep a dream journal.
It has improved my dream recall drastically.