narcolepsy and driving

My daugher is seeing things as well at this point and I find it so incredibly frustrating! I feel asleep while driving on monday and went back into the sleep clinic today. They switched my meds from provigil to nuvigil - I am praying it helps. How did you go about doing the blood/genetic testing?

For the past year or two, about a couple of times a month, my eyelids get so heavy while driving that fighting it takes all my energy and focus. This usually happens on drives longer than 30 minutes, but has happened with shorter drives. I don't *think* I'm exhausted, but this really only happens in the car, and can happen in the passenger seat as well, where I'm known to nap. Once I'm out of the car, I magically become aware and awake like I was before the drive.

Narcolepsy can only be diagnosed with a multiple sleep latency test that is done during the day. Dr.

My boyfriend really worries me because he just falls asleep anywhere anyplace anytime , and what scares me the most is when he is driving . He is a bit overweight and he is only 5ft 6 . The doctors told him he needed to lose a little and that would help his breathing too . He snores alot and stops breathing during the night also . Is this sleep apnea or is this a combination of things and could he possibly have a bad heart that maybe causing some of the problems . I am very concerned about him .

t appear as often or as severe. I looked up narcolepsy, and it said that they sleep about 15 minutes and awake refreshed. I usually wake myself after a few seconds and never feel refreshed. I have very little energy and have tried changing my diet, drugs, and I have low thyroid which is well managed. When I fall asleep, even for a few seconds, I am dreaming immediately, sometimes talking or talking as I wake up. Can someone please help me-I'm getting really scared.

The excessive sleepiness is a problem due to the fact of driving. It gets so bad while driving that the fact of me going half cross eyed every 2 seconds is going to cause an accident one day. Sleep paralysis- This never occurs prior to falling asleep but occasionally I will wake up paralyzed and this will last upwards of 1-2 minutes. I really hate this feeling and it gets to the point where I'm scared to go back to sleep.

Seeing or hearing things when you’re drowsy or starting to dream before you’re fully asleep Suddenly feeling weak or losing control of your muscles when you’re laughing, angry, or experiencing other strong emotions Dreaming right away after going to sleep or having intense dreams Feeling paralyzed and unable to move when you’re waking up or dozing off Circadian rhythm sleep disorders We all have an internal biological clock that regulates our 24-hour sleep-wake cycle, also known as our circad

I have had MS since 1995. I have gone through many bouts of paralysis, blindness, hear loss, memory loss, confusion and now I have narcolepsy. Everyone thought I was crazy and didn't think it was serious.....although I had 11 incidences of falling asleep while driving. I work for Disability Rehabilitation Services and they hire alot of people with disabilities. If they see me and I am having facial paralysis (Bells Palsy) or dragging my left I have had MS since 1995.

BE relax while sleeping Consume Warm Milk, or honey or potato, or banana half and hour before going to bed , for better sleep.

For about a year I've found myself fighting to keep my eyes open while driving and several times have found myself drifting off to sleep. I am not a great sleeper and am sometimes tired with dry-feeling eyes but this is more of a muscular feeling - just literally not able to keep my eye lids open. I just had the car checked for exhaust fumes and nothing showed up. I drive with my husband and dogs to work and they seem fine...

My husband can be wide awake and have had a full nights sleep but a few minutes into driving he can't keep his eyes open he's had so many close calls and is terrified to drive especially with the kids in the car. I've sat right next to him and watched and every couple minutes I had to make sure to stimulate him and he says he feels funny like he loses control of all body parts. Anyone have any ideas?

Learning as much about narcolepsy as possible and finding a support system can help patients and families deal with the practical and emotional effects of the disorder, and situations that might cause injury. This link may be helpful: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcolepsy It would be best to see your doctor for definite diagnosis an proper management. Take care and keep us posted. and proper management.

My husband was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea and narcolepsy about 5 years ago and the narcolepsy is under control with 200 mg of Provigil. He had hypnogogic hallucinations, body jerks when falling sleep, imaginary conversations with no one, talked in his sleep, fell asleep driving, talking and even in activities you'd never imagine a male would fall asleep. He appears to always have had it since about puberty but it got worse as his sleep apnea did.

Just please be careful! If you're having symptoms that bad, I wouldn't risk driving. I've got 4 kids and had to give up driving due to the dizzyness and carsickness I always suffer now. Whatever inconvenience not driving may be, it's worth knowing you won't be responsible for causing sn accident that could result in someone's death; especially one of your own children.

It sounds like you have narcolepsy. I myself have it and your story sounds very close to my experience with narcolepsy. It can get dangerous, for example, if you're driving (it's happened to me!). The vivid dreams is a symptom of narcolepsy. Do you ever feel like you're half awake but you can't open your eyes? What other symptoms are you having besides being unrested? I would definitely consult your physician or a sleep lab. Good luck.

