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Narcolepsy Symptoms and How to cope

Narcolepsy is a type of chronic neurological disease that is caused by inability and failure of the brain to stimulate sleep wake cycles. At certain times in a day, the patient with narcolepsy suffers extreme sleepiness especially during the day. For times which the sleepiness becomes uncontrollable, narcoleptics will suddenly fall asleep in minutes. There are also cases where patients fall asleep suddenly for an hour or even longer. However these cases are very rare.

People with narcolepsy’s sleep episode frequently appear at any time. They may fall asleep even while doing something or at any places like school, work place, while driving, while playing games, and even while having a conversation. This can be really dangerous to them as it can bring harm to them especially when they are using hazardous machinery and driving.
Furthermore, in the daytime excessive sleepiness, there are three main symptoms that normally summarize narcolepsy that are hallucination upon waking up, cataplexy, or a sudden muscle control loss, and paralysis at the end or start of their sleep.

Commonly believed, most people that have narcolepsy did not spend much proportion of their time to sleep in the 24 hours day as normal sleepers. Beside, there was addition of drowsiness that leads to sleepiness during the day for narcoleptics. Most of them also experiences awakenings during night time. Because of these, this narcolepsy disease are considered as a disorder of their usual boundaries between waking up and sleeping period.

For adults, usual night sleep is when they get to sleep for almost eight hours. But it is different for people with narcolepsy. A sleep cycle were showed by segments of non rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep then only the period of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Non rapid eye movement period can be divided into groups according to the frequent and size of brain waves. For rapid eye movement sleep, it is followed by rapid eye movement along with heightened activity in brain and temporary muscles paralysis. This affects the body movement and body posture.

When patient are awakened, they tend to “have a dreams” often if they had been in rapid eye movement sleep than when they had been in non rapid eye movement sleep. The period from non rapid eye movement sleep to rapid eye movement sleep were caused by interactions in neurons that are the nerve cells which stay in certain part in brain.

Scientist and specialist doctors believe that narcolepsy is caused by the process that affect the brain mechanisms and regulate rapid eye movement sleep. For normal people, their usual sleep cycle is from 100 up to 110 minutes, beginning with the non rapid eye movement sleep to rapid eye movement sleep after 80 until 100 minutes. For narcoleptics, they normally enter rapid eye movement sleep within only a few minutes from the beginning of falling asleep.

Until today, there is no proven cure for treating narcolepsy. So, the sudden sleep onset, cataplexy and over sleepiness on the daytime were treated by involving the combination of the practice in getting sufficient sleep, drugs and medicines, and special treatment. While there is no one proven method for treating narcolepsy, you can help yourself tremendously by understanding this condition.

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The Symptoms Of Narcolepsy

Article by Gary M. Miller

How do you know if you are suffering from Narcolepsy? Actually, Narcolepsy is not a very common condition. Most sufferers of narcolepsy are diagnosed with the condition only after 10-15 years of suffering the first symptoms. This long lag-time is attributed to many factors including its rarity as a condition, subtle and varying symptoms plus the lack of familiarity that the public has with this condition. Still, there are symptoms that will develop and, even if you would not normally recognize them, you can become familiar with them now and thereby recognize this in someone who suffers from this distinct neurological disorder.

According to medical researchers, diagnosis and treatment of narcolepsy can be determined from a clinical examination and exhaustive medical history of the patient. Although excessive daytime sleepiness or EDS is the most common narcoleptic symptom, it can also be diagnosed as a symptom of other sleep related disorder such as sleep apnea, a virus, a bacterial infection, depression, congestive heart failure and rheumatoid arthritis. Consumption of caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine can also lead to EDS so it is not likely to be Narcolepsy in most cases. This lack of specificity in the narcolepsy symptoms increases the difficulty to arrive at an accurate diagnosis. Thus, a battery of specialized tests is usually required before a near-accurate diagnosis can be established.

