Not sure if this is the right place to go?

I woke up twenty minutes ago from what is apparently called "sleep paralysis." I'm sure you've all heard of it. Well it freaked me out to the point that I started Googling about it. Most people have said that sleep paralysis is like the first step to lucid dreaming. Then I looked up people's definitions of lucid dreaming, and people have talked of floating and flying or sort of "swimming through the air" and remembering every detail and knowing you are dreaming. Well I've always had these types of dreams and didn't think much of it. The question is, those dreams are considered lucid? I thought you had to go through some sort of "door" or something in your dreams to be a lucid dreamer? And also, how do I learn to manage this sleep paralysis? It is terrifying to me. Thanks! :)

If you know you're dreaming, it's a lucid dream. So yeah it's that simple for some people. Some have been able to do this since they were kids and is completely natural to them. Sleep paralysis might feel scary, but it's completely normal and happens each and every night that you sleep. It's the body's way of protecting itself as you're dreaming, otherwise you'd thrash around and hurt yourself. Try to have an open mind and see it as something amazing and cool. It's all in your head after all and you're 100% safe. It's just as scary as you let it be. Relax next time and think of a dream scene you'd like to be in, walk around in the scene and imagine touching stuff and you're soon there.

Thank you. :) As I've said I didn't think much of my dreams, but the sleep paralysis freaks me out because I feel as though something is grabbing hold of me. Is there a way to control that phase so that I don't feel as though there is a presence with me?

The trick is to not pay much attention to what you're experiencing, it'll only make it worse if you're frightened you'll experience something bad. If you want to get out of it you can change your breathing and relax, just breathe slowly and it'll soon go away.