I. What is episodic sleep disorder? Episodic sleep disorder is a brain disorder that makes people want to sleep all day long and is the second leading cause of “excessive daytime sleepiness” (the first leading cause is sleep apnea). Episodic sleep disorder sometimes causes patients to suddenly fall asleep, even during activities (such as eating, talking, or driving). The age of onset of onset sleeping sickness is usually in the early teens or early 20s, with a few patients earlier or later. Once the disease, the patient’s work, school or daily social activities are seriously affected. Second, what are the symptoms of episodic sleeping sickness? Daytime sleepiness. Suddenly fall asleep during the day, even on inappropriate occasions. Some people call it a “sleep attack”. Sudden collapse, weakness, or weakness, usually when agitated, excited, angry, or laughing (i.e., sudden collapse attack). Feeling unable to move a limb or speak within minutes of falling asleep or waking up, or seeing, feeling, or hearing something that is not actually there within minutes of falling asleep or waking up (sleep hallucinations). These hallucinations are very real and very frightening to the patient. If the symptoms of episodic sleep disorder described above are present, it is important to see a doctor, preferably one who specializes in sleep disorders. It is best to see a doctor who specializes in sleep disorders because these symptoms require a proper evaluation and diagnosis, a reasonable long-term treatment plan and, more importantly, the symptoms of episodic sleep disorder can lead to danger and injury. 4. Do I need to get tested? If you suspect episodic sleeping disorder, there are tests that need to be done to determine if episodic sleeping disorder is really present. The preferred tests are: nocturnal polysomnography (PSG) + multiple sleep latencies (MSLT) the next day. These tests require the body to be hooked up to multiple leads and record multiple physiological parameters such as brain activity, eye muscle activity, respiration, heart rate, oxygen saturation, etc. Patients with episodic sleeping sickness may find disturbances in the sleep rhythm and if certain criteria are met, the diagnosis of episodic sleeping sickness can be made. If no clear diagnosis can be found by PSG+MSLT examination and the clinical manifestations strongly suggest episodic sleeping disease, hypothalamicin levels in cerebrospinal fluid can also be measured. But hypothalamic hormone level measurement is rarely carried out in China. V. How to treat episodic sleeping sickness? First of all, we need to change the living behavior, including: 1, try to avoid the use of drugs that can cause drowsiness, such as certain anti-allergy drugs; 2, before doing something important, find a suitable place to take a nap (nap 10-30 minutes); 3, schedule time during the day dedicated to snooze; 4, maintain a regular sleep schedule; 5, ensure sufficient sleep at night. If the patient is still very sleepy during the day after the above lifestyle behavior changes, medications may be needed to help stay awake during the day. However, it is important to note that these medications may help, but they also often do not completely eliminate drowsiness. Therefore, even if the patient is treated with medication, he or she still needs to carefully arrange his or her work and rest schedule and take care to avoid behaviors that cause risk, such as driving. VI. What can patients do on their own to help deal with episodic sleepiness? See a doctor and get help. Seek help from your workplace or school to let the head of your organization or teachers know that you have episodic sleep disorder and ask them to help arrange your routine. Episodes of sleeping sickness can make the patient feel sad, frustrated or embarrassed. Moreover, if others do not know that the patient has episodic sleeping sickness, they may think that the patient is lazy and deliberately slacking off in work and study, in which case it is better to let others understand that the patient has episodic sleeping sickness.