When
I was younger and still living at home, my parents used to give us chores
around the house. Obviously, we were kids and used to get out of doing those
chores all the time. My sister used to get out of it by sleeping through her
chores. In fact, my sister used to sleep through everything like family
dinners, birthdays, movies, etc. We used to think that she had a problem or
might have even been suffering from narcolepsy, which is defined as a chronic
sleep disorder characterized by excessive sleepiness. Well, today, my sister
has three children with another on the way, and now gets NO sleep. Maybe back
then she was storing her sleep time? Anyway, I read this story and it reminded
me of my sister and I thought maybe she really did have some sort of sleeping
disorder.
It
turns out; Nicole Delien, a Pennsylvania teen, has been battling Kleine-Levin
syndrome, a bizarre condition that forces her to sleep 18 to 19 hours a day and
leaves her in a sleepwalking state while she is awake. Some call what she has
"sleeping beauty" syndrome, but Nicole seems to be pretty 'tired' of
it! Her mother, Vicki, says that Nicole has never really adjusted to the
disorder, and now that she's 17, she's really upset that she's missed out on a
lot of her life. Nicole has even slept anywhere from 32 to 64 days in a row.
According to her mom, she once fell into a somnambulant state (walking or
tending to walk while sleeping) before Thanksgiving and didn't wake up until
well after Christmas. Wow! My question is how the hell did Nicole go to school
like this? I know that my sister wasn't even this bad!
Approximately,
one thousand people suffer from Kleine-Levine, a syndrome that has become
incredibly difficult to diagnose given its rarity. I have to be honest, though.
I can't stop wondering why they chose the name Kleine-Levine. When I hear the
name, the only explanation that keeps popping into my head is that they were
two lawyers fighting over a case, but it got so boring that it put jurors to
sleep for hours! Hence, the name Kleine-Levine! Anyway, back to reality!
Nicole's
battled this condition for 25 months before she was diagnosed. At first,
doctors thought she might've had West Nile virus or epilepsy. The disease,
which is more common in males, usually shows up in adolescence. At the start of
each episode, the patient becomes increasingly drowsy and wakes up only to eat
or go to the bathroom. According to the Kleine-Levine Syndrome Foundation, when
the patient is awake, their whole demeanor is changed, often appearing
"spacey" or "childlike". They experience confusion,
disorientation, complete lack of energy (lethargy), and lack of emotions
(apathy).
Nicole
currently takes medicine to cut down on the number of episodes, but there is
still no cure for this disorder yet, leaving her family in constant fear of a
relapse. The story still never addressed Nicole's schooling. Does she miss
school because of this? Or does she go to school and just fall asleep in class?
Or does she sleepwalk into class and not realize what she is learning? There is
so much more that needs to be answered here. It seems my sister grew out of it.
Is that what happens? Do you grow out of it? Can I ask any more questions? Now,
I'm tired! I'm going back to sleep......
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