Thread: Question on Dream - Eyes Open, Paralyzed, Hallucinations

I have a quick question for anyone with experience with dreams that continue after your eyes are open, and you gain a sense of complete awareness.

For as long as I can remember, I have been able to recognize that I'm dreaming, and could do "anything that I wanted to" within that dream. The first dream I remember "controlling" was in day care. From that point on, I have been able to control dreams and wake myself up on cue.

However, in addition to these dreams, I have woken up "on cue" only partially. Each time it begins in the same fashion, I realize that I'm dreaming, I begin to "control my dream," and an uncontrollable fear comes over me with seemingly no logical explanation. The fear intensifies and is accompanied by a sense that a climactic peak is approaching. Included with this fear and intensity is a feeling of intense internal vibration.

I have never been able to see what happens at the peak. I always consciously wake myself up. It is in this scenario that my efforts to awaken are only half realized. My eyes are open, my mind is operating even more rationally than in a dream that I control, but I am essentially paralyzed. The fear persists until I can muster the strength to give my "wake-up" attempt another try. Interestingly, I am still able to move the ends of my fingertips, toes, and feet. Furthermore, a sense of someone standing next to me is felt, and occasionally I make out a figure or shadow.

My brother and I are the only people I know that have these dreams. Although, I recently heard about a type of sleep disorder where your eyes can be open while still in a portion of REM, which creates hallucinations…

For these reasons, I have joined this forum. I hope to research how and why this phenomenon exists. Although I don't believe in any paranormal or "magical" experiences, I find sleep fascinating and am interested to hear if any of you have had similar experiences.

Please let me know if you could shed any light on the aforementioned dream experiences of if you would like to simply share a similar experience.