An unusual disease in which a person is unable to control his own sleep and wakefulness is called “narcolepsy.” It comes from the Greek words narkē, meaning numbness, and lēpsis, meaning sleep.
This neurological disorder is also called paroxysm of intractable sleepiness or Gelineau's disease. This French neurologist first described this disease in the late seventies of the 19th century. For several years, Jean Baptiste Edouard observed a 38-year-old wine merchant who went to the doctor with his problem.
A man could fall asleep up to two hundred times during the day while eating, sitting in a theater chair at a performance, or while talking - starting to speak and “passing out” mid-sentence. During intense experiences and a surge of emotions, his drowsiness was accompanied by a loss of muscle tone, and he fell. His consciousness remained quite clear. Gelineau called this case cataplexy.
Doctor Samuel Brock (USA) in 1928 discovered another form of narcolepsy, which he called sleep paralysis. His patient, a twenty-two-year-old boy, suffered from attacks of drowsiness and catalepsy, but these were also followed by a temporary inability to move and speak. In this state, he experienced very plausible hallucinations, which were generally unusual for him.
Possible signs
Symptoms of narcolepsy include severe drowsiness and uncontrollable sleep attacks that occur throughout the day. This disease can be considered a dangerous disease in its own way, since the patient can begin to fall asleep while walking at any time, even while performing any actions.
The approximate incidence rate of narcolepsy is 1 case per 2000 people. Symptoms of Gelineau syndrome generally begin to appear in the teens or twenties, possibly in the thirties.
Regardless of gender, all people have the same susceptibility to this disease. For many, gelineau disease remains undiagnosed. Only patients with a severe form of it come to the attention of doctors, but, fortunately, there are few of them.
Narcoleptic attacks vary in severity (from mild to severe). If the patient's condition is serious, the disease can negatively affect social activities, the process of study and work, and well-being in general.
Consequences of excessive sleepiness
Narcolepsy reduces the quality of life, leading to various disorders, and affects the following areas:
- Physical security. The disease can manifest itself in any environment, for example, when being in places that require increased concentration of attention: on a mountain hike, while crossing a roadway.
- Mental health. The patient becomes anxious, suspicious, and is always afraid to fall asleep. Negative emotions negatively affect the nervous system.
- Physiological state. Constant lack of sleep leads to chronic fatigue syndrome, which is accompanied by disruption of a number of body functions.
- Social relations. Narcolepsy often hinders career development, since others are not always ready to understand that a person suffers from a disease and is not just lazy.
These consequences can be eliminated if you see a specialist, follow his instructions and treat Gelineau’s disease using available methods.
Causes
Why does narcolepsy develop? The reasons why the disease occurs have long been a mystery. Numerous theories have been repeatedly put forward in this regard. There were assumptions about the dependence of this disease on schizophrenia and neurochemical disorders of the brain.
The causes of narcolepsy have long been unknown. They were discovered at the end of the twentieth century. The culprits turned out to be structures in the brain that control changes in sleep phases.
Our brain produces a huge variety of chemical reactions every second.
Neurotransmitters are substances that transmit nerve impulses from one cell to another. When the functioning of this mechanism is disrupted and the transmission of impulses becomes difficult, a person may experience a drowsy state.
The neurotransmitter that controls wakefulness is called orexin. It is its insufficient amount that can provoke narcolepsy syndrome. Researchers are still trying to find the reasons for the decrease in its content.
These probably include many health problems. The disease provokes diabetes mellitus, brain injury, infectious diseases of the central nervous system, stress, mental exhaustion, and genetic abnormalities.
In addition to narcolepsy, the following can cause fatigue and drowsiness during the day:
- Treatment with certain tablets: tranquilizers, antihistamines, beta blockers.
- Hypofunction of the thyroid gland (hypothyroidism).
- Depressive state of the patient.
- VSD.
- Presence of Klein-Levin syndrome.
- Injuries or the presence of tumors in the head area.
- Stroke.
- Severe disease affecting internal organs.
- Oncology.
- Infections.
- Prostatitis.
- Asthmatic attacks.
- Problems in the functioning of the heart, the presence of vascular insufficiency.
- Manifestations of anemia.
- Lack of vitamins in the body.
Symptoms
Symptoms of this disease include:
Sleepy state
Drowsiness and an irresistible desire to sleep during the daytime. This is the first and most common manifestation of the symptoms of this disease. Daytime sleepiness causes numerous inconveniences in everyday life. The sick person has difficulty completing the tasks assigned to him, his social activity decreases.
