Waking REM sleep

Waking Rapid Eye Movement Sleep is kind of an oxymoron, but it describes a real phenomenon where (non-)sleepers are forced into REM states while still awake and conscious. This is the REM equivalent to SWS "blackouts", and both are a special form of microsleeps.

WREM presents as rapid eye movement combined with erratic thoughts that usually do not stick to any particular topic, possibly resulting in confusion and possibly even coupled with hallucinations. The rapid eye movements (r.e.m.) are often performed with the eyes still open, which is where the Waking in WREM comes from. Consciousness itself is also often not impaired, though thought is hard nonetheless.

The r.e.m. are usually uncontrollable, similar to the rest of WREM. With extreme concentration though, WREM can be somewhat weakened or escaped.

WREM "dreams"

As with normal REM sleep, WREM comes with dreams. This manifests as either part of the erratic thoughts, resulting in slightly more clarity, or as hallucinations. Similar to how REM processes thoughts while sleeping, WREM also goes through tons of thoughts and seems to process them similarly, just with the consciousness continuing to listen in. This means WREM feels like it may be hijacking your stream of consciousness/thought.

Recognizing

Due to consciousness remaining good, WREM is relatively easy to recognize by the r.e.m. and erratic thoughts.