There are a variety of sleep disorders and one can cause sudden muscle weakness even if they are awake. People may not realize the symptoms of cataplexy or understand it is related to narcolepsy.
What Is Cataplexy?
Cataplexy is when a person suddenly has muscle weakness during their normal daily routine. It can be mild with just a few seconds of weakness or severe with a total loss of control.
They may collapse, are rendered motionless and speechless in the most dramatic cases.
Even the most severe spells will typically be over within a couple of minutes. The person is awake and aware the whole time too. Even so, it can be frightening.
What Causes Cataplexy?
There isn’t an identifiable cause. However, patients with this ailment show their brains aren’t producing enough of the hormone orexin, which is crucial to the sleep-wake cycle.
It is also linked to the sleep disorder narcolepsy because those with Type 1 narcolepsy have cataplexy episodes while those with Type 2 don’t have them.
Narcolepsy has symptoms of daytime sleepiness, hallucinations and even sleep paralysis. For those with Type 1, their cataplexy instances started when they were excessively sleepy.
A trigger that also seems to start cataplexy episodes is an emotional response. The odd thing is that it’s usually a positive response like laughter or a reaction to a nice surprise.
Other triggers can be anger but these episodes rarely come after fear, exercise or stress.
What Can You Do?
Those who experience cataplexy symptoms should tell their doctor, even if it’s a mild symptom. This is
especially important if you have Type 1 narcolepsy. No specific way to diagnose it exists except to record it for the doctor to see.
There isn’t a treatment for cataplexy but your doctor can treat the root cause of the problem once that is discovered.
You can reduce episodes by prioritizing sleep to get enough rest, getting lots of sunlight and exercise, and
establishing a nighttime routine.
