Dream block

[mwr1026]

for a couple of weeks now, i have not been able to recover any of my dreams.
this is new for me, and i don't know why it's happening. i know the dreams are there, and i can feel them sometimes when i awaken, but cannot pull up any detail.
while searching for a dream, i use the technique of laying in the same position i was in when i first awoke, and that has usually worked in the past. i have tried the technique of reviewing the events of the day in reverse as i go to sleep, but that seems to have no effect. i was writing dreams down immediately upon awakening before this block developed, and that has always been the single most important thing for me in being able to remember dreams easily...the more faithfully i would record them, the more freely i would remember them.
right now nothing is working. i am taking the point of view that this will pass, and that i need not concern myself about it, but nonetheless, i miss my dreams.
any thoughts on what might be going on, or any techniques for breaking through?

[DGCrow]

i seem to experience cycles wherein some periods have me remembering dreams for several nights in a row, and then some periods where i can't recall any dreams at all. i am somewhat frustrated by this, but i tell myself to simply try to relax, knowing i will gain remembrance of them again.

i can't think of any specific techniques to offer, but here are some things i've noticed with myself: 1) going to sleep at around the same time each night seems to help with recall (last night i didn't go to bed at all, and stayed up til 8 am = no dream recall); 2) meditation at least once during the day and reflecting/praying/meditating while lying in bed preparing to sleep; 3) some form or forms of daily physical exercise; 4) adherence to a healthy diet. in fact, i think eating junk food or foods that i am intuitively guided to abstain from may be the single biggest factor in blocking my dream recall. i suggest you ask internally what would help you get your recall back consistently. answers will be given.

i think it is safe to say that this phase you're in will indeed pass. i am a strong proponent of the cyclical nature all phenomena. my humble advice would be to try not worrying about it. it sounds as though your dream work is very important to you, and i believe maintaining this intent to learn from your dreams combined with whatever intuitive guidance you are given will eventually (even quickly) help you regain your recall abilities.

actually i just remembered a technique which may be helpful. i am not sure of the original source, but i know david wilcock has suggested this somewhere. here is a mantra to use while you're preparing to sleep:

say to yourself:

"next time i'm dreaming, i want to remember to recognize that i'm dreaming."

i sometimes repeat this until i start to fall asleep. it will help increase your lucidity while dreaming which is, imho, a key aspect to dream recall upon "waking".

namaste,
doug

[SuperManny]

the most important thing for me is to get plenty of sleep, cause if i'm real tired i sleep too soundly, and my recall is poor.

another trick i use sometimes is to meditate very soon after awakening. this way you won't be distracted by the day's events, and more often than not it'll creep into my consciousness after 10-15 minutes.

catnip tea helps too.

[mwr1026]

as suggested, i tried a variation of the affirmation:

"next time i dream, i will remember to be conscious that i am dreaming."

i don't know if that did the trick or not, but i remembered a dream last night, and it was more clear and focused than most of my dreams. usually, they are full of disjointed events and people and while vivid, are a bit confusing.

this one was very simple, and was lucid in a different way than i have ever experienced. rather than being aware in the dream that i was dreaming, i was aware that i was sleeping through the dream.

here is the dream:

8/10/2008 6:30am
• this dream is superficially about tents. however, in the dream i am aware that the tents metaphorically represent something larger and more significant. there is no part of the dream in which i am aware of actually trying to use a tent for any particular purpose.
[i think the tents are bodies, probably my own.]
• there is an entity who instructs me that when i first encounter a tent, i must not interact with it until it is ready. there is a preparation period in which i must not use or interact with the tent. if i use the tent prematurely, extra precautions must be taken or there will be karmic consequences.
• the entity is benevolent, and while i cannot identify who or what it is, i sense that it might be my higher self or some other guiding entity. i never see it, just sense it’s presence and intuitively “hear” it’s communication. there is no sense of gender.
• a small pup tent appears. i approach it cautiously and hesitantly.
• it seems to be harmless and familiar, like any other tent i have seen or used in the past, so i touch it, thinking there can be no harm in such a familiar thing. the entity informs me that now that i have interacted with the tent, i must remain perfectly still until the preparation period for the tent is complete.
[this could be my 3d body. the challenge to find stillness is difficult but is the primary task of consciousness at this point.]
• i attempt to be still. at this point the dream takes on a semi-lucid quality, in that i am aware that i am asleep and must not even turn over or shift my position in bed while waiting for the preparation period to be completed.
• i am extremely restless and end up moving. the entity informs me that movement causes the preparation period to be extended.
• i also feel a heaviness that i recognize as a karmic result of moving.
• whenever i shift in the bed, i feel the heaviness and a sense of the urgency not to move until the preparation time is complete.
[struggle and resistance.]
• i finally doze off, and awaken (in the dream) to find that i have slept quietly long enough to complete the preparation period. now the tent is useable, and i can move without any sense of heaviness.
[letting go leads to awakening…and enlightenment.]
• the mechanism for knowing that the tents are ready for use is intuitive and internal. the guide does not tell me a tent is ready. i just know when it is.
• another much larger and fancier tent appears. while the pup tent was a basic a-frame shape, this one is more of an oval dome shape. this time i do not question or challenge the instruction to wait. i want nothing to do with the tent until it is ready. the large tent is never ready during the course of this dream.
[clearly foreshadowing future developments.]
• i notice that it is bound up with heavy ropes to prevent its use. the ropes are about 5/8” diameter and arranged in an orderly pattern involving multiple windings of the rope close together in a predominately horizontal pattern. the ropes are green and orange. i realize that somehow i put the ropes on the tent to protect myself from using it too soon.