In an attempt to wild, I'm struggling to tell the difference between if I managed to fall asleep and retain conciousness or I didn't actually fall asleep to reach at all.

I'm new to this concept, so i'm still trying to figure this all out. Basically during wbtb, I go back to bed tired, when I close my eyes, I till feel tired but then I slip into a snoozy-state, I can see the backs of my eyelids, and my body goes numb I don't feel tired and I don't feel like I need to move or do anything, but I know I'm there, awake in my mind waiting for a dream to happen.

Alternatively I could be getting stuck in the transition and haven't quite made it to sleep yet. So it could be that I haven't been able to pin-point my optimum time to sleep in REM during wbtb or it could be that my mind has trouble sleeping with conciousness and is keeping me awake as it tries to sleep.

Any advice on being able to tell the difference would be appreciated. It should be noted, when I wake up from this, I wake up very tired and I do feel as if I have been sleeping.