People with narcolepsy experience excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) which is usually the most common among all other symptoms. Generally, EDS is experienced to interfere in any normal activities on a daily basis. Patients describe EDS as a persistent mental cloudiness and a depressed mood. Many confess that they have great difficulty concentrating while at school or at work. They also experience memory lapses and some find it impossible to remain alert in passive situations such as watching television. As much as 40 percent of narcolepsy patients are prone to automatic behavior called “microsleeps”. From the word itself, micro meaning very small, refers to the sudden automatic sleeping of the patient. It can happen while performing any task whatsoever.

Another very frightening symptom is called cataplexy, which is characterized by a sudden loss of muscle tone which leads to feeling weak. It is associated with the loss of voluntary muscle control. In 10 percent of all reported narcolepsy cases, this symptom is noted to be one of the first few symptoms to appear. It is oftentimes misdiagnosed as a manifestation of another type of disorder which is not narcolepsy. The attack of cataplexy among patients varies in the duration and severity of the condition. The loss of muscle control by a limited number of muscles, such as drooping of the eyelids, results from a somewhat mild case. A complete loss of muscle control is also possible and in those cases a total physical collapse makes it impossible for the patient to move, keep their eyes open or speak. This is the result of severe symptomatic attacks.

Sleep paralysis is associated with a temporary inability to move or speak while you are falling asleep or even after you have awakened. This is usually unnoticeable because it occurs only while you are asleep and entering the rapid eye movement stage (REM). Experiencing sleep paralysis, again, is like going through a cataleptic attack which affects the whole body. Cataplexy and sleep paralysis are both frightening experiences especially when first experienced. It is understandable to fear these symptoms. In fact, many patients fear that they may become permanently paralyzed. This, however, is only part of the initial reaction. People who seek medical attention have always been able to attain a rapid recovery.

Lastly, the symptom commonly referred to as hypnagogic hallucinations are delusional experiences and are also very frightening. Most of the time, the content of these hallucinations are purely visual but any of the other senses may be involved. If you suffer from these same symptoms, seek medical advice right away! Do not let yourself be frightened by these unusual symptoms as that may lead you to having an unhealthy and inactive lifestyle. All of us must be extra cautious about this disorder as it develops early in life, but we should not allow ourselves to become paralyzed by them. An ounce of prevention will go a long way.

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Over 70 Million people in the USA suffer from some kind of Sleep Disorder! There are actually hundreds of ways to improve your sleep but the first thing that is needed is to raise more awareness! If you want to sleep better tonight, you can visit this information Sleep Aid Web Site that is packed with FREE information: http://www.Sleep-Aid-Solutions.com

Narcolepsy Symptoms and Causes

Article by Miguel DeLaHoya

Narcolepsy is really a persistent disease from the nervous system. Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) may be the primary symptoms and it is present in 100% associated with patients of narcolepsy. Other primary symptoms of narcolepsy consist of:

1. loss of tone of muscle (cataplexy), 2. distorted perceptions (hypnagogic hallucinations), as well as 3. inability to move or talk (sleep paralysis). Additional symptoms include disturbed night time sleep as well as automatic behavior (sufferers carry out certain measures actions without aware consciousness). All the symptoms of narcolepsy might be present in numerous combos as well as examples of intensity.

Narcolepsy generally starts in teenagers or even young adults and impacts both sexes similarly. The first symptoms actually excessive daytime sleepiness, which may remain unacknowledged for a long time as this evolves progressively over time. Another signs and symptoms may follow excessive day time sleepiness through months or years. Narcolepsy frequently remains undiscovered or even wrongly diagnosed for quite some time. This might happen because doctors don’t think about the proper diagnosis of narcolepsy frequently enough. They might think about narcolepsy just within people who have the primary characteristic of extreme daytime sleepiness. Narcolepsy might not be considered in the evaluation of sufferers who arrived at doctors worrying of tiredness, or even issues with focus, attention, brain memory, and gratifaction, and other illness.

