For a while in my life (from my late-twenties through mid-late thirties), I practiced fully lucid dreaming fairly regularly (to the point where I would stop, mid-dream, and turn and speak with the "other characters") and the dream would go off on a different tangent.
I don't do that so much, any more, and have mostly fallen out of the habit, at least for full-on lucid dreaming. Most dreams, now, there's the knowledge, in the back of my mind, of: "Yeah, this is a dream." But I don't push beyond that -- kind of like watching a TV show, or movie; I know it's a dream, but I just "sit back, eat my popcorn, and wallow."
Here's the best, and easiest, practice exercise I found to help achieve lucid dreaming; I did it several times a day for a couple of weeks before I discovered I was lucid dreaming:
1. Check to see that you're awake. The best way to do this is a) read something,* b) look away for a moment, then c) read the thing again. If it's the same, you're awake. If it's changed, you're asleep (Most likely, you'll be awake).
2. Tell yourself: "I am awake. This is what being awake feels like. When I'm dreaming, I will notice the difference."
3. Repeat.
According to the article in which this exercise appeared, it's the same principle as when you remind yourself throughout the day that you need to go to the store to buy a quart of milk, when you can't be bothered to write it down in your appointment book, or make up a grocery list. It occurs to me now, that since you're already aware that you're sensitive to the tactile feel of things, you could adapt this exercise to that, as well. Maybe pay extra attention to the feel of the seat you're in, or the cup you're drinking from (get up from your seat, and sit down again/put the cup down, pick it up again).... If they remain the same after you take your attention from them, for a brief moment, then you're awake, etc.
After I started doing these exercises, I realized how often "things to read" come up in my dream (signage on doors, words printed on folks' t-shirts, a map in a glove compartment, etc. And yes, in dreams, they really do change (in precise wording). But what they change into is often related-- may be a paraphrase, or (more often) a different, but related, idea.
*(something printed and fixed...Scrolling chat room dialog, or games where you have to type a word before it changes, do not help).
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I don't do that so much, any more, and have mostly fallen out of the habit, at least for full-on lucid dreaming. Most dreams, now, there's the knowledge, in the back of my mind, of: "Yeah, this is a dream." But I don't push beyond that -- kind of like watching a TV show, or movie; I know it's a dream, but I just "sit back, eat my popcorn, and wallow."
Here's the best, and easiest, practice exercise I found to help achieve lucid dreaming; I did it several times a day for a couple of weeks before I discovered I was lucid dreaming:
1. Check to see that you're awake. The best way to do this is
a) read something,*
b) look away for a moment, then
c) read the thing again.
If it's the same, you're awake. If it's changed, you're asleep (Most likely, you'll be awake).
2. Tell yourself: "I am awake. This is what being awake feels like. When I'm dreaming, I will notice the difference."
3. Repeat.
According to the article in which this exercise appeared, it's the same principle as when you remind yourself throughout the day that you need to go to the store to buy a quart of milk, when you can't be bothered to write it down in your appointment book, or make up a grocery list. It occurs to me now, that since you're already aware that you're sensitive to the tactile feel of things, you could adapt this exercise to that, as well. Maybe pay extra attention to the feel of the seat you're in, or the cup you're drinking from (get up from your seat, and sit down again/put the cup down, pick it up again).... If they remain the same after you take your attention from them, for a brief moment, then you're awake, etc.
After I started doing these exercises, I realized how often "things to read" come up in my dream (signage on doors, words printed on folks' t-shirts, a map in a glove compartment, etc. And yes, in dreams, they really do change (in precise wording). But what they change into is often related-- may be a paraphrase, or (more often) a different, but related, idea.
*(something printed and fixed...Scrolling chat room dialog, or games where you have to type a word before it changes, do not help).