I might have narcolepsy can anyone tell me what I can do to stop falling asleep at work? Any Ideas, or advice?
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009 at
6:44 am
lou lou asked:
I have six weeks to wait to see a sleep specialist to be diagnosed I am losing control of my motor functions, an have mild hallucinations.
I have six weeks to wait to see a sleep specialist to be diagnosed I am losing control of my motor functions, an have mild hallucinations.
Tagged with: Losing Control • Six Weeks • Sleep
Filed under: Narcolepsy
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
You don’t need to be at work. Take sick leave or get disability before you get hurt.
ooh… that’s bad.
im an epileptic which is basically the same as a narcoleptic basically champ there is nothing you can do about it until you see ur specialist who may be able to give you some medication or suggest a operation sorry
There may be no treatment if it is a neurological condition. Does falling asleep at work hinder your work or hurt your relationship with the people?
You can do as I do. Just go out to smoke and talk to somebody.
Then you can read anecdotes or news. sometime pasts and you feel yourself as normal as you want.
6 weeks is a long time! Maybe you can get different hours? I mean do you fall asleep at a certain time? That’s serious.
I saw this girl on Montel today who said she would sleep for 5 weeks at a time! Then she would be ok for a few weeks and then the cycle would begin again! She’s on medication now, stimulants to keep her awake, and has to follow rules like no going out late and such… but yah, that’s freaking scary!
When you see your specialist and are diagnosed you should look into some kind of disability or financial support if possible. Good luck.
whoa, nodded off there. What was the question?
Do they know at work that you have narcolepsy? If not, then tell them. There are usually rules that falling asleep at work brings dismissal.
Other than that, I have no suggestions. 6 weeks is a while to wait. You are fortunate that you can get in that soon.
It never ceases to amaze me how some people, totally ignorant of a subject, will answer anyway with their useless opinions and incorrect assumptions. Especially when someone is seriously asking for help.
1) Aside from the fact that they are both neurological disorders, narcolepsy is nothing like epilepsy. (Unless you equate falling asleep with a siezure.)
2) From what I understand, you can only be considered disabled due to narcolepsy if you develop it as a teenager. It is then considered to be a developmental disability. Then you will be protected from discrimination by the ADA. However, narcolepsy does not prevent a person from working, so you won’t be able to sit home and draw a check.
3) You do not have to tell your employer that you have narcolepsy. However, if you are endangering yourself or others by falling asleep at work, you should be responsible enough to seek other employment. Some things you CANNOT do with narcolepsy is join the military or pilot a plane. You shouldn’t take any position that requires a lot of driving. If you fall asleep driving and cause an accident, (and survive it) you will lose your driver’s liscense until you have been seen by a doctor and the cause is determined (and treated to the court’s satisfaction.)
Some things you can do to help stay awake…
First, especially for a narcoleptic, you must make sure you get adequate sleep at night. You don’t want “real” sleepiness in addition to your narcolepsy EDS (excessive daytime sleepiness.)
Caffiene helps. Drink coffee and sodas. Espressos are great, if available, but any coffee will help. Mt. Dew has a high caffiene content for a soda, but not nearly as high as coffee. Excedrin also contains caffiene. Energy drinks like Mt Dew Amp and Red Bull will help for a couple of hours, like if you need to drive a long way, but when it wears off in about 2 or 3 hours, you will crash. Stay away from those pills (minithins) They are bad for you. And don’t self-medicate with illegal stimulants. They will ruin your life.
The most important thing is to be able to recognize the onset of sleepiness, and take steps to combat it. At work, just getting up and walking around for a few minutes can help. Go to the bathroom and do jumping jacks if you have to. Anything to be active and get your heart pumping will help you through the episode. Your body doesn’t really need sleep, you just have some chemicals trying to trick your brain into thinking you do. Usually you can ward off the sleepiness if you know how. If you’re driving, pull over at a gas station or rest stop and get out of your car. Clean out your car, wash your windshield, check your oil, anythind to stay active and distract your mind.
Sometimes the only solution is to allow yourself to sleep. You just have to recognize this fact and put yourself in a position where you are safe to sleep.
I’ve had narcolepsy for 19 years. These are things that have helped me cope. I hope they help you, too. If you check my profile, I’ve answered a few other questions on narcolepsy. Maybe you’ll find some more helpful information there. It will also help you locate other good answers, and links to websites that you may find helpful.