Is a Dream Journal really essential?

I really don’t won’t to have to keep a dream journal to induce lucid dreams. If MILD or WILD works for me would I still need to have a DJ?

Well, it depends. If you can recall about 3-4 dreams a night in very vivid detail, then you probably wouldn’t need one. In contrast, if you don’t remember your dreams very well, or in great detail, then you might consider using one. It depends mainly on you. It sure does help though if you can keep it up to date and in good detail. For WILD I don’t think you would need one, but MILD you probably would.

I don’t usually keep a dream journal either. I’m always just in too much of a rush. But what works for me is, when you wake up in the morning, before you get up just take five minutes to remember as much as you can of what you were just dreaming about, analyze it, do whatever you normally do with your dream journal. You remember much more of them this way anyway. I kept a dream journal for a while. But now (you have to do it faithfully and thouroughly every morning) My dream recall actually increased a little if anything. I’m not saying this goes for everyone, but not everybody has to write their dreams down to remember them.

Why would I need one for MILD?

And I can for the majority of the time remember 2 dreams a night but sometimes only one. I almost never EVER remember any more than 4 a night. I could write down each dream I had that night right when I woke up but I’d only be able to remember around 2.

You might need one for MILD because it is somewhat like normal dreaming. It isn’t consciuosly entering the dream like WILD. MILD isn’t a sure-fire way to become lucid in a dream, so I guess a journal would help combined with MILD.