So, ever since i was 15, i felt like i'd always been "tired". Whether i slept 4,8,12 hours a night in never felt like it was enough. Throughout the latter part of highschool, i slept in class, would often skip class to sleep in the library, and would spend more time after school sleeping in the empty classroom when everyone else was gone (lol). I had the temporary nickname "Sleepa" which i guess translates to "Sleeper" in American English, and my parents (as well as myself) always wondered by I slept so much. I attributed it to the usual, bad eating, erratic sleep hours, etc etc. and started fixing my diet, getting in shape, taking multivitamins, the whole works (it helped, but not to a large extent). Now a couple years later, i dont have the constant tired feeling that i once did, but i still "NEED" to sleep and it never seems to be enough. I have slept as long as 18 hours straight on more than 1 occasion and used to jokingly think to myself that, if i ever went to prison, it wouldnt be that bad because i could just "sleep" my sentence away ( not that i'd ever do something to warrant me going there, but lol). I sleep at night but often have to take naps during the day and will often neglect social activities or eating just to get some more sleep. Well, couple of days ago i luckily stumbled across this gem of a site and am strongly thinking that i might be narcoleptic.
Some more info...ever since i can remember, i've always been able to remember at least part of my dreams, and i ALWAYS seem to have them every night i go to sleep. Its almost overwhelming keeping my normal memories separate from those i experience dreaming. If i go to sleep for 30 minutes or 8 hours, i will still dream and remember at least parts of it. I always used to ask other people if they did the same and used to get weird glances all the time lol. These dreams are very vivid and sometimes i feel like i cannot awake from them, like sometimes i'm conscious and know i need to get out of bed but i just cant muster the strength to do so, almost like partial sleep paralysis. I also, like some other people here, seem to have that pre-dreaming phase where it's like i will "dream myself to sleep". I will also have these "Revelations" or "moments" throughout the day that will tip me off about something i dreamed of, like i will go on Facebook and see someone post something and think in my mind "OMG that person was in my dream last night! Even though i have not seen or talked to them in ages, and this goes on to trigger more memories of what i had dreamt about." I tried to keep a dream journal once but it was ridiculous keeping track when i dreamnt so often. And i find that if i am awoken suddenly, it severely diminishes my chance of remembering what i dreamnt about, but if i wake on my own accord, say to go to the bathroom or something, when i go back to sleep its almost like a continue from where the dream left off, lol. I have had some moments that i think qualify as Hypnagogic Hallucinations, but i always just pushed them in my Super Vivd Dreaming category.
Sidenote: Have any of you ever died in your dream? Whenever i've asked other people about this, they say they normally wake up right before it happens or something similar, but I have actually died in my dream several times, and it's like i'm in both first and 3rd person perspective, where for example, i get shot and can literally feel the pain of getting get shot, but at the same time i can like see myself drop to the ground from a 3rd person point of view.
I also feel that, even though i feel tired alot, i use sleep as an escape mechanism or to avoid my problems, because my dreams are so vivid that it's like an alternate reality, so i often look forward to sleeping and dreaming after having a bad day.
Summary: Do you think i have narcolepsy and have you ever died in your dream?
Sorry for this long epistle, and thanks if you actually read it all
