All sorts of sleep disorders require immediate treatment, otherwise the quality of life of the patient is slow, but confidently decreases: a breakdown and chronic fatigue interfere with working normally and enjoy communication with loved ones. Narcolepsy, or Zhelino's disease, remains perhaps the most mysterious dream impairment today.
What is narcolepsy
At the heart of Narcolepsy lies neurological pathology, which interferes with the brain to control and correctly alternate sleep and period of wakefulness. This disorder is manifested by an indomitable desire to immerse itself in sleep at the most inopportune moment - at lecture, interview, during an important meeting. The initial stage of the disease is very difficult to recognize, since there are dozens of factors justifying sudden drowsiness: chronic overwork, insomnia At night, recently experienced stress. Often people associate this condition with symptoms starting Colds, Therefore, to a somnologist (a specialist who is engaged in sleep problems) only units.
Read more about the disease
To understand the nature of a narcoleptic disorder, MirSees will tell its readers, what scenario is developing physiological sleep of a healthy person.
Night holidays inhibits the active activity of consciousness, thanks to which the connection of the brain tired for the day with the environment is briefly interrupted. Night sleep is classified for fast and slow. The slow phase of sleep in turn is divided into 4 stages.
Symptoms of narcolepsy are manifested independently of the total number of hours spent on vacation previously. This specific feature and distinguishes the disease from ordinary fatigue. How does Narcolepsy manifest?
During the day, man begins to attack unrestrained drowsiness. The attack starts suddenly or after «Harbing» as headache and general weakness. Most often it happens during the class of something monotonous or at the time of peace, when all the muscles are relatively relaxed. Sometimes the attack of narcolepsy «Binds» To a certain hour of the day. For example, the patient can suddenly dive into sleep, taking food at lunch.
Let us dwell on the brightest symptoms of narcolepsy. Among them:
- Strong drowsiness during the day: it can be certain hours, the first or second half of the day.
- Restless night sleep with frequent awakening.
- Hypnagogic and hypnopomplic hallucinations. The first arises immediately before bedtime, when the eyes are already closed, the second manifest itself directly before the awakening or at its moment.
- Cataplexes - the lightning loss of the muscular tone on the basis of extremely negative or pleasant emotions. During an attack, a person falls, sometimes it ends with unpleasant consequences for him (injury).
- Catapiery when waking - a person is conscious, but can not move.
- Hyperhydrosis and tachycardia in the evening or night time.
- Depressive condition.
- Actions «on automatic» - man extensively performs some kind of task, but does not realize what he does. Patients of narcolepsy often fall asleep in the process of any activity, and after waking, do not remember anything about it. Especially dangerous when consciousness «turns off» during cooking or car control.
Causes of the disease
Why appears narcolepsy, reliably unknown. There is an opinion that pathology has a hereditary origin. It develops due to the deficiency of the orexin - the active substance of the brain, which controls the awakening and falling asleep. Infectious diseases and problems in personal life can become a catalyst for narcolepsy.
Specialists argue that the problems of psychiatric and psychological nature have no relation to narcolepsy.
Methods of diagnosis of pathology
To confirm the diagnosis and establish the severity of narcolepsy, the patient is tested in two ways:
- Polysomnography. Testing takes place in the laboratory, in a room specially equipped for a comfortable sleep, where the patient spends the whole night. Small sensors attached to human skin fix the brain signals, heart rhythm, muscle tone full body and the motor activity of the eyeballs during sleep. Painless procedure makes it possible to establish sleep disorder.
- The next day after polysomnography, MSLT test is held. During the day, the patient should fall asleep for 15-20 minutes 4-5 times. The interval between such a short-term recreation is 2 hours. With the help of the electrodes connected to the sleeping person monitor the pattern of sleep, the so-called pattern. In case of narcolepsy, the sleep drawing is radically different from the patter of a healthy person. Attacks of this disease cause dreams immediately after a person suddenly falls asleep.
How to get rid of narcolepsy
Treatment of the disease has a good forecast if carried out against the background of the responsible observance of the routine of the day and moderate physical exertion.
For the correction of the pathological condition, drugs are used, stimulating the normal alternation of sleep phases during night rest, as well as medicines (Anafranil, Ritaline, Pehromin), which weaken the intensity of manifestation in a patient of a cataplection and hallucinations. Reception of antidepressants helps the patient behave more actively during the day.
Today, the treatment regimen is not yet invented, which would save a person from narcolepsia forever. However, you can learn to live, bringing all the manifestations of pathology to a minimum. To do this, observe sleep hygiene - always go to bed and wake up at the same time. Smoking, alcohol, harmful food - all this aggravating attacks of narcolepsy factors, so they certainly need to get rid of them.
A person's suffering from a narcoleptic sleep disorder is recommended to rest several times a day for 10-15 minutes, eat right, lead an active lifestyle and play sports. The complex of these healthy habits will significantly reduce the frequency of manifestation of sudden drowsiness attacks.
