I am hoping that I can get a little guidance regarding a recurring dream (?). Several times now I have fallen asleep/taken a nap only to discover that I seem to be wide awake. I can see the entire room, I can hear clearly everything that is going on around me. When I attempt to rise from the bed I feel weighed down and unable to do the simplest task of sitting up. This is usually when I begin to suspect that I am dreaming (possibly projecting?). Just this afternoon when this "dream" happened again, I looked up at my ceiling (which is seen in great detail as are all other objects I focus upon when I am in this state) and I saw something swirling around. What I mean is that there was nothing visibly there to see, except maybe a distortion which kind of looked like what a person might see when looking through the bottom of an clear, empty soda bottle. I could see the ceiling, but there were these swirls moving in kind of a spiral pattern. I panicked and attempted to awaken myself. Nothing was working. It seemed it took an interminable time to awaken myself from "dreaming". Everytime I relaxed to try and get my bearings, my breathing seemed to slow down and I became afraid that it would stop altogether. It was not an unpleasant feeling, but I was very afraid. Also, each time I noticed my breathing slowing down, the room would begin to darken and I felt as though I were sinking (through my bed? body?). Please help or refer me to where I can find some answers.