I’ve been taking Xyrem, a popular medication for narcoleptics, since I was about 14. I had tried Ritalin previously under my doctor’s care, but it wasn’t for me. Once I was prescribed Xyrem, it was a bumpy road in the beginning battling with the initial…

Having such an under diagnosed and seemingly rare disease can make me feel isolated or misunderstood at times. Here’s a list of some famous Narcoleptics that remind me I’m not alone: 1.  Coming at number one, we have talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. He’s described…

Heroin’s a heck of a drug! According to an article written by Andy Coghlan for The New Scientist, the abundance of hypocretin found in heroin users’ brains could be the key to finding long lasting treatment for those with Narcolepsy. Heroin causes an unordinary amount of wakefulness…

In a case-control study conducted by the Sleep Research Society (SRS), it was found that Narcoleptics are more prone to having eating disorders. I found this study on The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website, and I will include a link to it at…

It’s summer time for me, and when I have no school to force me out of bed before 2 PM, it gets a little frustrating. I want to enjoy my mornings and not waste half the day, but no matter how hard I try I…

Every new medication will solve one problem while causing another. Especially with a medication as strong as Xyrem, your body will need a few months to get used to it before the side effects stop. The most uncomfortable side effect I had were muscle spasms….

I’m the type of Narcoleptic that needs more intense emotion to experience Cataplexy (not all Narcoleptics also have Cataplexy). I don’t usually get it if I’m have a laugh attack, but when I’m distressed it’s always lurking around the corner. Nowadays, I’m in a much…

Cataplexy occurs when someone is experiencing some type of strong emotion; like excitement, anger, or sadness. Everybody is different, and so some people can get Cataplexy from a normal amount of emotion, or an extreme amount. Then again, you can have Narcolepsy and never experience…

If anyone knows me at school, they also know I sleep a lot in class. I laugh at this a lot nowadays. I try to take advantage of all the times I’ve passed out in class and make jokes out of them. In middle school, I was…

Tell your teachers what’s up. Make sure they’re informed with your condition, and if you haven’t been diagnosed by a doctor, that’s alright. In that case, let them know you’re struggling with something that could be a real medical condition. Before I got diagnosed, I…