I know personally how hard it can be to have a sleep disorder. I have narcolepsy. I feel that my family and friends have a little difficulty understanding exactly what's going on with me. So, I thought perhaps opening my own group where I can feel comfortable and discuss day to day life with others that have sleep disorders would not only help me out, but possibly others that are effected everyday like me. I am eager to hear from all of you soon!

My narcolepsy started off just like yours, the driving, and embarrassingly I would fall asleep on the toilet. I am now on Provigil, stinks cause it's expensive, but I was a danger to myself and others. I have to agree that driving is dangerous for you and those around you. Finding out all this does take time too. You'll get a sleep study, which is usually an overnight and next day stay at the hospital, then it'll take a couple weeks to read those.

I would become so tired in the drive home from school (30 min drive) that I’d have to pull over places along the way to take a short 5 minute nap or I knew I’d fall asleep while driving and kill myself or someone else. Sometimes I would even stop at the bottom of our long driveway and nap because I was so sure I’d sleep before I got to the garage. I go to college about 2 hours away from my hometown and come home some weekends to work, see family and friends, etc.

ve been recovering from, and you went through hell and back to get off of? What are the chances of addiction to narcolepsy medication? These are questions he should answer for you. Don't be afraid Deana, you're clean now! Your Doctor will view you as protecting your sobriety. As far as cheating? Not sure you go to NA. If you do, the basic text has info about that subject on pages 102 and 103. It deals with pain meds pretty much.

His biggest issue will be a little later when the driving subject comes up. He should have an id card with his meds and condition and also a bracelet or some other sort of identifier. Seizure meds react poorly with other drugs so you want him to be safe in case of an accident. Take Care I know it is rough as a mom and the flip side a neurological mess.

It was my foster father driving with my foster mother and his mother. I asked them if they could drive me and they said no, which I thought was silly because my grandmother drives her own car. I was falling asleep at the wheel and actually ended up driving into the cement median. They thought drinking coffee would keep me awake. I drank like, twelve cups and I told them they just didn't understand and that it wasn't safe, but did they care? Narcolepsy is serious.

Sleepy when driving is terribly dangerous for you and those sharing the road with you. Please stop and get out of the car and get yourself back to fully awake before trying to drive again. There must be some techniques for staying away, but loud music never worked for me. I have to stop and stand up to fully wake up.

Started experience extreme dizziness 10/2015., if I lay on my left, I will pass out. dx was narcolepsy and chronic fatigue., from neurologist and endo. Hoshimotos., Had a brain mri 11/2015 found a anachroid cyst on left frontal lobe. Told it is not the cause and no reason to alarm probably born with it. Prescribed Modifinal. Today, I am on celebrex. for musculature pain..dont know why. I have days where I just cant 'get with it' .I have experienced loss of bladder. Embarrassing .

i saw a show yesterday about narcolepsy and they mentioned a vaccination was given to a 13 year old girl and 2 hours later she was experiencing cataplexly (a paralyzing catatonic state that is a symptom of narcolepsy) but they did not say which vaccination.

Hi, welcome to the forum. Your history is suggestive of narcolepsy. In this condition there will be excessive daytime sleepiness. In this condition there will be “automatic behavior" such as driving past a highway exit or writing off a page, with no memory of the previous few minutes. Classical narcolepsy constitutes of Hypnagogic hallucinations, Sleep paralysis and Cataplexy (emotionally triggered muscle paralysis resulting in partial or complete collapse).

Wakeful dreaming, such as you are describing, sounds very much like what happens to me at times. It is a very odd feeling, because it just plain doesn't seem possible, and yet, here you are doing it anyway. I have woke from dreams before and hadn't realized that what was previously happening was not real, only a dream. I would even carry on, in my actual life, as though I was still in the dream. Sometimes, my family would look at me oddly wondering what in the world was I up to.

I was the same way several years ago. I honestly thought by the time they diagnosed me I would be close to death. Getting up was an effort, suffering so many symptoms you have described. Blood work was normal. Finally one doctor mentioned MS and referred me to another, who mentioned fibromyalgia and then referred me to a neurologist who ordered a sleep study.

I am currently in limbo land and I am not a doctor. However, you may want to read my postings on narcolepsy with cataplexy. Your driving black out may have been cataplexy. (again I am not a doctor) Look at my simple explanations for how it affects me and search on line for more details. Narcolepsy occurs about 1 in 2,000 times in the US and 1 in 600 times in Japan.... So it is very common but rarely dx. Nowadays people have lots of options to manage symptoms - i.e. many caffeine sources.

Narcolepsy and driving

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