Narcolepsy
...sudden attacks of sleep. Narcolepsy in the only known neurological disorder that affects the brain in such a dramatic way where symptoms can include; sleep paralysis (cataplexy) and hallucinations. According to Jerome Siegel, a professor of psychiatry at UCLA symptoms such as cataplexy can be brought on by "laughter, embarrassment, social interactions with strangers, sudden anger, athletic exertion or sexual intercourse may trigger an episode." (Siegel, 2000) There is no cure for narcolepsy and is often misdiagnosed for depression, epilepsy, and fainting and sleep deprivation.
Many people when they think of narcolepsy tend to laugh at its symptoms and find it to be a very strange but an entertaining sleep disorder. There are even some famous people who have narcolepsy; Harold Ickes (Bill Clinton's deputy White House Chief of staff), Nicole Jeray (professional golfer), Natsassja Kinski (actress) and one other famous person who did not waste anytime letting the disorder hinder her from freeing thousands of slaves back in the 1800's; the late Harriet Tubman (abolitionist). There are also several breeds of animals that suffer from narcolepsy. The videos of dogs that are narcoleptic are all over the internet entertaining people who find it "cute and funny". Dogs however, have been part of many research projects that have aided in the understanding of the disorder. Contrary to the connotations made about narcolepsy, it disrupts the lives of people who have it. Narcoleptics have problems in school, holding down a job and not surprisingly they are accident prone, with about 10 times the rate of car accidents as the general population. Getting some insight in this perplexing sleep disorder can help us understand Narcolepsy and its symptoms and reveal to us that it is not that uncommon as we think it is.
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