Marijuana helps narcolepsy
Medical Condition
Neurodegenerative disorders
Symptoms
Short episodes of daytime sleep attacks and poor sleep
Neurodegenerative Disorders
Unspecified
Abstract
A 32-year-old male, furniture mover of 13 years, found relief of daytime sleep attacks and experienced more restful sleep with marijuana.
Patient information
Gender
Male
Age
25-34
Brief history and target symptomatology
Furniture mover for 13 years uses marijuana for relief of chronic back pain, short sleep attacks in the daytime and unrestful sleep.
Previous and current conventional therapies
OTC medication for back pain in the past. Diagnosed with narcolepsy but refused conventional treatment in favor of marijuana.
Clinical response to Cannabis
Alertness throughout the day, ability to work steadily, restful sleep.
Additional Comments
Diagnosed with idiopathic narcolepsy, no history of TBI or other neurological disorders. Patient attributes effect of marijuana on REM sleep for the relief of his symptoms.
Reference: National Sleep Foundation. "For people with narcolepsy, sleep begins almost immediately with REM sleep and fragments of REM occur involuntarily throughout the waking hours. When you consider that during REM sleep our muscles are paralyzed and dreaming occurs, it is not surprising that narcolepsy is associated with paralysis, hallucinations, and other dream-like and dramatically debilitating symptoms. "
Cannabis
Usual method of Cannabis administration
Smoked
Frequency of Usage: Time Per Day
2
Frequency of Usage: Days per Week
7