I've been here before. On the cusp, but I chickened. I can say that I have dropped straight into REM from a waking state, and when it happened I realized the true nature of this sleep hack. It was actually quite a terrifying experience - while waking (sitting in my computer chair), my body started bobbing, I fell down onto the ground, and by my wife's account, my eyes immediately started fluttering and I was down for approximately 10 minutes. I woke feeling extremely refreshed and well after a very vivid and unforgettable sleep state. Getting to the point where this was possible took several weeks of extreme sleep deprivation during which time I lost significant cognitive ability and my general sense of well-being. I am unsure whether I would have been able to overcome this deprivation thorough these REM sessions. Going in, I had a completely different idea, and imagined getting to a point where I would just lay down, fall asleep, feel like I was sleeping normally, and wake up after 15 minutes feeling refreshed. This is not at all the case. When I went down into REM I could feel my mind 'regenerating', bathing in this violent electric storm that was raw brain activity. I wouldn't say I was conscious, but this feeling / experience was far different than anything I have ever felt before. I never got to see the light that some may claim is at the other side of this ordeal, replacing ordinary sleep with this experience several times daily. I'll admit it, it scared the bajeezus out of me the first time it happened, and that night, I laid down with my wife and went on with my life sleeping like a normal person. I still can't help but wondering, and maybe someday I'll be back for another try. I'm a little more skeptical now of those who claim to have at some point in their life to have actually adopted a polyphasic cycle, because I tried it and even getting to the point where I popped off a REM session was utter insanity.