Sleeping Beauty is REAL! (kinda)

My cousin, Katie Kenward, forwarded me a very interesting email today about Sleeping Beauty Syndrome. I obvi looked it up and want to read MORE about it !

Louisa Ball, from England, sleeps for days at a time and cannot be awakened…no, she isn’t just a “teenager”, she has Sleeping Beauty Syndrome, aka Kleine-Levine Syndrome. KLS is a disease/disorder/syndrome with no cure that clears up after 8 years of suffering from it.

Louisa’s passion is dance, but with her unknown schedule, she finds it very hard to keep a certain steady schedule.

Louisa’s longest “nap” has lasted 13 days, and there’s nothing doctors can do to stop it.

What is Kleine-Levin Syndrome?

Kleine-Levin Syndrome (KLS) is a rare and complex neurological disorder characterized by periods of excessive amounts of sleep and altered behavior. The disorder strikes adolescents primarily. At the onset of an episode the patient becomes progressively drowsy and sleeps for most of the day and night (hypersomnolence), waking only to eat or go to the bathroom. When awake, the patient’s whole demeanor is changed, often appearing “spacey” or childlike. When awake he experiences confusion, disorientation, complete lack of energy (lethargy), and lack of emotions (apathy). Most patients report that everything seems out of focus, and that they are hypersensitive to noise and light. In some cases, food cravings (compulsive hyperphagia) are exhibited. Instances of uninhibited hypersexuality during an episode have also been reported.

Kleine-Levin Syndrome episodes are cyclical. When present, KLS symptoms persist for days, weeks or even months, during which time all normal daily activities stop. Individuals are not able to attend school, work or care for themselves. Most are bedridden, tired and uncommunicative even when awake. Not everyone affected by KLS exhibits all of the symptoms described above.

Affected individuals may go for a period of weeks, months or even years without experiencing any symptoms, and then they reappear with little warning. In between episodes those diagnosed with KLS appear to be in perfect health with no evidence of behavioral or physical dysfunction. However they function daily with the frightful reality that they could become sick again at any moment. KLS episodes may continue to reoccur for a decade or longer with devastating effects on the adolescent’s life and family. KLS robs children and young adults of big pieces of their lives, one agonizing episode at a time.

The mean diagnostic delay for proper KLS diagnosis is four years, causing undue suffering to patients and families. The cause of Kleine-Levin Syndrome is not known.

It is named for Willi Kleine and Max Levin.

Kleinelevin.com

Huffingtonpost.com