Milds technique for lucid dreaming

Before trying induction procedures, I remembered less than one lucid dream per
month. While
using autosug-gestion during the first sixteen months of my study (the technique is
presented
below), I recalled an average of five lucid dreams per month with a range of one to
thir-teen.
(The month in which I had thirteen lucid dreams using autosuggestion happened
while I was
doing my first laboratory studies of lucid dreaming, which incidentally illustrates the
powerful
effect of motivation on the fre-quency of lucid dreaming. ) However, during the
period I was
using autosuggestion to induce lucid dreams, I had no understanding of how I was
doing it! All
I knew was that I was telling myself before bed: “Tonight, I will have a lucid dream.”
But how?
I had no idea. And hav-ing no idea meant that there was little I could do to make it
happen.
Without understanding the process involved, I stood little chance of learning to have
lucid
dreams at will.

MILD prerequisites
To successfully induce lucid dreams with MILD, you need to have certain capacities.
First of
all, if you can’t reliably remember to carry out future intentions while awake, there
is little
chance that you will remember to do anything while asleep. So before attempting
MILD, you
need to prove to yourself that you can indeed remem-ber to do things while awake.
If you are
like most people, you are used to relying on external reminders and there-fore need
practice in
remembering intentions using only your own mental power. The following is an
exercise to
help you acquire the necessary skill to perform the MILD technique.
EXERCISE: PROSPECTIVE MEMORY TRAINING
1. Read the day’s targets
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This exercise is designed to be practiced over an entire week. Below is a set of four
target
events for each day of the week. When you get up in the morning, read only the
targets for that
day. (Do not read the targets before the proper day. ) Memorize the day’s targets.
2. Look for your targets during the day
Your goal is to notice the next occurrence of each event, at which time you will
perform a state
test: “Am I dreaming?” So, if your target is, “The next time I hear a dog bark, “ when
you hear
this next, note it and do a state test. You are aiming to notice the target once—the
next time it
happens.
3. Keep track of how many target events you hit
At the end of the day, write down how many of the four targets you succeeded in
noticing (you
can make a space in your dream journal to record your progress with this exercise).
If you
realize during the day that you missed your first chance to notice one of your
targets, then you
have failed to hit that target, even though you may notice its occurrence later in the
day. If you
are certain that one or more of the targets did not occur at all during the day, say so
with a note
in your dream journal.
4. Continue the exercise for at least one week
Practice the exercise until you have tried all of the daily targets given below. If at
the end of the
week, you are still missing most of the targets, continue until you can hit most of
them. Make
up your own list of targets, keep track of your success rate, and observe how your
memory
develops.
Daily Targets
SUNDAY:
The next time I see a pet or animal
The next time look at my face in a mirror
The next time turn on a light
The next time see a flower

MONDAY:
The next time write anything down
The next time feel pain
The next time I hear someone say my name
The next time I drink something

TUESDAY:
The next time I see a traffic light
The next time I hear music
The next time I throw something in the garbage
The next time I hear laughter

WEDNESDAY:
The next time I turn on a television or radio
The next time I see a vegetable
The next time I see a red car
The next time I handle money

THURSDAY:
The next time I read something other than this list
The next time I check the time
The next time I notice myself daydreaming
The next time I hear the telephone ringing

FRIDAY:
The next time I open a door
The next time I see a bird
The next time I use the toilet after noon
The next time I see the stars

SATURDAY:
The next time I put a key in a lock
The next time I see an advertisement
The next time I eat anything after breakfast
The next time I see a bicycle

MILD TECHNIQUE
1. Set up dream recall
Before going to bed resolve to wake up and recall dreams during each dream period
throughout
the night (or the first dream period after dawn, or after 6 a. m. or when-ever you
find
convenient).
2. Recall your dream
When you awaken from a dream period, no matter what time it is, try to recall as
many details
as possible from your dream. If you find yourself so drowsy that you are drifting
back to sleep,
do something to arouse yourself.
3. Focus your intent
While returning to sleep, concentrate singlemi
ndedly on your intention to remember to
recognize that you’re dreaming. Tell yourself: “Next time I’m dreaming, I want to
remember
I’m dreaming.” Really try to feel that you mean it. Narrow your thoughts to this idea
alone. If
you find yourself thinking about anything else, just let go of these thoughts and
bring your
mind back to your intention to remember.
4. See yourself becoming lucid
At the same time, imagine that you are back in the dream from which you have just
awakened,
but this time you recognize that it is a dream. Find a dreamsign in the experience;
when you see
it say to yourself: “I’m dream-ing!” and continue your fantasy. For example, you
might decide
that when you are lucid you want to fly. In that case, imagine yourself taking off and
flying as
soon as you come to the point in your fantasy that you “’realize” you are dreaming.
5. Repeat
Repeat Steps 3 and 4 until your intention is set, then let yourself fall asleep. If, while
falling
asleep, you find yourself thinking of anything else, repeat the procedure so that the
last thing in
your mind before falling asleep is your intention to remember to recognize the next
time you
are dreaming.

Commentary
If all goes well, you’ll fall asleep and find yourself in a dream, at which point you’ll
remember
to notice that you are dreaming.
If it takes you a long time to fall asleep while practic-ing this method, don’t worry:
The longer
you’re awake, the more likely you are to have a lucid dream when you eventually
return to
sleep. This is because the longer you are awake, the more times you will repeat the
MILD
procedure, reinforcing your intention to have a lucid dream. Furthermore, the
wakefulness may
activate your brain, making lucidity easier to attain.
In fact, if you are a very deep sleeper, you should get up after memorizing your
dream and
engage in ten to fifteen minutes of any activity requiring full wakefulness. Turn on
the light and
read a book. Get out of bed and go into another room. One of the best things to do
is to write
out your dream and read it over, noting all dreamsigns, in preparation for the MILD
visualization.

Many people meet with success after only one or two nights of MILD; others take
longer.
Continued practice of MILD can lead to greater proficiency at lucid dreaming. Many
of our
advanced oneironauts have used it to cultivate the ability to have several lucid
dreams any night
they choose.