For as long as I can remember, I love sleeping. Taking a nap while snuggled in a cozy blanket, next to a crackling fire – mmmmm – there is nothing like it. But when you have no control over your sleeping – that is an entirely different story.
Beginning in middle school, I always had trouble staying awake during my classes. I would do whatever I could to try to keep my eyes open. I would take off my shoes and sit crisscross applesauce in my desk chair. I would play with my hair. I would doodle. I would bite the inside of my mouth. Eventually, my body would get the upper hand and my head would begin to droop.
One day during my math class, I was sitting in the front row and as luck would have it, my head began to bob. I saw the teacher writing something on the chalkboard, but my mind couldn’t make out the words. It turns out he was writing “Slam Your Books!” and suddenly the girl behind me slammed her book shut right behind my head and I jumped. Everyone got a good laugh at my expense. I was horrified.
Jump to high school and it was the tradition that if anyone fell asleep in our American Problems class, the teacher would come up behind you and crash a pair of cymbals over your head. I had this class right after lunch and the lights were turned off so we could watch a video. Surprise, surprise – guess who fell asleep? By this time, I had become a master at propping my head in my hands so my head wouldn’t bob. Unfortunately – the teacher noticed I was sleeping and went to grab the cymbals. Luckily, as he was coming close to me, he accidentally clanged them together just slightly, but it made enough of a noise that it woke me up and I was able to regain my composure without the experiencing the great cymbal crash!
My struggles with staying awake did not just happen during school hours. Mom would find me sitting on my bed, flopped over my legs sleeping while doing my homework. She would find me in the morning sleeping against the door jamb of my closet. There would be silence coming from the bathroom in the morning while I was getting ready and dad would say “Sandy – she’s sleeping again!” and I would be found asleep on the toilet.
Then in high school, we were on a class trip and everyone’s name was put into a hat for charades. We each had to pick someone’s name and act like them to see if the other class members could guess who we picked. The guy who picked my name grabbed a chair, took off his shoes, sat crisscross applesauce in the chair and pretended to fall asleep. Everyone guessed it was me within seconds.
In college, I worked hard at staying awake, but still had my challenges. I spoke to many of my professors and told them that I would sit in the back of the classroom where possible and just stand up when I felt myself getting sleepy. Most of them looked at me like I had 4 heads, but it worked… most of the time. (I’ve already written about totaling the red hornet by falling asleep driving)
It all came to a head when I was working at a local bank. My boss pulled me aside one day and said “Michelle, you need to see a doctor or something. We are continually finding you asleep at your desk.” Apparently, the coworker across the aisle from me would throw paperclips at me to see if I would react. I never did. I was, of course, mortified and made an appointment to see my doctor.
Some people probably thought that I just needed to get more sleep, but the reality was that I actually had a medical condition. At first, I was diagnosed with narcolepsy. Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder that affects the brain’s ability to control sleep-wake cycles. People with narcolepsy may feel rested after waking, but then feel very sleepy throughout much of the day. Even though I didn’t have all the side effects of the disorder, my doctor diagnosed me with narcolepsy because I met the clinical description of the disorder. My sleepiness was affecting my personal, social, and work life.
It was such a relief to finally have a reason for always falling asleep! Suddenly – I knew it wasn’t just because I didn’t get enough sleep or I was lazy. I had an actual disorder.
In the 18 years since my diagnosis, things have changed a bit. My original doctor has since retired and my next doctor felt that maybe my sleepiness was due to sleep apnea, so I was put through a sleep study and a day-long nap study. For the nap study, I was in a room for the entire day and every 2 hours, I was to lay down for a 15 minute nap. In order to be diagnosed as narcoleptic, I had to fall asleep at each nap time within 8 minutes. For all but 1 nap, I fell asleep in less than 3 minutes.
Due to that study, they determined that I’m not necessarily narcoleptic, but I do have hypersomnia, otherwise known as excessive daytime sleepiness. Now, with the help of medication, I’m actually able to stay awake during the appropriate times like working at my desk, meetings with my boss, and driving a car. I’m so glad for the diagnosis, but just wish it had come sooner. I’ve dealt with this issue for over 35 years and I just hope that none of my kids will have to experience the same problems I did.
Click here to check out other Sidetracked opinions
Click here to listen to the Sidetracked Legacies podcast
Want to create your own legacy? Join the Sidetracked Sisters and start now!
Ever thought about working with a Life Coach? Are you creative or a writer who is frustrated with your inability to do the work you so desperately feel called to do? Check out Lisa Hoffman Coaching.
#sidetrackedsisters #sidetrackedchelle #sidetrackedlegacies #legacywriting #legacystories #writeyourownlegacy #LisaHoffmanCoaching #narcolepsy #cataplexy #excessivedaytimesleepiness #cpap #sleepapnea
