What to know about narcolepsy ... Narcolepsy is a long-term neurological condition that causes fragmented sleep and excessive daytime sleepiness. It also features ...WhattoknowaboutnarcolepsyMedicallyreviewedbyRajDasgupta,MD—WrittenbyKathleenDavis,FNP—UpdatedonJuly27,2020DefinitionTypesSymptomsTreatmentLivingwithnarcolepsyCausesExpertopinionDiagnosisOutlookNarcolepsyisalong-termneurologicalconditionthatcausesfragmentedsleepandexcessivedaytimesleepiness.Italsofeaturesabnormalrapideyemovement(REM)sleepandcaninvolvecataplexy,orbriefattacksofmuscleweaknessandtonethatcanleadtobodycollapse.Narcolepsycanrangeinseverityfrommildtosevere.Inseverecases,itcannegativelyimpactsocialactivities,school,work,andoverallhealthandwell-being.Apersonwithnarcolepsymayfallasleepatanytime,suchaswhiletalkingordriving.Symptomstendtoappearinaperson’steenageyearsorearly20sor30s.IntheUnitedStates,itis50%morelikelytoaffectfemalesthanmales.Expertsbelievethataround1in2,000peoplehavenarcolepsy.Itmayaffect135,000–200,000peopleintheU.S.atanyonetime.Thisarticleoutlinesthesymptoms,causes,andtreatmentoptionsassociatedwithnarcolepsy.Whatisnarcolepsy?ShareonPinterestApersonwithnarcolepsymayexperienceexcessivedaytimesleepiness.Narcolepsyisasleepdisorderthatfeaturesexcessivedaytimesleepiness.Inatypicalsleepcycle,apersonwillfirstentertheearlystageofsleep,thenthedeepersleepstages.ThisiswhenREMsleepoccurs.Ittakesaround60–90minutestoreachthestageofREMsleep.Forpeoplewithnarcolepsy,however,REMsleepoccurswithin15minutesinthesleepcycleandintermittentlyduringthewakinghours.ItisduringREMsleepthatvividdreamsandmuscleparalysisoccur.TypesofnarcolepsyTherearetwomaintypesofnarcolepsy:type1andtype2.Type1involvessleepinessandcataplexy.Testswillshowthatthepersonisalmostentirelymissinganeurotransmitterknownashypocretin.Thismayoccurafteraninfectiontriggersanautoimmunecondition.Type2mainlyinvolvesexcessivedaytimesleepiness,butthereisusuallynosuddenweakness.Secondarynarcolepsycanresultwhentraumaoratumorresultsindamagetothehypothal