Improvements have been made in recent years in determining the cause of narcolepsy. The newest discovery has been the actual finding of irregularities in the framework and purpose of a specific group of neural cells, called hypocretin neurons, in the minds of sufferers along with narcolepsy. These types of cells can be found inside of the brain known as the hypothalamus and and they normally exude neurotransmitter substances (chemical substances launched through neural cells to deliver messages to other cells) known as hypocretins.

Tests within dogs and mice along with narcolepsy indicate an abnormal hypocretin system as a cause of the development of their narcolepsy. Individuals with narcolepsy have been found to have a substantially reduced quantity of hypocretin nerve cells in the brain. They likewise have a decreased degree of hypocretins within the cerebrospinal fluid (the fluid that is all around the brain and the spinal cord).

It is theorized that the autoimmune response causes losing nerve cells within the brain within patients with narcolepsy. Environmental surroundings (for instance, an infection or trauma) might trigger a good autoimmune response where normal brain cells are attacked through the body’s personal immune system. As a result, the actual neurons are damaged as well as ultimately destroyed, and they as well as their natural chemical chemicals vanish. Whether narcolepsy is definitely an autoimmune illness continuesly needs to be confirmed.

The role associated with heredity within humans along with narcolepsy isn’t totally recognized. Absolutely no consistent pattern of heredity continues to be acknowledged in families. It is estimated that relatives of patients with narcolepsy could have a greater predisposition to build up narcolepsy or even sleep-related irregularities, for example increased day time sleepiness, increased REM sleep, or others. In dogs with narcolepsy, the condition comes in a predictable pattern. In these animals, the actual narcolepsy is the result of a mutation in a specific gene which is accountable for producing a receptor (binder) in the brain for the hypocretin neurotransmitter.

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Learn more about on Narcolepsy Symptoms and Causes and how is narcolepsy treated.

Symptoms of the Narkolepsy diagnose

Article by Ottis

Narcolepsy patients experience excessive sleepiness and frequent bouts of sleep during the day. This affects normal daily activities such as school, work, social life etc. This chronic sleep disturbance associated with the nervous system and is not a mental illness. It is the second leading cause of intense daytime sleepiness, with the first sleep apnea. In addition to excessive sleepiness, patients with narcolepsy have symptoms such as sudden loss of muscle tone, sleep paralysis, hallucinations and dreamlike. The frequency of patients with all the symptoms is very less. Narcolepsy symptoms are also not specific to them. There are also other diseases such as sleep apnea, depression, bacterial / viral infections and chronic diseases that disrupt normal sleep patterns that have similar symptoms. This makes it difficult to diagnose by simply look at the symptoms. Therefore, diagnostic tests are used to confirm this disorder in patients.

The first step in the diagnosis of narcolepsy is a thorough physical examination of patients. The doctor will ask about the patient’s personal and family medical history to determine whether there are any cases of narcolepsy in the family before. Certain blood tests are also done to rule out other causes that can result in similar symptoms. The next step involves a couple of narcolepsy-specific tests to be performed to confirm the disruption of the patient.

Epworth Sleepiness ScaleThis test essentially comprises a questionnaire filled in by the patient. The doctor is a questionnaire that the patient and ask him to answer eight questions on a scale from zero to three. This helps in analyzing the patient’s chances of falling asleep during daytime activities such as reading, watching TV, sitting, etc. The maximum score is 24 of the questionnaire If thePatient’s score is between 0-10, it shows normal daytime sleepiness. All guests over 10, or specifically, 18 and higher indicates a high degree of daytime sleepiness. Patients with such high scores are then further tests for the diagnosis prescribed.

PolysomnographyA polysomnography is performed by sleep specialists who know how to diagnose narcolepsy performed with this test. To subject the patient must stay overnight in a sleep laboratory for this study. In this test, the patient is required to sleep at night, placed with a number of electrodes and bands in different parts of the body. The electrodes are placed on the face and scalp and over the lip. Bands are placed around the chest and abdomen. An oxygen sensor is mounted with a finger and other sensors are connected to the person who attached the legs.

