Narcolepsy – A Disorder of Sleeping during the Day

Narcolepsy is an uncommon type of sleep disorder characterized by sufferers going to sleep at the most inappropriate times. This disorder occurring due to neurological problems occurs when the brain sends impulses of sleep to other areas of the body when it is not actually the time when the person wants to go to sleep. The person tends to go to sleep mainly when they are pursuing some type of activity like being at a meeting or seeing something on the television.

There have been instances where the sleep induction has happened when the person is driving or handling some machinery which can be potentially hazardous. It is common for such people to nod off in between conversation or a meal. This increased tendency to go to sleep can happen at any time of the day without the person becoming aware of it.

People with narcolepsy do not understand their degree of drowsiness or know when they go off to sleep. They also do not understand the gravity of their condition and it is usually a co-employee, friend or a family person that makes them realize their problem and advice them on taking professional help.

Usually, a person suffering from narcolepsy shows five symptoms that include heightened drowsiness during the day, hallucinations, cataplexy, sleep paralysis, sleep fragmentation and insomnia. While some sufferers might only exhibit one or few of the symptoms others might show all the five symptoms.

The heightened drowsiness at daytime is in most cases the first symptom. All sufferers of this condition generally exhibit this symptom. The necessity to go to sleep is very strong and no matter how they try they just can ward it off. These attacks can recur many times during the day and each episode is of a five or ten minute duration.

Hallucinations that narcolepsy patients experience are of hypnagogic type and the person will have vibrant and scary sounds, pictures or physical feelings. These will usually result from dreams the person has when going to sleep or while coming awake. The person will not be able to differentiate between actuality and the hallucination. The hallucinations are usually of a very scary nature and are often occurring hand in hand with sleep paralysis.

Cataplexy is a condition where the person cannot move any muscles although they are awake. The duration for which this condition lasts is very short and occurs due to disruption of REM functions. About 50% of narcolepsy patients suffer from this problem. The symptom is often initiated by strong emotions such as laughing, getting extremely irritated, anger, etc. There is a possibility that the person’s body might go totally loose and may end up falling down. Though it appears like the person is sound asleep, they are actually alert and aware of their surroundings.

Sleep paralysis is a symptom of narcolepsy that is faced by about 50% of sufferers. People suffering from this symptom will not be able to budge or speak for some period of time either prior to falling asleep or at the time of waking.

Sleep fragmentation and insomnia are commonly experienced symptoms in almost all narcolepsy patients. Although narcolepsy sufferers have a tendency to be extremely sleep during the day, they have heightened difficulty falling asleep during the night or might wake up periodically through the night.

Apart from these major symptoms, narcolepsy patients might also suffer from other symptoms such as automatic behavior, blurring of vision, headache, problems with concentration and memory. The episodes of automatic behavior go on for a few minutes during which the person will carry out some day to day activity although it will not be done properly.

Narcolepsy can be managed through medications although if it is left undiagnosed and not treated, it can have hazardous effects on the social wellbeing of the person.