Recognising narcolepsy
- Narcolepsy is a complex condition with a number of different symptoms that can vary in severity. It can often be hard to recognise when someone is suffering from narcolepsy especially if it presents as a mild or atypical form.
- It is not uncommon for GPs to misinterpret symptoms and blame other factors. This often leads to either a missed diagnosis or inappropriate treatment.
Potential confounding factors include:
| Lifestyle | Because narcolepsy can first appear during early adolescence, the symptoms can very often be put down to bad habits such as ‘partying too hard’ and not getting enough sleep |
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| Depression | A common symptom of depression is also feeling tired all the time or having problems with sleep maintenance |
| Epilepsy | Cataplexy attacks can be mistaken for epileptic seizures and patients are incorrectly referred and diagnosed |
- Misdiagnosis can therefore delay correct diagnosis, referral and treatment unnecessarily for months or even years
- It is therefore important to make sure that the general public are aware of the key symptoms so that patients, their families and friends are more able to recognise the condition and push for a diagnosis.
- After diagnosis, it is important for family and friends to understand what living with narcolepsy is like.
- Many patients can become depressed or feel isolated if people are unaware of the implications of living with narcolepsy
- It is common for people living with narcolepsy to underachieve in life and become reclusive
- Family and friends play a vital role in ensuring that people with narcolepsy don’t let narcolepsy stand in their way of living their lives to the full