Multiple Sleep Latency TestThis test is usually performed the next day after the polysomnography is performed. Also here are electrodes attached to various parts of the body of the patient and he is asked to take four or five, 20-minute nap after every 2 hours during the day. The sleep patterns of the electrodes is then mainly concentrating on the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) phase. A normal person enters the REM stage after 80-100 minutes of sleep, while a person with narcolepsy this phase occurs within 20 minutes. The time to sleep is also monitored. A person with narcolepsy lasts no longer than 5 minutessleep compared to a healthy person needs at least 10-15 minutes for the same.

Genetic Blood TestThis test is not correct because there are some positive results, even in healthy people. Narcolepsy is bound to an antigen. The doctor can check for this test for the presence of this antigen in the blood of the patient. The symptoms of narcolepsy are due to the presence of this antigen in the body caused because the body begins producing antibodies to protect itself from the antigen.

Apart from these tests, the CSF is sometimes tested for orexin and hypocretin levels in narcolepsy patients to confirm. If a person feels excessively sleepy during the day, sleeping during the performance of daily activities, faces difficulties in movement after waking up and / or is unable to keep his / her head because of the weakness in the neck muscles, it is better to go narcolepsy screening. This problem may not appear serious, but imagine falling asleep while walking or driving, which can be very dangerous. Currently there is no cure for narcolepsy. However, the identification of symptoms at the right time in the administration, so that the effect of this disorder in a patient in daily life to a large extent can help to minimize.

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Struggling with Narcolepsy Symptoms

Article by Gerrard Mackenzie

Imagine a life that is consistently attacked by sleepiness and drowsiness. It is like a sleeping pill with a sustained release formula which can instantly debilitate a person anytime and anywhere, in the most unexpected situations (during brief conversations, while driving, sitting in a public place, etc.)

It may be a frustrating for narcolepsy patients to always feel helpless to nature’s call to sleep during the waking hours, especially considering the fact that they have to live with it for the rest of their lives. The persistence of narcolepsy all throughout life however, does not mean that one cannot do anything but to completely surrender to the sleep attacks. At the very least, one can control its major symptoms like excessive daytime sleepiness, cataplexy, sleep paralysis, hypnagogic hallucinations, and automatic behavior.

The process of accurately identifying the problem involves thorough assessment by means of clinical evaluation, accomplishment of questionnaires, sleep logs or diaries, and sleep laboratory tests. Clinical evaluation may include the accomplishment of medical history and physical examination. Accomplishment of various standard questionnaires can help estimate of the degree of daytime sleepiness. Here, activities are enumerated and the patient will be asked to recall and rate the likelihood of him / her falling asleep during such activities. Sleep log or a sleep diary can also be maintained for a more accurate evaluation of disruptions in sleep pattern.

Polysomnogram and the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) are some test which can confirm the diagnosis of narcolepsy. The polysomnogram is used to record sleep brain waves, the number of nerve functions, as well as muscle functions during nighttime sleep, while the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) is used to measure the degree of daytime sleepiness.

Most likely, it is narcolepsy if the patients easily fall asleep and in an instant, they enter the REM sleep stage, the 5th and the last sleep stage. Unlike in the case of people with healthy sleep, who pass through stages 1 to 4 first (though there are times when they regress to a lower stage and later on progress to a higher stage), narcoleptics by-pass the initial stages characterized by gradual slowing of brain waves.

All these tests help rule out other sleep disorders which may have similar symptoms like insomnia (as narcoleptics could experience disturbed nighttime sleep) and REM sleep disorder.

Since the combination of symptoms may vary from person to person, treatment is individualized or symptoms-based. Generally, central nervous system stimulants are used to treat excessive daytime sleepiness, a symptom experienced by 100% of narcolepsy patients. Other classes of medications are prescribed for other symptoms.

