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Narcolepsy is asleep disorderthat is characterized by chronic, excessive daytime sleepiness.
It is a neurological condition that impacts the brain’s ability to manage the sleep-wake cycle.
They may even unwillingly fall asleep in the middle of activities including driving or eating.
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Without treatment, narcolepsy can have a significant effect on a person’s ability to function normally.
It can lead to impairments in school, work, and relationships.
Narcolepsy Symptoms
There are a number of symptoms that characterize narcolepsy.
This is the primary symptom of the condition and it is often the first to appear.
Suchparalysisis usually brief and can last from a matter of a few seconds to several minutes.
It can be frightening, but once an episode is over people recover their ability to move and speak.
Hallucinations
People with narcolepsy may also experience very vivid sensoryhallucinationsthat sometimes can be quite frightening.
It can be triggered by intensepositive and negative emotionsand can vary in severity from mild to more severe.
In some cases, people may only experience mild weakness that causes their head or jaw to drop.
In other cases, their knees may buckle and they may collapse to the ground.
It affects women and men at equal rates.
However, people sometimes find that symptoms of daytime sleepiness become less severe after age 60.
What distinguishes normal sleepiness from narcolepsy, however, is the tendency to enter REM sleep abnormally fast.
Your doctor will also use this information to help rule out other conditions that might be causing your symptoms.
Other sleep disorders such as sleep apnea can also lead to sleepiness during the daytime.
One explanation for narcolepsy lies in the loss of a specificneurotransmittercalled hypocretin.
This chemical messenger plays an important role in regulating the sleep/wake cycle and plays a part in REM sleep.
People who have narcolepsy tend to have a shortage of hypocretin, which leads to excessive sleepiness.
Types
There are two different types of narcolepsy.
They are identified by the presence or absence of specific symptoms.
There is also a condition known as secondary narcolepsy that can occur if the hypothalamus is damaged.
The hypothalamus is located deepinside the brainand is important in the regulation of sleep.
Damage to this area can lead to narcolepsy symptoms along with other neurological problems.
However, many symptoms of the condition can be managed with the use of medications and lifestyle changes.
Certain activities can be dangerous if you have narcolepsy.
Seek Support
You may also find it helpful to enlist the support of your friends and family.
Ask your loved ones for assistance with tasks such as driving or running errands.
Narcolepsy affects many different areas of your life and often makes it difficult to cope and function normally.
National Organization for Rare Disorders.Narcolepsy.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Narcolepsy information page.
Cleveland Clinic.Narcolepsy: diagnosis and tests.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Narcolepsy fact sheet.
Cleveland Clinic.Narcolepsy: management and treatment.
