I think i get it but, i totally feel like im awake when it happens. then i pay too much attention to my body and snap out of it, even though it felt the whole time like i was awake. am i actually asleep when this happens?
P.S. I know, dumb question. 
When you experience SP you are usually awake or on the boarder of falling asleep, hence the hallucinations. 
If you were fully asleep you should be able to move, unless you are dreaming you are paralyzed.
I’ve been attempting dream recall and lucid dreams for the last few days now (a.k.a completely obsessing over it), and while I have had a degree of progress, I have a few questions that I’m curious about.
First off, how long would it take normally for sleep-paralysis in WILD to progress to a dream, and is there any way to be certain that it has or will soon happen? I tried it today after dinner, and while I’m certain I got into the right state without falling asleep, I involuntairily swallowed and immediately woke up after about forty minutes. I was also twitching quite a bit involuntarily, so I woner if it’s normal for these reactions to happen, or is there something else to explain it?
I’ve been feeling unusually tired the last two days, too. It has noting to do with how long or how short I went to sleep for, since both nights of sleeping where what I’d consider normal. I think it has something to do with my dreams, but I haven’t remembered them the last two nights. It also didn’t feel quite like how it feels to not have enough sleep or having too much sleep - or even how groggy people like me get in the morning. It’s really perculiar, and I was wondering if anyone else had felt like that.
And, last but not least, is it okay to switch between methods of keeping yourself awake while trying to get into a lucid dream through WILD? I started counting to one hundred, focused on my breathing, focused on my heart beat, chanted what I wanted to happen, recounted lyrics to songs I liked, focused on the colors and dots on the back of my eyelids (even made them turn green for a little bit), and talked to what I think where my hypnogogic imagery. Is it okay to do that?
The time it takes for a dream to develop from being in SP is difficult to say with any certainty. It will most likely depend on how sleepy you are. I have heard a number of people saying that they have experienced twitching I believe it is normal. If it becomes a problem I would try tensing my entire body and holding for a few seconds before starting relaxation.
Personally I am doubtful that dreaming or lucid dreaming could make you feel tired. There are another few possibilities I can think of, such as, when you are sleeping. I found that when I started getting up earlier and going to sleep earlier, still getting the same amount of sleep as before, I felt tired. If you have an illness of some kind, like a cold or whatever, that can also make you feel like you need more sleep.
Personally I would avoid switching techniques so quickly, I don’t think it would give you a fair evaluation. If you are finding it is frustrating you, then I can understand, but I feel it would work better if you are fully focused on the technique you are trying, rather than trying to decide at the time, if it is working.
This is a split topic, the next part is First Steps to WILD part IV (Basic WILD Q&A). 