Unexpected falling asleep
A person falls asleep for no apparent reason. He can fall asleep at any time, regardless of the circumstances. Sleep duration ranges from several minutes to an hour.
Catalepsy
Instant relaxation of all muscular systems, known as catalepsy. This condition can occur at any moment when a person is standing or walking, or is busy doing any work.
A very strong emotional outburst (laughter, feelings of anger, fear, feelings of ecstasy) is enough to provoke an attack of illness. Catalepsy can occur several times a day or a couple of times a year. In this state, the patient falls to the floor and twitches without losing consciousness.
The appearance of hallucinations
The reason for their development in a person suffering from narcolepsy is dreams. While awake, dreams that arise during a narcoleptic attack will seem like reality to the person. Usually such visions frighten the patient.
Sleep paralysis
When a person with narcolepsy is unable to move and communicate when falling into and out of sleep. Despite the minute duration of such a state, it plunges a person into shock.
Diagnosis
To diagnose this disease, which is characterized by falling asleep while walking, go to see a specialist. This is a neurologist. He must:
- Collect anamnesis and analyze the patient’s complaints. The doctor will be interested in information regarding how long ago the patient experienced the first signs of narcolepsy, and whether anyone in his family suffered from this disease. Equally important is information about the medications the patient is taking.
- Perform a neurological examination.
- Do polysomnography. We are talking about graphical recording of processes associated with the state of sleep. Thanks to special sensors attached to the patient’s head, electrical activity in the brain area will be detected. During this examination, indicators characterizing muscle tone and motor activity of the eyes are determined.
- Test multiple sleep latency. This type of diagnosis records impulses thanks to special electrodes applied to the patient’s head. He is then asked to fall asleep within twenty minutes, making several attempts (4-5). With this disease, dreams appear immediately after falling asleep.
- Send the patient to undergo computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging to obtain information about the structure of the brain and exclude damage to the pituitary gland and hypothalamus, which give similar symptoms.
Gelineau's mysterious disease
What kind of strange disease is narcolepsy, and what causes a person to sleep while walking? The term comes from two Greek words: “narkosis” - torpor and “lepsis” - to possess. The prerequisites for the development of pathology have not been fully elucidated.
It is important to know! This is a fairly rare disease, affecting no more than 20 people per 100,000 population. Another name is Gelineau's disease, named after the French scientist who first described this condition.
Nature of the disease and risk groups
Modern scientists agree that one of the reasons is a violation of the synthesis of the hormone orexin. All patients with narcolepsy had a deficiency of this substance in the spinal fluid. It is responsible for switching the nervous system from wakefulness to sleep. The following factors can disrupt the production and metabolism of the neurotransmitter:
- intrauterine fetal malformations associated with genetic mutations;
- heredity;
- malfunctions of a woman’s endocrine system during pregnancy, especially dysfunction of the thyroid gland and their consequences - hyper- and hypothyroidism;
- traumatic brain injuries;
- overwork - psychological and physical;
- infectious processes in the brain;
- diabetes;
- diseases of the thyroid gland (87% of those suffering from hypersomnia have hypothyroidism).
However, these factors will not necessarily lead to Gelineau's disease. As a rule, in people who come to the doctor with a complaint about falling asleep while walking, another cause of narcolepsy is autoimmune disorders - in the blood of patients, the content of pathological T-lymphocytes exceeds the norm and differs significantly from the analysis values of a healthy person.
There are 4 forms of the disease:
- The primary one, as a rule, has congenital causes. Manifest age is from 15 to 30 years. This is the name of the time during which the disease is most pronounced.
- The secondary form is the consequences of diseases of the brain and its membranes.
- Paroxysal occurs against the background of epileptic lesions.
- The form without catalepsy is a rare variety; it occurs without muscle weakening, and sometimes without REM sleep.
At risk are pregnant women with endocrine system problems or poor lifestyle; people with a family history of the disease; patients with epilepsy or various brain lesions.
Symptoms of Narcolepsy
The most important sign by which a diagnosis of “narcoleptic disease” is made is severe daytime sleepiness, it is almost impossible to resist it, it inevitably leads to falling asleep anywhere. Most of all, this symptom manifests itself when performing monotonous activities, for example, when studying while listening to lectures. However, active exercise is not an obstacle - an attack occurs in any environment, a person can “fall asleep on the go” anywhere. These manifestations are observed more often in the first half of the day; towards the evening, the narcoleptic person’s state of lethargy and weakness disappears.
