I only get lucid in nightmares

[eieiovt682]

When I get lucid, the first thing I usually do is stop the dream,and lose lucidity. I recognize that I can do something else, but I'd rather just force myself to wake up.  

Well, anyways, last night I had a dream that a bear was trying to kill me.  I guess I made it mad or something.  Well, right before it was going to hit my in the head with its paw, I realized it was a dream.  I said to myself "O.k, I don't want to be in this dream anymore."  So I left the dream, to another.  It wasn't exactly the best dream either, and for once I kept my lucidity.  I made myself wake up after that one.

Any ideas that might help my mind realize I'm dreaming in a dream that isn't so nightmare-ish?  Thanks!

[AndrewTheSinger]

What I've learned is that you're not supposed to use your lucidity to escape from the dream or nightmare, but use it in it instead. It's like you're under heavy rain and someone lands you an umbrella, but you just decide you wanna go where it's sunny. You throw away your umbrella and never reach the sunny lands.

Be an observer of your actions and try to understand what's going on around you. There's something in the air that is different from physical reality. Try to notice these subtle peculiarities.

[vsskye]

I agree with you Andrewthesinger.  Lucid dreaming is not used to escape, but rather to make that dream the way you want it to be.  So when the bear was attacking you, you could wanted a gun to shoot him, or have him turn into a mouse.

But to answer your question about a tip, to know you are dreaming, is pick a symbol from real life, like a tree or a star or a cat etc.
 
Think of the symbol before going to sleep. Your mind WILL show you that symbol some how while your dreaming.  You just have to be aware of everything around you.  Whether you are dreaming ot in reality.  Maybe pick a symbol for both (reality and dreaming)  It takes practice but the mind is an amazing thing!

[Unicorn]

if fear enters a dream or meditative state... send the words, peace, love, joy etc. into to cosmos.

try not to eat, drink alcohol or watch t.v. 1 hour before bed, more if possible. when i drink alcohol too close to bedtime, people in my dreams turn all diffent colours, blue etc. the mind is made of chemicals, what you consume affects it's functions.

g.l.

[MisterJingo]

Have you practiced any established lucid dream techniques such as reality checking?
I also experience lucidity when having negative dreams - and consciously attempt to escape them.
Using reality checking (along with a dream diary) is a very effective technique.

Something which works for me too is when going to sleep, attempting to visualise intensely. For example, I'll see a scene like a moving hill, or road, and make it as real as possible. I'll next add to this tactile visualisation, making it feel as if my legs and arms are moving. I feel the sensation of weight, and impact as each foot touches the earth.
Sometimes this can lead to a WILD, other times I suddenly become lucid in the night (I'm not sure what the connection is between visualising a lot when falling asleep and becoming lucid in a dream, but it has worked for me quite a lot in the past).

[SpeaK]

I had my first lucid dream in a long time(many years) just last night. It started off as a normal, vivid dream, then it got into a nightmare, where I felt real horror a few seconds. I think the horror converted into a monster, which I saw looking at me from a house.
I think it was then I gained lucidity. The lucidity lasted only a small time, and I wasn't really too much in control, but it still was lucidity! I went flying to escape from the monster, then I tried to examin a texture from a rooftop I was near to. I think that's where I lost lucidity.

Still I'm very happy I had this experience, it really shows the techniques I used suited for me.

First I started off with the reality checks. After a week or so I started to remember my dreams. (hadn't remember my dreams almost at all for a long time too before this) After I started even faintly remembering my dreams, I really tried to remember every morning what had happened in my dream. I think just trying to think your dreams have the same effect as keeping a dream diary.

Anyways, I don't know what I'm trying to say here. Just happy I had a lucid!

And yeah I guess why I started writing this is that yah, I too had the lucid starting off from a nightmare.

[Syke]

Well I believe that the reason it is easier to have a lucid dream from a nightmare is purely because to have a lucid dream you have to question reality to find it isn't real. So when we are scared out of our minds we make ourselves believe it isn't real.

So to have more lucid dreams from non-scary dreams would be to train your mind to question reality more often.

I personally draw a symbol on the back of my left hand in black marker. It really stands out. So every time it catches my eye it reminds me why it's there and I then check reality.

After a couple days of this anything that seems a little out of the ordinary catches my eye and I check reality then too.

It just progresses so I check reality more and more often.

Give it a shot, but remember the first few days are the hardest to remember to check reality. So make sure you have something that stands out.

-Syke

[MisterJingo]

Well I believe that the reason it is easier to have a lucid dream from a nightmare is purely because to have a lucid dream you have to question reality to find it isn't real. So when we are scared out of our minds we make ourselves believe it isn't real.

Thats very perceptive

I personally draw a symbol on the back of my left hand in black marker. It really stands out. So every time it catches my eye it reminds me why it's there and I then check reality.

-Syke

My usual reality checking (when I do it) uses doorways. Everytime I pass through one, I consiously trail my fingers across across the door frame and use my watch or something else to reality check.

[Syke]

My usual reality checking (when I do it) uses doorways. Everytime I pass through one, I consiously trail my fingers across across the door frame and use my watch or something else to reality check.

Yeah I also used doorways but I was at school and walking through so many with so much on my mind I'd only remember a handful of times. I'm personally too used to doors.

That said, a while ago I actually started getting used to the black or blue symbol on my hand so it started having less of an effect. So I took a break and started again fresh.

-Syke

[AndrewTheSinger]

Windows are my favorite symbols for lucidity. Opening a window or simply looking through a window will make me realize I'm not awake.

[Dakairo]

Well you could have used your lucid dream to wrestle or pet that bear instead of letting it rip your head of
Its your dream