However, this is only performed in rare instances. The treatments for narcolepsy and IH can depend on several factors, including the severity of your symptoms, age, and overall health.
Your doctor will work with you to develop an appropriate treatment plan, which may include:. In some cases, people with IH may take narcolepsy medications off-label to treat their condition. Examples include:. Nap therapy involves taking several short, regularly scheduled naps during the day. This may help manage excessive daytime sleepiness and prevent sleep attacks. People with narcolepsy and IH can often feel very tired or even fall asleep for brief periods. This can be dangerous for activities such as driving or operating heavy machinery.
A medical professional can work to determine if your symptoms are due to narcolepsy, IH, or another health condition. They can then recommend an appropriate treatment plan.
Type 1 narcolepsy and IH are two similar conditions. In both narcolepsy and IH, an individual can experience symptoms like extreme daytime tiredness, sleep attacks, and brain fog. Type 1 narcolepsy can have additional symptoms, including cataplexy, sleep paralysis, and hallucinations. People with IH can have additional symptoms, such as long, non-refreshing sleep and sleep drunkenness.
The exact cause of IH is still unknown. Both conditions can be treated using lifestyle changes and medications. Nap therapy may also be effective for narcolepsy. Be sure to see your doctor if you experience excessive daytime sleepiness that significantly affects your daily life.
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It is therefore not possible to compare and contrast hypersomnia and narcolepsy, since they are not separate medical conditions. But there are other causes for hypersomnia other than narcolepsy, and these conditions do have separate, distinctive features.
In this article, we will look at hypersomnia and narcolepsy in more detail, including what the terms mean and how they are related. We will also look at narcolepsy in comparison with some other causes of intense sleepiness.
Hypersomnia , or hypersomnolence, is a medical term that describes excessive daytime sleepiness. It is a symptom rather than a medical condition.
A person with hypersomnia may need to sleep during the day or sleep for longer than average at night. People with this symptom may experience:. There are two categories of hypersomnia: primary and secondary. Primary hypersomnia occurs due to an underlying condition that directly affects the sleep-wake cycle, such as narcolepsy.
Secondary hypersomnia occurs when something else causes excessive tiredness , such as a medication, head injury, or health condition that disrupts sleep in other ways.
For example, sleep apnea causes someone to temporarily stop breathing in their sleep, which lowers sleep quality and can cause daytime sleepiness. Narcolepsy is a specific neurological disorder that causes sudden attacks of overwhelming sleepiness that can occur at any time.
They may happen when someone is talking, eating, or driving. These attacks last a few seconds to a few minutes. Narcolepsy is one of the causes of primary hypersomnia. But between attacks, people can have typical energy levels. People with narcolepsy also often experience:.
People with type 1 narcolepsy also experience cataplexy, which is similar to fainting. Cataplexy causes a sudden loss of muscle tone and control when a person feels strong emotions. It may result in a total body collapse, or milder symptoms, such as sudden weakness or cataplexy in only one part of the body.
Scientists do not fully understand what causes narcolepsy. There may be different causes for types 1 and 2. Almost all people with type 1 narcolepsy have very low levels of hypocretin, a chemical that keeps the body awake and regulates the rapid eye movement REM phase of sleep.
This may explain why people with narcolepsy enter REM sleep much faster than most people, and why they can experience vivid dreams and sleep paralysis. We diagnose and treat both kinds of narcolepsy. Cataplexy is a type of sleep attack that occurs when a person is awake, which may cause slurred speech, knee buckling, and rarely, even paralysis in severe cases.
Strong emotions generally bring on cataplexy. As Narcolepsy Type 1 is often caused by low or absent hypocretin-1 levels, this deficiency can be present even if there is no cataplexy. Narcolepsy Type 2 presents as extreme sleepiness without cataplexy. These patients might take an afternoon nap and feel refreshed for a bit, only to feel tired again before bedtime.
Ultimately, the total sleep time experienced in a hour period by those with narcolepsy is usually not more than the average person without a sleep disorder.
Narcolepsy patients often struggle to sleep throughout the night, which contributes to their daytime sleepiness. It is very important that only a sleep specialist diagnose and treat sleep disorders, including narcolepsy. It can be tempting to try to self-diagnose, and sometimes people think they have narcolepsy simply because they are tired throughout the day.
There are many factors, including sleep disorders, that can result in daytime grogginess. This includes sleep apnea , restless legs syndrome , and circadian rhythm sleep disorders. With unprecedented staffing levels, patients at The Insomnia and Sleep Institute enjoy access to multiple sleep specialists, a clinical psychologist focused on cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, a physician assistant with a Masters in Sleep Medicine, nurse practitioners trained in sleep medicine, and teams including respiratory therapists along with sleep technicians caring for them.
The technicians are very friendly. I was very nervous and the technician was very patient and explained everything to me. She communicated to me every step of the way. Made feel at ease. I recommend this place. Hypersomnia is a type of sleep disorder that results in excessive sleepiness.
Often, the evaluation of patients with excessive daytime sleepiness can be completed in the office setting, based on the sleep history and a thorough neurologic, general medical, and psychiatric assessment. Whenever indicated, ancillary laboratory studies, such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance scans, should be performed. Sleep laboratory recordings generally are not necessary unless there is suspicion of sleep apnea or narcolepsy in the absence of auxiliary symptoms.
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