Non-pharmacologic measures on the otherhand, may involve scheduling of short naps (10 to 15 minutes) two to three times per day to help control excessive daytime sleepiness and to help a narcoleptic stay alert throughout the day. Most narcoleptic patient symptoms also improve with a regular 7

The 4 Most Obvious Narcolepsy Symptoms

Article by Brad

Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder that affects the control of sleep and wakefulness. It is a chronic condition wherein the brain loses its ability to regulate sleep wake cycles normally. People suffering from narcolepsy may suddenly experience a sleep attack which can happen at any point of the day. Though narcolepsy isn

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Narcolepsy Symptoms & Their Devastating Impacts

Article by Nina Davis

Narcolepsy symptoms are often unpredictable and have serious impact on numerous facets of one’s life. Below are a few of the distressing outcomes of narcolepsy symptoms;

Prone to Mishaps as well as Injury

Narcolepsy may cause a person to suddenly drift off to sleep. They can also lose muscle control and collapse all of a sudden. This occurs without warning, regardless of what an individual is doing. If an individual is driving a vehicle or perhaps operating hazardous machineries while in an episode, he can be at risk of injuring himself as well as others. In fact, study shows that 75% of narcoleptics figure into car accidents. Also, daily routine activities like cooking or going for a walk could still cause accidental injuries if a person suddenly drops and lose muscle control. That is why narcoleptics are advised to refrain from driving a vehicle and other potentially unsafe activities.

Poor Attention as well as Memory Lapses

Daytime sleepiness and also disrupted night time sleep could bring its toll on a narcoleptic. They experience difficulties doing mental activities. It is because they often suffer mental cloudiness, memory impairment along with lack of concentration. They cannot completely focus with their tasks. It exposes them once more at great risk of injuries or accidents. It also affects their performance in class or in the office.

Headache and Obesity

Narcolepsy can make it really hard for a person to acquire a decent, quality sleep. The brain may well also be strained due to stress, fatigue and hallucinations. As a result, narcoleptics can easily suffer from very bad headaches. It may possibly grow into migraine headaches.

They’re also very likely to develop obesity. The reason is that in narcolepsy, the brain is short of hypocretin. It’s a substance responsible for controlling sleep and eating. Which means that, a low production of hypocretin will mean a higher appetite and excessive eating.

Mental Health issues

The uncontrolled sleep episodes and cataplexy can easily bring about emotional and social suffering for narcoleptics. Decrease of self-esteem, emotional stress and depression may later result. According to studies, development of depression in those who have narcolepsy range between 30-57%.

Impairment of Interpersonal and Professional Relationships

Narcolepsy may affect an individual’s capability to perform normally in class, work or public functions. It can interfere with their activities. Because cataplexy is prompted by sudden emotions, they distance themselves emotionally from others. On account of common ignorance of other people about narcolepsy, narcoleptics are generally judged unfairly. They are incorrectly recognized as very lazy, unintelligent or unmotivated. Hence, they have a tendency to shy from social affairs for fear of ridicule. They also frequently struggle to keep a job or finish schooling. The inability to work or drive can result in loss of independence and financial hardships. Personal relationships are affected too. Sexual problems, like reduced sexual drive and erection problems, might happen. This can be attributable to complications of medicinal drugs, drowsiness and depression.

The impacts of narcolepsy to an individual’s life are invariably profound. Regrettably, narcolepsy symptoms are generally life-long. They might lessen eventually but they won’t ever totally disappear. At present, no solution has been discovered for narcolepsy yet. But there are a number of tips for a person to manage its symptoms. A combination of counseling, medication, and behavioral modifications could help an individual attain his normal life back.

