2 replies to this topic

[Dr Rick]

I have diagnosed myself with narcolepsy by studying my sleep patterns. I require between two and ten naps per day, and with EVERY nap I immediately start drreaming (REM sleep).



I am a 51 year old white male. My first seizure was when I was about 20 years old and working in a warehouse putting away an order. I suddenly became very sleepy and thought I was going to fall down. I managed to stay alert but it was real scary. It took many years before I was able to diagnose myself and learn to adapt to it.



It affects me most when performing a boring task. It is also worse shortly after a meal. I recognize an imminent attack when I find myself yawning and getting bleary eyed. Or sometimes I notice a lack of concentration.



It is not mindless boring tasks that bring on the narcolepsy, but rather activities that require conentration, such as studying my anatomy book, or when writing a report on a patient wherein I have to assess disability through a complex formula of ranges of motion, percentage of time patient has pain, limits on daily activites due to the pain, etc.



The attack will subside after a short nap. To resolve the attack, I lay down or sit down and put my feet up. I consciously relax mself starting with my toes and working up. Within 2 or 3 minutes I am fast asleep. After about 3-10 minutes of sleep I am usually okay for a couple hours. I have found that if I have two dreams lasting 2 or 3 minutes, or 3 or 4 short dreams that last a few seconds each, this is usually sufficient to resolve the attack. I am able to awaken myself at any time after the second dream because between dreams I do awaken. That is, I fall in and out of sleep. I am fortunate that I am a self employed chiropractor and can take short naps between patients.



I did a sleep study on myself, adding up my nighttime sleep and the time I spent napping and it is always close to 6 and a half hours. The narcolepsy is more frequent if I am sleep deprived.



If I cannot nap, for example, when driving, I am able to stay awake through the use of pumpkin seeds of all things. I place a few between my teeth and gums (so the shell gets soft), and take out one at a time. I'll hold the seed with my fingers and thumb and shell it with my front teeth, discard the shell and then eat the nut. It works. Probably a combination of the stimulation of doing something with my mouth and fingers (both have a lot of sensory receptors and can awake the brain), and the inherent energy in the nut (nuts, like meat, have a high concentration of energy per gram).



Aerobic exercise can also stave off an attack. Rather than napping during the first attack of the day, I do 35 push-ups instead. I also do the push-ups during the first attack after lunch. This may be the sole benefit of my narcolepsy: it helps me maintain upper body strength.



As a side note, I've seen on the Today show I think, that a yawn is the body's way of cooling down the brain if it is overheating from too much brain activity. I've found that cool water on the back of the neck also can avert an attack so there may some truth to this theory.



There may be some correlation between hyperactivity and narcolepsy. Hyperactivity is not from too much brain activity, but rather, hyperactive kids must have constant brain stimulation to keep awake. I've learned this from various hyperactivity medical foundations.

[Mee]

Rick,

I agree that you show symptoms of Narcolepsy, however, I highly recommend that you get a real sleep test at an accredited lab to get an accurate diagnosis. You are not a medical professional and your posting may mislead others. You CANNOT diagnose Narcolepsy with a self-performed "sleep study" by calculating nighttime sleep and napping time. I appreciate you sharing your personal experiences.

Take care and be well.
-M

I have diagnosed myself with narcolepsy by studying my sleep patterns. I require between two and ten naps per day, and with EVERY nap I immediately start drreaming (REM sleep).

I did a sleep study on myself, adding up my nighttime sleep and the time I spent napping and it is always close to 6 and a half hours. The narcolepsy is more frequent if I am sleep deprived.

[corey91386]

It sounds like you are having very interesting symptoms. Unfortunately you cannot diagnose yourself. If you talk to any sleep doctor, they see multiple patients on a daily basis coming in thinking they have narcolepsy, and in 90% of the cases they do not. There are so many factors that can mess with your sleep patterns and EDS. You need to have a MSLT study to study your brain waves. Some people dream during naps and do not have Narcolepsy. Narcolepsy makes life very interesting and I am speaking from my personal experience. Do not diagnose yourself, go see a doctor.

I have diagnosed myself with narcolepsy by studying my sleep patterns. I require between two and ten naps per day, and with EVERY nap I immediately start drreaming (REM sleep).



I am a 51 year old white male. My first seizure was when I was about 20 years old and working in a warehouse putting away an order. I suddenly became very sleepy and thought I was going to fall down. I managed to stay alert but it was real scary. It took many years before I was able to diagnose myself and learn to adapt to it.



It affects me most when performing a boring task. It is also worse shortly after a meal. I recognize an imminent attack when I find myself yawning and getting bleary eyed. Or sometimes I notice a lack of concentration.



It is not mindless boring tasks that bring on the narcolepsy, but rather activities that require conentration, such as studying my anatomy book, or when writing a report on a patient wherein I have to assess disability through a complex formula of ranges of motion, percentage of time patient has pain, limits on daily activites due to the pain, etc.



The attack will subside after a short nap. To resolve the attack, I lay down or sit down and put my feet up. I consciously relax mself starting with my toes and working up. Within 2 or 3 minutes I am fast asleep. After about 3-10 minutes of sleep I am usually okay for a couple hours. I have found that if I have two dreams lasting 2 or 3 minutes, or 3 or 4 short dreams that last a few seconds each, this is usually sufficient to resolve the attack. I am able to awaken myself at any time after the second dream because between dreams I do awaken. That is, I fall in and out of sleep. I am fortunate that I am a self employed chiropractor and can take short naps between patients.



I did a sleep study on myself, adding up my nighttime sleep and the time I spent napping and it is always close to 6 and a half hours. The narcolepsy is more frequent if I am sleep deprived.



If I cannot nap, for example, when driving, I am able to stay awake through the use of pumpkin seeds of all things. I place a few between my teeth and gums (so the shell gets soft), and take out one at a time. I'll hold the seed with my fingers and thumb and shell it with my front teeth, discard the shell and then eat the nut. It works. Probably a combination of the stimulation of doing something with my mouth and fingers (both have a lot of sensory receptors and can awake the brain), and the inherent energy in the nut (nuts, like meat, have a high concentration of energy per gram).



Aerobic exercise can also stave off an attack. Rather than napping during the first attack of the day, I do 35 push-ups instead. I also do the push-ups during the first attack after lunch. This may be the sole benefit of my narcolepsy: it helps me maintain upper body strength.



As a side note, I've seen on the Today show I think, that a yawn is the body's way of cooling down the brain if it is overheating from too much brain activity. I've found that cool water on the back of the neck also can avert an attack so there may some truth to this theory.



There may be some correlation between hyperactivity and narcolepsy. Hyperactivity is not from too much brain activity, but rather, hyperactive kids must have constant brain stimulation to keep awake. I've learned this from various hyperactivity medical foundations.