

Episodes last only a few seconds or minutes. Sleep paralysis is an inability to move or speak while falling asleep, sleeping, or waking. REM sleep can happen at any time of day for people with narcolepsy, often within about 15 minutes after falling asleep. It usually starts about 90 minutes after you fall asleep.

REM sleep is the sleep stage when you have vivid dreams with loss of muscle tone. Poorly regulated rapid eye movement (REM) sleep Sometimes cataplexy may occur later in the disease course, or may go undetected due to medications that suppress it, such as certain antidepressants. It can happen several times a day to once a year. How often it occurs varies from person to person. Laughing and intense emotions, such as excitement and fear, can trigger cataplexy. It can range from drooping eyelids (referred to as partial cataplexy) to total body collapse. CataplexyĬataplexy is a sudden, temporary loss of muscle tone. EDS makes it difficult to function properly during the day. Significant daytime sleepinessĪlmost everyone with narcolepsy has excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), in which you suddenly experience an overwhelming urge to sleep. How often and how intensely narcolepsy symptoms occur can vary. Treatments are available to help manage the condition. Narcolepsy isn’t a deadly disease by itself, but episodes can lead to accidents, injuries, or life-threatening situations.Īdditionally, people with narcolepsy may have difficulty maintaining jobs, doing well in school, and have problems maintaining relationships due to episodes of excessive daytime sleepiness. When cataplexy is absent, it’s called narcolepsy type 2. This can be mistaken for seizure activity, especially in children.

In many cases, it also causes unexpected and temporary loss of muscle control, known as cataplexy. Narcolepsy causes significant daytime drowsiness and “ sleep attacks,” or overwhelming urges to fall asleep, and poor fragmented sleep at night. It typically starts in the mid-teenage years. The symptoms of narcolepsy usually begin between the ages of 7 and 25, although the condition is often not recognized right away and often misdiagnosed. Experts estimate it affects about 1 in 2,000 people. It causes abnormal sleep that can affect a person’s quality of life. Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological condition that affects the nervous system.