As soon as the patient falls into hypnotic sleep, he immediately begins to dream. This period lasts from 5 minutes to three hours. You can wake up a person suffering from Gelineau's disease in the same way as a normal person who has fallen asleep. After waking up, he feels more cheerful, but this feeling is short-lived and soon gives way to weakness. There are several such episodes per day.
Another characteristic sign is that it is very difficult for a person to fall asleep in the evening. Night sleep is intermittent, shallow, in the morning the patient always feels tired, as if he never went to bed.
Sometimes there are hallucinations - dreams with open eyes. This condition is typical for children; it is rare in adults.
Catalepsy before falling asleep is observed in ¾ of all patients. It manifests itself in weakening of skeletal muscles while maintaining consciousness. A person can fall, but he understands and feels everything. The opposite effect also happens - the patient falls asleep while moving, for example, while walking, without realizing what is happening. This state lasts for several minutes, after which awakening occurs.
A quarter of narcoleptics experience sleep paralysis - muscle numbness in the first minutes after waking up and sometimes before falling asleep. The patient wants to move his limbs or turn his head, but he is unable to do so.
In children, the symptoms are similar, but are not immediately noticed by parents, who mistake the signs of Gelineau’s disease for characteristics of an early age. The child may be lethargic, lethargic, absent-minded, and falls asleep quickly, especially after eating. It is extremely difficult to wake him up in the morning; in response to such attempts, the baby becomes capricious or even throws a tantrum. At night, his sleep is restless, he can twitch, make sounds, and often wake up (several times).
It is important to know! An important sign of narcolepsy in childhood is that before falling asleep, the child falls in a clear consciousness (catalepsy).
Treatment
Currently, it is not possible to treat this disease. There are no methods yet that would save a person from Gelineau’s syndrome. This is a chronic illness that accompanies him throughout his life.
Treatment is aimed at reducing the number of narcoleptic attacks and bringing them under control.
Improving the patient’s quality of life, the ability to work and be socially active is the main goal of therapy for this disease. The sick person is forced to give up types of employment that pose a danger to him and the people around him.
Treatment of manifestations of narcolepsy consists of the patient taking the following groups of medications:
- Stimulants to relieve drowsiness and improve well-being during the day.
- Antidepressants to reduce the unpleasant manifestations of the disease. We are talking about cases where catalepsy, sleep paralysis occurs, and hallucinations occur.
- Sleeping pills to improve the quality of night sleep.
ethnoscience
To eliminate the symptoms that prevent a person suffering from this disease from living a normal life, folk remedies are applicable. According to herbalists and healers, medicinal plants can alleviate the patient’s condition:
- To eliminate headaches and calm the nerves, a decoction of chamomile flowers is recommended. Take half a glass before going to bed in the evening.
- Motherwort also has a healing effect. This plant has a sedative effect on the body. Motherwort infusion is taken three times a day, half a glass.
- To restore strength and get rid of chronic fatigue in narcolepsy, a decoction of primrose is recommended. It is taken daily in the evening in a dosage of 100 milliliters.
Self-help for narcolepsy
In parallel with drug therapy, it is important to normalize night sleep. To eliminate insomnia, the patient is prescribed hypnotics. But the patient himself can help him fall asleep better in the evenings. It is necessary to create suitable conditions in the room: complete darkness, silence, absence of any irritants.
It is recommended to purchase a comfortable mattress and natural bed linen. A warm bath and meditation are very relaxing. Follow your doctor's recommendations and these tips, and the disease will not be a global problem that makes it impossible to lead a normal lifestyle!
Preventive measures
Ignorance of the exact causes leading to the appearance of narcolepsy complicates not only its treatment, but also its prevention. To protect oneself from the danger of uncontrolled falling asleep, a sick person is contraindicated to drive vehicles or work with dangerous mechanisms.
To alleviate unpleasant symptoms, it is necessary to take care of maintaining a correct lifestyle. A person with this diagnosis should not drink alcohol or smoke. It is undesirable to drink coffee-containing drinks and load the body with heavy food. The patient is recommended to adhere to a daily and nightly sleep schedule, as well as exercise.
