The stop breathing thing has happened to three times.
What happened when i woke up suffocating was a lack of mental consciousness (i was awake but had no thoughts except complete fear at the fact I had no thoughts. I try to rationalise it as the result of asphyxiation.
The doctor mentioned panic attack. My ego did not feel this to be true. But i guess they must have been. Ive not had one in over 5 years and I think it was caused by stress.
Hope this helps.
Ross