The sleep disorder is more common—and less dramatic—than you think.
By Amy Marturana, Self
When you think of narcolepsy, you probably picture a person falling asleep mid sentence, or Rusty the narcoleptic dog who adorably zonks out mid leap. Yes, the sleep disorder
can be that extreme. But there are also some way more subtle signs of
narcolepsy that make the condition more common than we think and
oftentimes difficult to spot.
[post_ads]Narcolepsy
affects both men and women equally, and most commonly begins during
adolescence or early 20s. It's estimated that over 200,000 people in the
U.S. have narcolepsy, but it's tough to get an accurate number because
it's still a very under-recognized condition. "A lot of times people get
misdiagnosed," Rachel Salas, M.D.,
an associate professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins Medicine who
specializes in sleep medicine, tells SELF. The condition is a form of
central hypersomnia, a sleep disorder that originates in the brain and
makes people extremely tired during the day.
This kind of clinical sleepiness is often caused by disturbed sleep or a
circadian rhythm problem, but experts believe that there are certain
neurotransmitters in the brain that are to blame for narcolepsy, and
Salas points out that recent research suggests an autoimmune component is involved.
Unfortunately,
there's no cure for narcolepsy. "What we really try to do is treat the
symptoms," Salas says. The symptoms can be debilitating and interfere
with everyday life, and sometimes, they can be confused with other sleep
disorders or just poor sleep habits. It's important to see a sleep specialist and be properly diagnosed so they can craft the best treatment plan for you.
Here are the big four symptoms of narcolepsy to look out for.
1.
You're excessively tired all day long.
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"Usually people with narcolepsy are just very sleepy
even though they get enough sleep," Salas says. Experts refer to this
as excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). This sleepiness can vary widely
depending on how severe it is and how good the person's sleep habits
are, but someone with narcolepsy is just perpetually tired for no
reason. Interestingly, narcoleptics often feel restored and alert when
first waking up in the morning or right after a nap, "whereas a sleep-deprived person
or someone with sleep apnea still feels tired," Salas explains. The
sleepiness then sets in quickly after. EDS likely interrupts a
narcoleptic person's work and social lives. And, yes, sometimes that
means falling asleep at inappropriate times. Salas says she's seen
people who fall asleep while cooking, and even more dangerously, while driving.
2.
Your muscles randomly get weak or give out.
During
the REM portion of the sleep cycle (when most dreams occur), our
muscles essentially power down to prevent us from acting out our dreams,
Salas explains. We don't notice it, because it happens while we're
sleeping. For people with narcolepsy, their muscles may randomly shut
down while they're awake, a phenomenon called cataplexy, which is “when
you suddenly lose muscle tone," Salas explains. According to the
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, cataplexy
occurs in about 70 percent of all people with narcolepsy. Cataplexy can
happen randomly, but is usually triggered by a strong emotion. “So
someone's laughing really hard or gets really excited or angry, and they
can lose muscle tone.” It usually happens in the legs and can be
anything from a sudden feeling of weakness, to total loss of muscle
control that causes you to collapse. (This is not your run-of-the-mill
falling down laughing.) It can also be as subtle as a drooped eyelid.
3.
You experience sleep paralysis often.
[post_ads]This
scary phenomenon happens when you wake up before REM is finished, and
you can't move because your muscles are still turned off. "Most people
will experience sleep paralysis
at least once in their lifetime," says Salas. Though it's not as common
for narcolepsy patients as EDS and cataplexy, sleep paralysis occurs
more frequently in those with sleep disorders in general, including
narcolepsy.
4.
You have hallucinations before, during, or after sleep.
These
hallucinations often happen while someone is falling asleep (hypnagogic
hallucinations) or waking up (hypnopompic hallucinations). They can be
visual or auditory, and unlike regular dreams, lack a story line—they're
usually flashes of light, figures, or a random word or sound. Since
they occur when you're semi-conscious, semi-asleep, you're able to
recognize that you're not sleeping and therefore not dreaming, which
makes extremely vivid and realistic images and sounds particularly
frightening. Hallucinations oftentimes happen along with sleep
paralysis.
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