Hello all, I'm new here. I've been reading some posts here on and off and have tried some of these lucid dream inducing techniques with no luck so far. I've gone through weeks of trying to get these to happen and I'm not having any luck, but I have had something happen to me that was very terrifying.

I was having a hard time falling asleep, tossing and turning. Finally I started feeling like I was relaxing and getting ready to slip into a dream, then suddenly I realize that I can't move at all. Fear starts to kick in almost instantly, and I begin to see what appears to be a dark entity or cloud slowly making its way out of one of the rooms in my house (almost looked like thick smoke). The entity slowly made its way into my room, and collected at the edge of my bed, forming what looked to be a large cloak (similar to what you see the grim reaper wearing). When this entity was finishing up its formation I noticed a white face, but I couldn't really make it out clearly. Now at this point the fear was so strong, I don't think I've ever felt this much fear in my entire life. I felt hands on my shins, slowly make their way up my body, finally stopping at my throat. I am literally trying to scream and move for someone to help, not that I really know what they can help with but I felt desperate and helpless and really started to think that I was going to die. The hands on my throat felt impossibly strong, and just when I felt myself slipping all of a sudden I woke up, and it was the next day (the whole sequence took place in the dark).

Now I need to make this clear, this looked and felt VERY real. I've had sleep paralysis before and have had hallucinations but there was always a realization at some point that this wasn't really happening, followed with me getting my movement back/waking up. Whatever happened I still don't really know, but I never want to experience anything like this again.

I am curious if anyone has had a similar experience. I've seen something on A&E in the past where some people had experiences like this, where each person really felt like they were going to die during this whole thing. Some call it a "dream demon," any thoughts?