Thanks for the answer "Sleep Paralysis"

This information has been both very comforting and emotional.  I first experienced a sleep paralysis 3 years ago when I was taking strong cough and pain medicines for a respiratory problem because my doctor failed to diagnose Whooping Cough.  I was asleep and felt that I was free falling throughout space...stars and planets.  I was awake and felt a strong dread or death.  I fought to move for what felt like an eternity until I was finally able to move my finger against my mothers thigh. (She had ousted my husband and was sleeping with me because I had been so sick. )  It was terrifying!  The next night as I tried to sleep I experienced twice what I later found on the internet to be Exploding Head Syndrome which was at the least absolutely horrible and terrifying.  I have anxiety issues and am prone to attacks.  I am very cautious about taking strong medications because of the fear of not waking.  Unfortunately, I could not sleep two nights ago and finally fell off around 3 am. Only to find myself go through what a member here described as repeated dreams where I was having "sleep paralysis" in my sleep and each time I went through the struggles of trying to muster up all my will to wake up.  When I would wake up from the dream 'in my dream' I would soon be terrified to learn that I was still dreaming. I finally woke up around 4 crying uncontrollably.  I have been afraid to sleep since then.  I have avoided any medications and have tried to go to sleep in a very calm state.  This is awful.  Thank you for sharing these posts.  At  least now I don't feel like this is a near death experience and that the feeling of doom is just a symptom of this event.  Hope this helps someone else. Any additional information?