Hey everyone, I'm a newbie too, just started reading the website yesterday about lucid dreams after a friend told me about them.
I actually feel this sensation occasionally, perhaps once a month. It's normally very late at night when I'm overtired and it takes me a long time to fall asleep, then i typically awake with a start. However, sometimes I have short dreams where I'm playing soccer, for example, and all of a sudden I see the ball coming straight for my face. I awake with a start upon feeling this falling sensation. Would anyone know if the two instances are related?