I see things when between sleep and consciousness

Something has bothered me for a long time regarding things I "see" when in a state between sleep and being awake. I feel that I sometimes leave my body in this state and see things around me while in an "astral form." I am 27 years old and remember having experiences like this since I was 9 or 10 years old, and I thought they were just dreams until recently.

What made me think these visions are more than dreams is the reality in what I see. For example, I am dozing off in the afternoon while reading a book, and instantly begin "dreaming" and am outside of my apartment, looking down the stairs. Everything looks just as it does in real life. I see two friends of mine walking up the stairs. seconds later, I am awoken to a knock on the door, and of course it is those same two friends at the door that I had just seen in my "dream." Similar experiences have happened many times.

These "dreams" always occur in my immediate surroundings. Here is what scares me: often, I am seeing monstrous or demonic looking creatures when I theoretically leave my body mere seconds after dozing off. I will close my eyes and immediately be in the next room where some horrific entity is looking right at me. The fear that results from these sightings wakes me immediately.

Does anyone else experience things like this? The fact that I see real, current things in this state makes me think the "monsters" I see are real but not visible to us when we are conscious. It is terrifying and I know make an effort to not "nod off" during the day / before I am in bed and ready to sleep.