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Essay On Narcolepsy

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Narcolepsy

Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder that causes you to fall asleep suddenly, and without control, during daytime (sleep attacks).
You normally go through cycles when you sleep. After about 90 minutes of light sleep, your sleep should become deeper. When your sleep becomes deeper, your body moves less and you start dreaming. This type of deep sleep is called rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. When you have narcolepsy, REM sleep is not well-regulated. Narcolepsy is a lifelong (chronic) disorder.

CAUSES
The cause of narcolepsy is not fully understood, but it may be related to:
• Low levels of hypocretin, a chemical (neurotransmitter) in the brain that controls sleep and wake cycles. Hypocretin imbalance may be caused by:
…show more content…
• Exposure to poisons (toxins), such as heavy metals, pesticides, and secondhand smoke.

SYMPTOMS
Symptoms of this condition include:
• Excessive daytime sleepiness. This is the most common symptom and is usually the first symptom you will notice. This may affect your performance at work or school.
• Sleep attacks. This means falling asleep suddenly and without control. You may fall asleep in the middle of an activity, especially low-energy activities like reading or watching TV.
• Feeling like you cannot think clearly.
• Trouble focusing or remembering things.
• Feeling depressed.
• Sudden muscle weakness (cataplexy). When this occurs, your speech may become slurred, or your knees may buckle. Cataplexy is usually triggered by surprise, anger, fear, or laughter.
• Loss of the ability to speak or move (sleep paralysis). This may occur just as you start to fall asleep or wake up. You will be aware of the paralysis. It usually lasts for just a few seconds or minutes.
• Seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or feeling things that are not real (hallucinations). Hallucinations may occur with sleep paralysis. They can happen when you are falling asleep, waking up, or

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