The Sleep Process

I once tutored a teenage boy who was being schooled at home because of his narcolepsy.  As he might fall asleep at any moment, attending a regular school became very difficult.  He was a good student and always did the assignments I gave him.  However, several times I would arrive at his house and he would be asleep.  As my mornings were free his mother and I agreed that she would call me when he was awake and I would drive there immediately.  However, this did not prevent the sudden sleeping problem either and I had to abandon the attempt.

I also knew of a distinguished scientist who was appointed to a position of laboratory director with responsibility for more than a hundred employees.  He had neglected to mention his problem with narcolepsy.  It became evident when he repeatedly fell asleep in meetings.  He left the position in a few months.

Often accompanying narcolepsy is cataplexy, a sudden collapse of muscle tone in which the subject may fall down and be unable to move.   This means the person may need to be accompanied at all times in case he injures himself or falls in a position where breathing is difficult.  The BBC video shows this dramatically.  Cataplexy is often triggered by stress or strong emotion, even laughing at a joke.

Recent discoveries show that narcolepsy is an autoimmune disease.  There is a lack of hypocretin, a hormone that promotes wakefulness.  There’s more information here: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090503132613.htm