Kleine Levin Syndrome, (KLS), is a most interesting medical disorder; it is often mistaken for narcolepsy, cataplexy, epilepsy, circadian rythm disruption and many other disorders.

I personally suffer with this condition and have yet to meet anybody else who does, other than on online forums.

I write here about my own case, and do not wish to cause offence to any other sufferers who have differing experiences.

What Happens

First of all, I can 'spark out' mid sentence, which has been mistakenly diagnosed as narcolepsy. This can happen at any time, often without warning.

On waking, I find myself in an altered state of conciousness, where I often find it difficult to make sense of or interact with the world around me. My speech is radically different and sounds as if a nine year old child's been at the brandy. I may or may not be able to move.

If I can't move I get stressed and have a panic attack, resulting in a sort of fit and unconsiousness.

If I can move then it gets complicated as I have often done things, had conversations, and perambulated in ways I don't recall.

Notable examples of this include going to a job interview and succeeding, traveling from Newcastle to York, and passing a Haematology exam, none of which I remember with any clarity.

Most people who encounter me in this state think I am either drunk, high, or on day release from an institution.

When the episode ends I am perfectly normal, which is to say affably grumpy, and a tad eccentric, but fully myself and well within the bounds of societies definition of a normal person.

I sometimes have clouded and disjointed recollection of events as though a half remembered dream, or no recollection whatsoever.

Problems

The biggest disruption to my day to day life are practical and social

Practical Problems

It can be difficult for me to perform certain tasks, or indeed something as simple as getting to work.
I sometimes find it hard to maintain the thread of a complex or long discourse, passage, debate or set of instructions, and my studies for example did not benefit from this!

Upon coming to, finding myself in a situation I don't recall getting into now means my catchphrase is 'Oh Boy!' in a Sam Beckett Quantum Leap fashion.

Social Problems

It is a right pain when I find myself referring to a conversation that never happened, or forgetting a conversation that did, or writing off the recollection as a confused half-dream. This is especially awkward when it comes to rows, spats or arguments. I find myself apologising for things it turns out I didn't do, or not apologising for things I did do but don't remember. My friends and loved ones have gotten used to this and are helpfully communicative rather than going into a sulk.

For normal conversations, simple details such as what somebody had for lunch, or about what their boss said to them etc get lost in the melee and lends an appearance that I have not been paying attention, and as such don't care.

Exceptions To This

At times my symptoms don't fit this general mould. I have experienced restless legs, sleep apnoea, night terrors, and sleep paralysis.

Why Create This Entry?

I and most of my breed spend years going to doctors only to be misdiagnosed with a battery of conditions, with no useful explanation for the continuing bizarre behaviour and experiences. I personally thought I was going insane and contemplated suicide on more than one occasion. Most doctors never see a case of KLS, as it is thought to be very rare. Just how rare it is we don't know, as most doctors won't recognise a case when it walks through their door, because they've never seen it and so on. Also, mention sleep walking, or narcolepsy to most and they'll know what you mean. KLS not so. Anybody who has got this far thank you. It's nice to know somebody else has at least now heard of this condition.

Keep on Keeping Well.