Dream within a Dream.......

I have often realized I was dreaming..................while in a dream. Sometimes I can even "manipulate" what happens because I know I'm dreaming. Sometimes scary dreams, sometimes I am fighting like a warrior. Most times I am flying to get away from someting "Evil".

Has this ever happened to you?

reply to post by Air Force Ron


Actually, it happens to me quite a bit.
There are a lot of instances that I am aware that I'm dreaming in a dream, it's kind of a bizarre feeling.
There was one time, when I was a kid, that I had a dream and during the course of it's events, I fell asleep and had a dream within it. Then I awoke from the secondary dream to carry on with the primary dream.
I was unaware that it was possible, or impossible, it just was.
What could that mean though?

Not completely uncommon, friend.

It's called Lucid Dreaming.

You can find a great community based around it at www.ld4all.com
Be sure and check out the forum.

Now having a dream within a dream; that would be something! As long as you are not confusing it with waking from a dream into a dream. That would be known as a false awakening. If you actually dream that you fall asleep and have another dream though... Cool!

This is the book for you www.transcendentdreaming.com...

reply to post by Air Force Ron

if only i could dream havent in a long time now but my GF gets dreams alot like that

Yes, I have also had the dream, where I "awake" while in a dream, just to realize i am in another dream. I tried to go back to original dream, but stayed in the 2nd one.

This has only happened to me relatively few times in my life.

Thanks for the comments!

Originally posted by MyrTheSeeker


Now having a dream within a dream; that would be something! As long as you are not confusing it with waking from a dream into a dream. That would be known as a false awakening. If you actually dream that you fall asleep and have another dream though... Cool!

Nope, I totally did not dream I woke up.
Was dreaming about an event, fell asleep in the dream, had another dream, and woke up to find myself still in the first dream. It was as though the dreams were independent of each other, save for both of their impending sense of doom.
It was one of the more bizarre dream experiences I've had, and I've had a few.

reply to post by Air Force Ron


I experience this sometimes, maybe once a month. Also have dreams where in the dream I know I've had it before and therefore predict/alter the course of the dream, lucid dreaming of sorts as I'm not always aware I'm dreaming, just that I know what's going to occur in it, if that makes sense

As noted by MyrTheSeeker, the phenomenon of being aware of your dreams while they are happening is known as "lucid dreaming." Do some googling, there is lots of info out there on it. There are even a number of methods to train yourself to dream in this way. Probably the simplist is to ask yourself throughout each day, "Am I dreaming?" If you make this a strong mental habit, you will eventually find yourself asking this question in a dream, at which point you will realize that you are, indeed, dreaming. Keeping a dream journal (writing down your dreams as soon as you wake up before they fade from memory) also helps. The word "oneironaut" is used for one who leans to navigate his or her lucid dreams with precision.

Richard Linkletter, director of the movie "Slacker," made an interesting movie about dreams and lucid dreaming called "Waking Life" in 2001. I recommend it highly.


On a side note, the normal (non-lucid) pattern would be to think you are awake when you really are dreaming. I sometimes wonder about the inverse: What if you thought you were dreaming but were really awake? Now that would be a terrifying and bizzare experience for sure.

reply to post by Matthew Dark


That must be very interesting!

Have you ever intentionally done this while lucid? It would certainly be hard to remain lucid while closing your "eyes", but I wonder if it is impossible.

Controlling the environment in an LD is one thing (simple for those of us with any experience), but I wonder if it is as simple to control yourself within the dream environment in a manner that would allow you to force sleep and a secondary dream...

It sometimes happens to me when I dream. I think I've woken up, as I'm back in my bed and wide awake, but I'm still dreaming. Sometimes when I'm dreaming I can take a step back and just watch my dreams flow. It's truly bizarre to watch as many dreams play out simultaneously, flicking back & forth.

reply to post by MyrTheSeeker


I have to be honest with you, I had that particular dream when I was like...12 or 13, and not only do I still remember it clear as day, but the actual mechanics of how it happened totally escape me.
Of all the people I've talked to about it over the years, no one has ever experienced anything quite like it.
I know I can't be the only one it's happened to...right?
I mean, it sounds crazy, but to have a dream, fall asleep in that dream, have a dream in that sleep and wake up still in the first dream...it sounds so made up.
I can still remember it so clearly though, it's stuck with me ever since.
I just don't understand how it's possible.

Like I said, it's vey common and there's nothing unusual about it. Many people have such experiences.

Last night, I had a dream unlike any that I had experienced before. While progressing through what began as a "standard" dream, I ended up going to sleep. During this dream within a dream, I visited a particular place. Once I awoke from this inner dream, the original one continued. At a certain point in this outer dream, I came across the same place that I visited in my inner dream. Here, I took special notice of the fact that I had dreamt of the place prior to ever witnessing it, especially since the inner dream connected directly to the plot of the outer dream. This was similar to having a real life experience of deja vu, in spite of being in a situation that has never been experienced before. Of course, the irony of the whole event is that it, too, was taking place within a dream and therefore was never experienced in reality.

I found this to be a very intriguing experience, especially in how it differs from a more common "dream within a dream" scenario. Many times in the past, I have awoken from a dream only to realize that I was still dreaming. This is a relatively common phenomena in which a person does not know that he or she is dreaming within a dream. Therefore, waking up often feels genuine, until one realizes that he or she is still within a dream. In contrast, I knowingly went to sleep within my dream, dreamt, and later awoke to continue the original dream (all before ultimately waking into reality).

johnmquick.blogspot.com...

www.researchgate.net...

Multiple Awareness in Simultaneous Dreaming
www.dreaminglucid.com...

I've been stuck in a "dream loop" before, where I am dreaming in a dream and then I wake up in the dream, only to find that I am still dreaming... and on and on and on! It was quite a horrible experience to be honest... trying to wake up from the dream and to be stuck in a loop like that. Does anyone know what this kind of phenomena is called, other than Lucid Dreaming?

Have you ever woken IN your dream and recalled what you were dreaming
while asleep in your dream??
In that dream I awoke in the back seat of a car on a gridlocked freeway and the sun was so hot on me I was sweating and felt the heat and sweat as I sat recalling what I'd just been dreaming! (This is nowhere near my most vivid or realistic dream just one example...)
So yeah....this isn't even an uncommon thing for me...

Had some really crazy dreams lately...................

I keep flying to get away from something/someone trying to get me. Sounds generic................but seems really lifelike to me.

thanks for all the responses.

one time and only once i had what i call a triple dream a dream within a dream within a dream it felt like forever when i had to wake up through them all

one time and only once i had what i call a triple dream a dream within a dream within a dream it felt like forever when i had to wake up through them all

one time and only once i had what i call a triple dream a dream within a dream within a dream it felt like forever when i had to wake up through them all

reply to post by Air Force Ron


i had a dream last night, in my dream i was woke up by a piegon flying into my bedroom window and getting caught in the drapes. i had to get up to set it free. a very odd dream, any thoughts