14 Early Overlooked Signs of Narcolepsy

Narcolepsy is a condition that causes the patient to fall asleep suddenly and without warning. It is often seen in the media, but the reality can be quite different than the way it is portrayed here.

Narcolepsy does indeed cause patients to fall asleep suddenly, but it can also have other, more subtle signs. These can include much less obvious symptoms, but if you are able to spot those signs early, then you can get treatment before the condition develops into a serious problem. Treatments like modafinil, for instance, have been proven to be successful and may be effective in preventing an injury caused by a sudden loss of consciousness.

In this post, we will examine some of the more easily missed signs of narcolepsy, so that you can find a treatment early and get a better grasp of what might be affecting your health.

1 Sleepiness

Or more specifically: ‘excessive daytime sleepiness’. While the aforementioned losses of consciousness are what many of us associate with this condition, in truth, daytime sleepiness is actually the main symptom of narcolepsy and the first one that you should look out for.

You might find that you feel extremely exhausted and tired, even after a good night of sleep. Moreover, you may notice that even if the sleepiness passes for a while, it always eventually returns.

Of course, there are a large number of different issues and conditions that can lead to tiredness and sleepiness. Chief among these is apnea, which may cause a number of similar conditions. Here, you wake in the night for brief, imperceptible amounts of time, due to difficulties breathing. Alternatively, you might experience tiredness as a result of depression, metabolic syndrome, stress, or a huge range of other potential factors.

In order to discern whether your tiredness is indeed caused by narcolepsy, it is important to discuss the tiredness with your doctor. Tiredness is always worth exploring.