Case 10 Narcolepsy

Narcolepsy is a sleeping disorder that occurs during the adolescence stage. It is peculiar as it causes the afflicted person to develop a spontaneous sleep cycle during the day. This disorder prompts “sleep attacks” to occur, and can even be accompanied by cataplexy, random muscle failure or really just REM sleep paralysis (Zimbardo, Johnson, Weber,2008, p.109). It can be dangerous as the attacks can be triggered at any time by intense feelings of emotion or a lack of stimulation. This means that in cases such as driving, sexual intercourse, and times of extreme happiness a narcoleptic person could just fall straight into REM sleep (Zimbardo, Johnson, Weber,2008,

The symptoms of narcolepsy include cataplexy, persistent daytime sleepiness, sleep paralysis, and hypnagogic hallucinations. Cataplexy is “a loss of skeletal muscle tone without loss of consciousness” (77). These cataplectic attacks often occur at emotional times. Such events could be laughter, sexual intercourse, physical

Attacks can last up to a few minutes, so they’re usually quite brief. People who get these attacks can usually tell that they are coming, so they can prepare accordingly. When having an attack, speech will not be clear, and your sight will be off, but you should still have your hearing intact. Cataplexy can occur spontaneously, but it also can be triggered by sudden emotions like fear, anger, and stress. Laughter is reported to be the number one most common trigger. Narcolepsy with Cataplexy is Narcolepsy Type 1, where narcolepsy without cataplexy is Narcolepsy Type 2.

Firstly, what is narcolepsy? Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder that effects your central nervous system that does not allow the person to have a regulated sleep cycle. A regular person normally has a 90 minute sleep cycle, while a narcoleptic goes straight into REM sleep. Since they go straight into REM sleep, the brain does not have a chance to recover from its constant activities. A narcoleptics

As stated in a previous statistic, sleep disorders unfortunately target a wide variety of ages. Children are commonly affected by Sleep Apnea, teeth grinding, Night Terrors, Nightmares, sleep walking, Restless Leg Syndrome, bedwetting, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Adults tend to be affected by Insomnia, Hypersomnia, Sleep Apnea, Narcolepsy, Sleep Paralysis, Hypopnea Syndrome, and Noctoria. Sleep disorders are very common and also very dangerous in some circumstances. Ill treating or ignoring sleep disorders can lead to lethargy, poor mood, lack of motivation, and may negatively impact

Starting off on the disability details of epilepsy and narcolepsy. First, the definition of epilepsy is when your brain has recurring seizures (Haugen 42). The definition of narcolepsy is when you start hallucinating (Brayer 85).Some symptoms of narcolepsy are sleep paralysis, excessive daytime sleepiness (Brayer 30), and mental confusion (“Facts”). Staring off into space, measles, poor diet, illegal drugs, stress, alcohol, and

According to MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, the common symptoms of narcolepsy are periods of extreme drowsiness during the day (MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia). People with narcolepsy feel a strong desire to sleep, usually followed by a short nap. The sleep attacks last about fifteen minutes but can be longer. Often times, these sleep attacks happen after eating, during driving, and other everyday tasks. After a short nap, a person usually wakes up feeling refreshed and energized. As stated by Medline Plus Medical Encyclopedia, “Another symptom is dream-like hallucinations between sleep and wakefulness” (MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia). This is when a person experiences seeing or hearing right before they fall asleep. Sleep paralysis and cataplexy are also common symptoms of narcolepsy (MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia). Sleep paralysis is not being able to move as you are falling asleep or upon waking up. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, it usually goes unnoticed because it occurs during REM sleep (NINDS). REM sleep is rapid eye movement sleep. It occurs in breaks when rapid eye movements occur along with bodily movement. Similarly, cataplexy is a sudden loss of mobility. This is also associated with strong emotion like laughter or anger, which can trigger cataplexy

Leonie was seen today as ongoing management for narcolepsy. She has continued on with dexamphetamine 10mg in the morning and 10mg in the afternoon. Whilst initially noticing good benefit, she has worsened significantly with regards to her daytime symptoms more recently. Part of this she believes is a lack of efficacy of the dexamphetamine and also part of this she believes is re-emergence of sleep walking.

Sleep paralysis is a common condition with a prevalence of 5-62%, although most affected people have single or infrequent episodes (Dahlitz). Occasionally sleep paralysis is found to run in a family, and it can be associated with other disorders of hypersomnia, such as sleep apnea (Becker 81). Narcolepsy has also been linked with sleep paralysis; both are thought to be REM sleep disorders (Siegel). Gender and race do not seem to be a factor of risk for this disorder. The episodes of sleep paralysis seem to range from ages 5-35 (Dahlitz). The use of anxiolytic medicines, psychiatric disorders and high anxiety can also contribute to sleep paralysis (Larkin).

Narcolepsy Type II without cataplexy where cataplexy is absent. The hypersomnolence and MSLT findings are insufficient sleep, OSA, delayed sleep phase disorder o medical substances.

Summary: Narcolepsy and cataplexy are lifelong illness due to the loss of Hypocretin in the brain. Hypocretin is a chemical that regulate sleep cycle, without it people will experience sleep disorder. There is no cure for the disease. However, condition can be managed by drug therapy and several behavioral strategies. But I am looking forward that one day researcher will find a cure for it so I can live my life normally as I used before.

A person with narcolepsy can experience extreme daytime sleepiness and uncontrollable falling asleep during daytime.

Parasomnia refers to a wide variety of disruptive, sleep-related events or, "disorders of arousal." These behaviors and experiences occur usually while sleeping, and most are often infrequent and mild. They may however happen often enough to become so bothersome that medical attention should be sought out. "Parasomnias are disorders characterized by abnormal behavior or physiological events occurring in association with sleep stages, or sleep-wake transitions."(DSM pg. 435)

Cataplexy itself is a sudden loss of muscle control. Cataplexy happens when an individual is stimulated by stimuli such as laughter or anger, and may suddenly collapse due to their involuntary muscle functioning. This is the dangerous feature that comes with having narcolepsy. Some narcoleptics may have to wear protective headgear such as helmets because there is a risk of injury that comes with cataplexy (nnpdf.org).

To start off, sleep paralysis is known as a sleep disorder that’s causes temporary inability to move or speak that can occur when waking up or falling asleep. According to www.alaskasleep.com,