I am a 32 year old woman who has had sleep issues as long as I can remember. I have apnea, for which I have a CPAP. That being said, I keep experiencing a combination of migraine and what appears to be cataplexy.
I will wake up feeling horrible that day, usually I'll experience some migraine aura, and then I'll have the "fainting" as we call it. My body goes limp, as if I'm asleep, but I can still vaguely hear whats going on around me, as if someone who is drifting in and out of sleep. I cannot respond or voluntarily move while this happens. My eyes flutter and twitch.
I have had this happening for years, and its been called a range of things. The first neurologist I had just told me I was fat, lose weight and I'll be fine. My family doctor has gone through trials with me, calling it migraine, panic attacks, and finally referring me to a second neurologist, who found out about my apnea, and she has tested for narcolepsy.
I have done the multiple sleep latency test, and where within the series of naps, one needs to go into rem within 5 minutes 2/5 times, I only do that 1/5 times. That is not enough for a diagnosis.
I had taken a year off work, went back to school, and I have been issue free for sometime, until last week. Now I have lost my new job as a result of a week unable to function, between the "fainting" and multiple days of not functioning due to migraine aura.
Multiple things to note: I have lost 15lbs very quickly recently, and weight loss has corresponded with this issue in the past, which makes it difficult to lose weight, my IUD fell out and a new one was inserted, triggering a 2 month long period, and my migraines are often triggered by hormones, as well as patterns, and a big part of my job had been comparing two columns of numbers for discrepancies.
Any comments or insights into my issue are appreciated!