Thread: When dreams end...

Last night I had a weird dream. I became lucid after a little while. My brother was driving while I was in the passenger when I noticed my foot was swollen and numb, then I recalled a home I was at earlier in the dream where a snake was slithering around on the floor. I was then convinced I was bitten and was going to die of the venom. I then asked my brother if a snake bit me, he said yeah it did and you are dead. I got confused thinking that I was dead or going to die and closed my eyes. Moments later I woke up. The weird coincidence was that my girlfriend shook me to wake me up, it wasn't because I awoke myself. Has anyone had an experience when they know a dream is about to end? Like the dream concludes itself appropriately when something external is realized. On the other hand, this makes me come to a conclusion that a dream is a collection of thoughts, although you perceive time to be passing, it actually isn't. In reality time could not exist either, which would make sense in this situation. How much time actually passes in dreams? It can't be synonymous with waking life..