Narcolepsy Informative Speech

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,

Another area in the brain has been targeted in playing a role in narcolepsy. This area is called the locus coeruleus. This region releases norepinephrine, which is involved in “fight or flight” reactions. It has been found that in normal individuals the locus coeruleus is active while awake and inactive during REM sleep. However, narcoleptics have inactive locus coeruleus’s before and during cataplexy, just like REM

The websites chosen to research was Medline Plus, Genetics Home Reference and National Institutes of Health. The topic researched was narcolepsy.

As a result, epilepsy and narcolepsy are pretty major disabilities, from all of the symptoms to the

Narcolepsy is a sleeping disorder that affects 1 in about 2,000 people in the United States. Many people are unaware that they have this disorder, and it goes undiagnosed. Narcolepsy affects your sleeping pattern, including irregular patterns in your Rapid Eye Movement (REM), and significant disruptions in your normal sleep/wake cycle. There is no cure for this disorder, but it is treatable. We also don’t know what causes it.

Target for this disorder are children and adolescents being adults diagnosed with narcolepsy reporting that onset begun before age 15 years. Alternate names for narcolepsy are: hypocretin deficiency syndrome, narcolepsy-cataplexy, narcolepsy with cataplexy. Narcolepsy can be also accompanied by cataplexy,

Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder which the brain are unable to regulate sleep wake cycles normally.

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.

Narcolepsy is a permanent sleep disorder that gets worse with age. It is estimated that about 40,000 to 135,000 people in the United States have narcolepsy. (Narcolepsy, 2002). Most people who have narcolepsy are often times misdiagnosed because the symptoms, especially if noticed at the beginning stages, are very similar to other sleep disorders. Some of the symptoms that go along with narcolepsy are excessive sleepiness, especially during the daytime or when sleep is inappropriate, cataplexy which is when a person suddenly looses control of their muscles, sleep paralysis which is when the person is unable to move for a short period of time after they wake up from sleep, and hypnagogic hallucinations which is very

Males and females are affected equally and there seems to be no familial link (Chemelli, et al 1999). The characterizing symptoms of narcolepsy include excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), cataplexy, abnormal transitions from consciousness into rapid eye movement (REM), sleep fragmentation, sleep paralysis, and hypnogogic hallucinations (Lin et al 1999).

Arousal disorders are the most common type of parasomnia. These disorders include: confusional arousals, sleepwalking, sleep terrors and nightmares. Experts believe that each is related and share some symptoms. Essentially, they occur because a

Although narcolepsy is a very common disorder, affecting between 1 in 1000 and 1 in 2000 people in the United States, there is still no cure and the only medications available mask some of the symptoms, but they are only effective for a short time (6). Though their is no cure, scientists have been trying to solve this problem since the ‘discovery’ of the disease 120 years ago. At this point they have a few possible areas that they are studying which have been connected to the disease. The suggestions that have been made so far are causes such as neuronal degeneration, a genetic mutation or an autoimmune disease (6). These possible causes are varied and have been proven to cause narcolepsy in other animals, but not humans specifically.

Some symptoms of narcolepsy include the following: Cataplexy, hallucinations, excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), and sleep paralysis. Cataplexy consists of loss of muscle tone which leads to feelings of weakness and loss of muscle control, it can cause slurred speech and your body can even collapse, all depending of what muscles were involved. Hallucinations are just delusional experiences that are vivid (seem real) and frequently they are freighting. EDS consist of things such as memory lapse, depressed mood, mental cloudiness, lack of energy and concentration and/or extreme exhaustion. Sleep paralysis is when you temporally and inability to move or speak.

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 is a sleeping disorder caused by excessive sleepiness, sleep paralysis, hallucinations, and cataplexy. Narcolepsy occurs equally in men and women and affects 1 in 2000 people. The symptoms appear in your childhood and takes years before a prior diagnosis. While there is no cure for Narcolepsy, many tests will be done to see if there is a treatment to ease Narcolepsy. Giving patients easier, better lives.