Posted by theredappleisred on April 29, 2008 at 01:01:50:When my neurologist said hypersomnia, I was admittedly taken aback--not simply because it's an unusual diagnosis, but also because I'm a notorious insomniac. For every eight straight days I've slept, I've had three nights of no sleep (not necessarily consecutively, just as a means of reference.) I asked him how that worked and he just gave me some jokingly smart-ass "you're just a freak." He later clarified that there are simply too many possible reasons, most of which have yet to be understood. We ruled out stimulant treatment induced insomnia when it was determined I can nap through a 40 mg dose of Adderall...and even during med breaks I still have no ability to fall asleep.
So just how common/unusual is it for a hypersomniac to present with offensively chronic insomnia? It's just a bit hard to understand how such contradictory conditions, or maybe symptoms, can occur in the same patient and somewhat overlapping in episodes. In such cases, is it a good idea to rule out any other underlying physical/psychiatric conditions, more so than one otherwise might?
And what's with the pharmacist giving me the stink eye when I get my stimulants and hypnotics? I don't need to feel like a criminal. Really though, it must seem a very strange combination to fill.
- Re: Hypersomnia with Insomnia? Uh...hm. Sandman 13:07 4/29/08 (0)