Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is a type of sleep disorder in which you feel persistent and severe drowsy feelings throughout the day. People with this condition find it very difficult to stay awake for long hours during day time or fall asleep abruptly. With this disorder, it becomes very difficult to do daily routine work in schools, offices or social settings.
Though the disease is very rare, it still affects thousands of Americans. The disease is incurable and lasts for the whole life. There are around 20-67 people with NT-1 Narcolepsy condition for every 100,000 people in the US. NT-1 is 2-3 times more common than NT-2. Further, the condition affects both men and women, and can even affect children. Though there is no defined age for this condition, symptoms become prominent at the age of 15 or at around 35 years.
You can live with this disorder only if you understand its symptoms, causes and take effective treatment to manage the symptoms. You can find good hospitals offering treatment for this condition all across the world. However, if you suffer from this condition, you can find various hospitals for Narcolepsy treatment in Istanbul and Turkiye.
Narcolepsy symptoms:
Narcolepsy symptoms are notable in a person both during daytime and nighttime. Most symptoms become worse during the first few years and then they become constant for the rest of their life.
Sleep paralysis:
If you are suffering from Narcolepsy, you may feel paralyzed (unable to move, walk or speak) during your sleep. Though the condition lasts for a few seconds or minutes, this can be really scary. People with Narcolepsy have sleep paralysis but not all cases of sleep paralysis are due to Narcolepsy.
EDS or excessive daytime sleeping:
It involves a very strong urge to sleep during daytime, which is irresistible. The situation can occur anytime and anywhere, and thus, it is dangerous if you fall asleep while driving or walking on the road. You may fall asleep for a few minutes to half an hour. Once you wake up, you will feel good but again, you will start feeling sleepy.
Excessive sleeping during the day is often one of the first symptoms of Narcolepsy. And this state of drowsiness often makes you feel less focused and alert throughout the day.
Cataplexy:
In this, you lose control of your muscles, which results in slurred speech and weakness in the body. Often, the cataplexy symptoms are the result of strong emotions and that too mostly positive like laughter and excitement. For example, you may lose control of your head while laughing loudly. However, sometimes, the situation may occur due to excessive anger or fear.
Cataplexy events can be once or twice in a year; or it may be as severe as having it daily.
Quick REM sleep:
REM refers to the rapid eye movement sleep. Generally, all of us get into this sleep after about 60-90 minutes of sleeping. However, Narcolepsy patients get into REM sleep very quickly, mostly within 15 minutes of falling asleep.
Hallucinations:
Hallucinations mean seeing things that are not present in reality. You can experience hypnagogic hallucination (one that occurs before you fall asleep) or hypnopompic hallucination (one that occurs without falling asleep). Hallucinations can be frightening as you tend to imagine any person or thing near you.
Types of Narcolepsy Condition:
Based on the International Classification of sleep disorders, Narcolepsy is classified in two types:
Narcolepsy Type 1 or NT1:
Under this condition, you may feel sudden loss of muscle tone which is known as Cataplexy. You may feel this loss of muscle tone due to strong emotions like laughter or cry. However, it is not essential that if you are diagnosed with NT 1 you will face cataplexy symptoms. Sometimes, NT-1 condition develops due to low levels of a chemical (hypocretin-1) that controls wakefulness in your body.
Narcolepsy-2 or NT 2:
If you are having NT-2, you may be having similar symptoms except those related to cataplexy. All other sleep disorders are common in both types, which often makes it difficult to diagnose the real problem.
Sometimes, a person may initially be diagnosed as having NT-2 but if he develops cataplexy symptoms, doctors can reclassify his condition as NT-1.
Do Narcolepsy Symptoms differ in children?
Instead of sleeping excessively during the day, children will feel more restless and irritable during the day, which is reflected in behavioral problems. Also, children with this condition may sleep for longer periods during night and have an active body even during sleep.
Cataplexy symptoms in children are mostly confined to the face and often considered as facial tic. However, with age, the symptoms become more traditional.
Narcolepsy Treatment:
Unfortunately, there is no cure for this condition. However, if you visit hospitals for Narcolepsy treatment in Istanbul or other countries, you may be given medications and therapies to improve symptoms and enhance the quality of life.
Basically, healthcare providers follow treatment that combines both medical and behavioral approaches.
Behavioral therapy is a non-medical approach that includes involving people in short naps, maintaining good sleep hygiene, enhancing nutritious diet, training for careful driving and training to quit smoking and alcohol.
You must know that all medications do not work for all patients, it depends on an individual's condition that he/she requires what type of medication. Also, you must not take any of these drugs without a doctor's prescription. When prescribed, you must take these medicines only as per the doctor's instructions.
Narcolepsy treatment in children is similar as that of adults; however, the dose of the medications differ. Also, before starting stimulants, it is recommended for children to undergo cardiovascular evaluation.
There is no exact cause of Narcolepsy but the symptoms definitely affect your personal and professional life. The worst part is that its symptoms may not be life-threatening but they can put you in dangerous conditions sometimes. So, it is better to contact an experienced healthcare professional for Narcolepsy treatment in Istanbul or any other country where you want treatment.
