Hi All! I am writing a personal opinion that i have grown to feel from many communities of lucid dreamers.
I feel like in many places, Wild technique just seems sadly over-hyped. Now take note i say over-hyped, not over-rated. Nothing against the effectiveness or potential the technique has. However, it seems that a massive volume of inquiries from people who just begin the art of lucid dreaming all revolve around this particular technique… Analogously i like to think that LD methods are like medicine; everybody is affected differently depending on individual physiology, psychology, what have you. And that many people’s opinions differ; feel free to swallow, don’t swallow, you can swallow but do it naturally! lol. The thing is it seems like one of the more particularly difficult techniques to get just right for each individual. The result is somebody asking a general community for general assistance, where besides from a tip and trick or two, it seems the only advice you can truly take to heart is that you must take basic knowledge and craft your own path from it to fit you’re own needs.
First, let’s look at the positive’s of Wild. Besides the use as an LD inducer.
- Learning sleep paralysis. Well, you don’t actually learn it. It’s a natural phenomenon. However, one that plague’s a beginning Wild’er. What you can gain of course is becoming accustomed to it and finally conquering your fear of being paralysed, knowing it’s induction quicker, and conquering that dreadful old hag
-Hynogia. I like this little guy. I find some of the experiences i have with it downright fun occasionally. You may inadvertantly discover something prolific from the experience. And it’s a potentially invaluable tool for Wild induction.
-Relaxation. A necessity for Wild. Also, helps a former insomniac like me better than a giant Trazodone (perscription of course ) Who wouldn’t like to be able to fall asleep deeply more effectively every night; if not for wild, then for good rest.
However, It still seems to remain as one of the toughest, yet most well known, technique available to us. Well, tough or easy, depending on who you ask about it. Sleep paralysis alone seems to account for 90% of Wild related questions. That seems to be the largest focus of people who need to ask for help on tech. When really, there’s a wealth of information out there on tech outside of Wild for us to all explore.
Take a look at my favorite article, it discusses an interview with a Ukranian woman who has over a thousand LD’s yearly. Wild does not seem to be a factor in that. What is? Lucid Living. What better to help lucidity than to live that way? Recognition is no longer a factor, it’s how you already are at that point.
Another thing, why the fascination with wild in particular? Especially at the start of the night? You are going to dream tonight, why need to start off with a weak REM period? Why not master MILD and possibly keep the effect ingrained into your mind for all future dreams?
The biggest thing that seperates WILD from the other tech, in my opinion, is the difficulty. No, the technique itself may not be difficult for everybody, but it can seem so daunting when you inevitably view it as a hastle. Personally, before LD i would daydream everynight to help me fall asleep. Vizualization seems most natural. But Wild… oh boy… stay in one spot, don’t move until you cant feel you’re muscle’s anymore, try to trick your mind into thinking you’re asleep… It’s never wrong to put effort into you’re work, but it is sometimes inpractical. For instance, Wild probably isn’t going to happen under anything less than ideal circumstances. If it’s summer and too expensive to turn the A/C on, you’re going to be pretty uncomfortable. If you’re not in your own bed when your staying at a friends house, it may feel unnatural. With the other tech you stand much better odds.
I hope to stimulate discussion about the topic. Mainly I believe the focus should be on all topics equally. There just seems to be way too much focus on wild nowadays… Granted it’s a useful tool to have in your arsenal of methods, but why stick to keeping your focus on just one?