Leading To Results......
I took a friend to a free clinic today and decided with how they helped him maybe they could give me answers. So I found a video of an episode I have to show them. And I told them when things started many things I've been told they were and that I wanted help finding answers. I turned the video on and showed the nurse than the Dr and instantly the Dr had a name. CATAPLEXY AND NARCOLEPSY. Wow I have a name to 13years of being told it's in my head. It's amazing how someone from a free clinic cared more. So she brought everyone in to see my video. I guess it's rare I mean think about it 1:2000 have Narcalepsy and 70% of those have Cataplexy. It so rare that kids with ADHD are treated with the same medications to treat both conditions. So alot of times what happenes is that one never knows until they stop taking it.
My Fears.......
Going to that clinic was a mix of emotions. Trust and believe I am very much relieved that I know what I have. Yet, it only raises more questions. How do I get back on meds? Will my life be overturned now that there is a name? Will I become dependant on others because i'll lose my license? Nobody can answer these its a wait and see game. 13years of concern on being brought to a point where you couldn't function anymore and become dependant on everyone else. Now to learn that to get the help one needs everything you fought for you may not beable to do anymore. How does one tell there work or school this is something new you need to accomodate. Yet if you live to far you half to drive but if I lose my license than your SOL anyways. Quit school Quit work pick one over the other.
Definitions.....
So what exactly is Cataplexy is a sudden and transient episode of muscle weakness acoompanied by full conscious awareness, typically triggered by emotions such as laughing crying, or terror. It is the cardinal sympton of narcolepsy with cataplexy affecting roughly 70% of people who have narcolepsy, and is caused by an autoimmune destruction of neurotransmitter hypocetin (also called orexin). Which regulates arousal and wakefulness. Cataplexy without without narcolepsy is rare and the cause is unknown. (Wikipedia)
So what is Narcolepsy is a long-term neurological disorder that involves a decreased ability to regulate sleep-wake cycles. Symptoms include periods of excessive daytime sleepiness that usually last from seconds to minutes and may occur at any time. About 70% of people also experience episodes of sudden loss of muscle strength, known as cataplexy. These spells can be brought on by strong emotions. Less commonly there may be inability to move or vivid hallucinations while falling asleep or waking up. People with narcolepsy tend to sleep about the same number of hours per day as people without, but the quality of sleep tends to be worse. (Wikipedia)
What is Orexin also called hypocretin, is a neuropeptide that regulates arousal, wakefulness, and appetite.[1] The most common form of narcolepsy, in which the sufferer briefly loses muscle tone (cataplexy), is caused by a lack of orexin in the brain due to destruction of the cells that produce it. (Wikipedia)