About the Author

Nina is a professional lady with a medical background. Her passion is to help others that suffer from sleep disorders. She maintains a website dedicated to helping others understand narcolepsy. Just go to Narcolepsy Revealed to know more about this condition. Nina has been involved in various health information fields. She is also involved in banking and finance and has an interest in traveling.

Narcolepsy, Narcolepsy Symptoms

Article by Denn

Narcolepsy is characterized by spontaneous falling asleep. The first one of the narcolepsy symptoms is usually excessive daytime sleepiness. It is the irresistible desire to sleep when a person wants to be awake. Narcolepsy is associated with cataplexy, sudden weakness or paralysis, often caused by laughing, or other intense feelings, then paralysis in a dream, a very frightening phenomenon in which a man is half awake but cannot move, and hallucinations, that is very vivid and frightening dreams that occur at the beginning or the end of the dream. A person may also show signs of automatic behavior, or perform routine or boring tasks, which are later, not remembered fully.Narcolepsy treatment is very difficult sometimes. Narcolepsy is treated with behavioral therapy or by using drugs. Behavioral therapy involves avoidance of shift work, avoids eating heavy meals and alcohol, respect for the schedule of night sleep, and strategically deployed daily rest. Medication use should be controlled, their dosage should be individualized, and stimulants that are trying to increase the level of attention are prescribed, and antidepressants which are controlled by the above conditions related to narcolepsy.What Is Narcolepsy?

Narcolepsy is a real sleeping sickness, largely genetically marked, but also symptomatic of brain trauma or brain infections. The cause of narcolepsy is not known, although most of the tested patients had a specific HLA haplotype. It occurs in 0.02 to 0.16 percent of adults, alike in both sexes, and in some patients the family history is positive. It is characterized by an irresistible urge to sleep during the day, which is repeated at various intervals, and inevitably ends up with sleep wherever a person is. In this disease, along with bouts of sleep, and Cataplexy occurs, i.e., momentary loss of muscle tone with ousted from the case, kneeling, and in severe cases and fall, all with clear consciousness. Cataplexy is often caused by excitement, more pleasure than fear. Some of these patients had hallucinations before sleep, as if dreaming while they are still awake, or they happen to wake up at night short paralyzed. The disease is rare. Specifically diagnosed, and treatment is complicated.

There are also some other similar condition narcolepsy, which occur in adolescence and persist a short pass spontaneously. In some way, the treatment of narcolepsy and narcolepsy symptoms is similar to treatment of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder.obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. (“pervasive characterological disturbance involving one’s generalized style and beliefs in the way one relates to themselves and the world. Persons with OCPD are typically deeply entrenched in their dysfunctional beliefs and genuinely see their way of functioning as the “correct” way. While generally their daily experience is such that “all is not well,” they tend to be deeply committed to their own beliefs and patterns. They believe that by doing one action that causes their relief can stop bad thing from happening and at one point of view they will “control” some aspect of their future. Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder is a personality disorder and that is very important to recognize from the beginning.”)Source: Narcolepsy Sypmtoms

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Knowing What to Do If You Have Narcolepsy Symptoms

Article by Bob Shaughnessy

Narcolepsy symptoms and their side effects can be very dangerous. Narcoleptics are people who fall asleep uncontrollably. It is a neurological disorder that is quite dangerous as you can just fall asleep in the middle of anything, whether you are working, driving, cooking or out in the streets walking. Unfortunately, unlike sleep apnea cures, the treatment for narcolepsy is more complicated and less definitive. A device such as sleep apnea machine does not yet exist to control and manage narcolepsy symptoms. In the United States, about one in two thousand people suffer this disorder, and the initial symptoms are usually experienced by the age of ten to twenty five. Sadly, this is a lifelong condition and needs to be properly taken cared of. Knowing narcolepsy symptoms from the beginning and seeking proper treatment can help the patient have a normal life.

What Are Narcolepsy Symptoms?A person suffering from narcolepsy does not necessarily experience the same symptoms, but here is a list that you would want to take note of:

Loss of muscle control or cataplexy