Hello all, I am new to this forum, but thought I would join because of a strange experience I had early this morning.

I have never lucid dreamt before, so I have a few questions and was hoping you guys could help me clear some things up. But let me begin with what happened...

I went to bed around 10:00pm last night and fell asleep pretty quickly. I assume it was very early in the morning, but I began to dream for quite some time. It was all kind of hazy and I can recall a few events but not many. During these hazy moments I recall telling myself that I was dreaming, and shouldn't take these dreams too seriously. Even though I said this in my dream, I did not gain lucidity, and my mind just carried on. My most vivid dream was about being in a desolate plain (like a broad desert expanse) digging in front of some woman's house. I was looking for some electrical components when all of the sudden I tripped across a big centipede. I saw it and was pretty scared, although I noticed that it has my school colors. Seeing the colors reminded me that I was in a dream, but I was too scared, and ran away as the large bug "flew" after me. After a while of dodging and jumping from the critter, the dream phased out and I entered another desert area. I was about to walk up some staircase when I suddenly remembered that I was dreaming. Only this time my mind listened and I had the most bizarre experience. The hazy dream state disappeared and I rocketed into my dream body, feeling a strange alive sensation. For about a second I felt it was real life.

I instantly exited the dream involuntarily only to find myself face down on my pillow, completely paralyzed. I told myself that I was in sleep paralysis, but I wanted to get out. I fidgeted and tried to move but I didn't help. Finally I tried screaming and my paralysis was released. I later fell asleep.

The strange part was that the whole "becoming lucid" experience on the staircase seamed very dramatic, and even the moment when I woke up and couldn't move seemed unclear and still hazy. This leads me to believe that I was just dreaming about having a lucid dream, but I am still very unsure.

I was hoping you may possibly be able to discern what I experienced, and shed some light for me. Thank you!