<P> The word hypnagogia entered the popular psychology literature through Dr. Andreas Mavromatis in his 1983 thesis, while hypnagogic and hypnopompic were coined by others in the 1800s and noted by Havelock Ellis . The term hypnagogic was originally coined by Alfred Maury to name the state of consciousness during the onset of sleep . Hypnopompic was coined by Frederic Myers soon afterwards to denote the onset of wakefulness . The term hypnagogia is used by Dr. Mavromatis to identify the study of the sleep - transitional consciousness states in general, and he employs hypnogogic (toward sleep) or hypnapompic (from sleep) for the purpose of identifying the specific experiences under study . </P> <P> Important reviews of the scientific literature have been made by Leaning, Schacter, Richardson and Mavromatis . </P> <P> Self - observation (spontaneous or systematic) was the primary tool of the early researchers . Since the late 20th century, this has been joined by questionnaire surveys and experimental studies . All three methods have their disadvantages as well as points to recommend them . </P> <P> Naturally, amnesia contributes to the difficulty of studying hypnagogia, as does the typically fleeting nature of hypnagogic experiences . These problems have been tackled by experimenters in a number of ways, including voluntary or induced interruptions, sleep manipulation, the use of techniques to "hover on the edge of sleep" thereby extending the duration of the hypnagogic state, and training in the art of introspection to heighten the subject's powers of observation and attention . </P>

Right before i fall asleep i hear voices