So i’ve been pretty consistent with my meditation and I’m pretty sure it’s helping me calm my mind and get control over my thoughts and behaviors, but for the last couple days after I meditate i lay down and just pass out for like 45 minutes. I know Yogani says it’s okay to lay down but i feel like passing out life this defeats the purpose for some reason.
Nope, this is perfect! If you can afford to sleep (pass out) for 45 min… then go ahead and do it. 
There is some purification that cannot happen when we are awake, it happens at a deeper level and that is what draws us into deep sleep.
Take a look at these topics (although one of these talk about sleep during practices, it is a similar concept of overcoming deep fatigue):
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1392
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1475
Thanks Shanti. Another thing that’s happening to me during meditation are these mini dreams that come up spontaneously. This happened years ago when I meditated too. It feels like my thoughts turn into a very short dreamthat last a couple seconds. I don’t fully fall asleep though and they end pretty much when I realize what’s going on and back to the mantra.
Yes, that is common too…
Here are a couple of topics on that:
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=8004
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=11800
It may depend on the type of meditation you do? I’m doing Centering Prayer for about 3 weeks now, very simple yet difficult 
It appears that a study revealed that this type of meditation can put the brain in a state similar to REM sleep. I have indeed noticed that sometimes my eyes start spinning around like they do in REM sleep. I’ve not gone into studying this effect, since doing so is against what Centering Prayer is about.
Some update from my practice, just in case it might help other readers.
I regularly fall asleep after each session: I do my morning meditation early in the morning (around 5 am) mostly because I have a baby who wakes up early (around 6am) so I have to wake up earlier if I want to practice quietly. I do my 20m DM, then I fall asleep for 30 min before the day starts for good.
During the evening, I do my DM session right after coming back from work. I’im usually quite tired then, and I try to rest for 5 to 10 min afterwards but I’m often awaken by my wife who finds me sleeping in my bed 30 to 40 min after my session ending. I do not like to sleepd after evening DM, though, because I’m easily irritated for almost 1 hour after waking up. My wife tends to not liking that either
I find myself in a much better mood if I manage to rest only 10 or 15 min without falling asleep.
When meditating for to long or at the wrong time each day you might lose more energy than what you gain…like when taking a shower when you do not want to that drains your energy or standing at the right place in your house you will most likely regain alot of energy, ETC
Yeah, I’ve had minidreams in my meditations too. Actually, I sometimes get really vivid and disturbing images, like something from a horror movie. Nonetheless, its pretty interesting 
I had a few mini-dreams back when I used to do breath-focus meditation, and only after longer 30+ minute sessions. Have not had since switching over to AYP methods 40 days ago, but I’m just getting started here. It was a few months into the breath meditations before I had the mini-dreams.
Side note: I just assumed those were hypnagogic visions, which are basically what you experience in that “twilight” half-awake, half-asleep state you’re in right as you’re falling asleep.