The Dream Journal Works
Dan on January 7th, 2007
I’ve been keeping a journal of my dreams since December 16th. The goal is to have better recolection of my dreams and increase the frequency of lucid dreaming. Prior to logging my dreams I would remember a few a week. I almost never had a lucid dream, and the few that I do remember were only partially lucid. I realized I was dreaming but didn’t choose to take control. Typically the characters in my dream would do whatever I wanted but I wouldn’t try something outside the realm of the current dream. Whenever I wake up and remember a dream I write it down, along with the time I went to bed and the time I woke up.
Within a few days I started remembering more of my dreams and the memories were more vivid. Now, almost a month later, I always remember at least one dream when I wake up or something about it. Sometimes I remember two or three dreams from that night. Sometimes I’ll remember the dream I was having when I woke up and then later in the day something will trigger my memory and I’ll remember another dream I had that night. For the most part the dreams themselves haven’t seemed to change. The only problem I’ve had is that my handwriting seems to get 10x worse right after I wake up and the journal can be tough to read at times.
I had one partially lucid dream on Christmas eve. I was the main character in a video game with GTA type style. I was following the plot for a while but then realized it was a game (dream) and could do whatever I wanted with no consequences. I started going wherever and doing whatever I wanted. I was still constricted to the realm of the game and the laws of physics. I hope to have a fully lucid dream at some point.
If you want to remember your dreams more vividly and more frequently I strongly recommend a dream journal. Going back and reading what you dreamt about earlier in the week can be fun as well. I find that I often remember what I wrote about when I reread it.
