There is an article in the article space that should help you with the waking during SP problem.
9 Ways to Wake Up From Sleep Paralysis (By Ryan Hurd)
Seems to be a case of your expectation ruining the FA opportunities. If you have a written record of the few times you changed the FA into a nice LD, it would be a really good idea to keep reading these, remembering them and how it felt. You have done it, if you find yourself in a FA you will do it again.