Pages

Sunday, November 18, 2012

A real-life 'sleeping beauty': Meet the 17-year-old girl with condition that made her sleep for 64 DAYS


A Pennsylvania teenager slept for 64 days from Thanksgiving into January -- her longest sleeping episode yet. Nicole Delien, 17, struggles with a rare sleep disorder called Kleine-Levine, or ‘Sleeping Beauty Syndrome’. During her sleep spells she will wake up in a confused state for small periods of time to eat and go to the bathroom and then fall back to sleep.

Rarely awake: Nicole Delien, 17, is afflicted with Kleine-Levin Syndrome, a rare disorder that causes her to sleep 18 to 19 hours a day
Rarely awake: Nicole Delien, 17, is afflicted with Kleine-Levin Syndrome, a rare disorder that causes her to sleep 18 to 19 hours a day

Nicole’s mother, Vicki, says her daughter will sleep 18 to 19 hours a day, and when she eventually wakes up to eat she is in a ‘sleepwalking state which she doesn’t remember’, KDKA in Pittsburgh recently reported. The Delien family also appeared on Jeff Probst’s syndicated talk show this week to make sure other families become aware of the rare disorder. Vicki Delien told reporters that it was very frustrating trying to get a diagnosis for her daughter. She said it took several hospital trips to figure out what’s been afflicting her.


Finally, a doctor at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was able to pinpoint the disorder and offer some suggestions on how to manage it, including medication. 'Affected individuals may go for a period of weeks, months or even years without experiencing any symptoms, and then they reappear with little warning’ the KLSF website states. In addition to excessive sleeping, symptoms include disorientation, hallucination, child-like behaviour, binge-eating and periods of hyper-sexuality when awake, according to an Oxford Journals report. That report says the disorder predominately affects young males.
 Family care: Nicole with her younger sister and brother, who do not have the same condition as her

Family care: Nicole with her younger sister and brother, who do not have the same condition as her

Raising awareness: Nicole with her parents on the Jeff Probst Show
Raising awareness: Nicole with her parents on the Jeff Probst Show

On the verge of sleep: Video footage of Nicole before she fell asleep for 64 days
On the verge of sleep: Video footage of Nicole before she fell asleep for 64 days
Deep sleeper: Video footage of Nicole after she passes out
Deep sleeper: Video footage of Nicole after she passes out

The cause of Kleine-Levin Syndrome is unknown, both medical sources indicate. Eric Haller, a young college student with the disorder, told ABC News that he gets sick and falls into a sleeping episode about eight to 10 times a year. Medication helps spread Nicole’s sleeping episodes further apart, her family says.  Nicole says she has missed out on Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays and the family’s first trip to Disney World. She also missed out on an opportunity to meet pop singer Katy Perry. But when Perry later learned about Nicole’s disorder she made sure Nicole was able to visit her backstage at a performance in Connecticut. Nicole’s last sleeping episode was in March. She told KDKA that she’s scared of when it will happen again.

Source:  Daily Mail UK 

Please share

6 comments:

  1. Howdy are using Wordpress for your blog platform? I'm new to the blog world but I'm trying to get started
    and create my own. Do you require any coding knowledge to make your own blog?
    Any help would be really appreciated!
    Feel free to surf my site best protein

    ReplyDelete
  2. For most up-to-date information you have to visit web and on world-wide-web I found this web page as a finest
    web page for hottest updates.
    Also visit my web blog :: Naturheilmittel

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hey there! I'm at work surfing around your blog from my new iphone 4! Just wanted to say I love reading through your blog and look forward to all your posts! Keep up the outstanding work!
    Here is my site : tanjabrany.multiply.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am really impressed with your writing abilities and also
    with the layout for your blog. Is that this a paid theme or did you modify it your
    self? Anyway stay up the excellent quality writing, it is rare to
    see a great weblog like this one these days..
    My website healthy weight loss menu men exercise

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi there! This is my first visit to your blog!

    We are a collection of volunteers and starting a new
    project in a community in the same niche. Your blog provided us valuable information to work on.
    You have done a marvellous job!
    Feel free to visit my page wealthy affiliate

    ReplyDelete
  6. We're a group of volunteers and opening a new scheme in our community. Your web site offered us with valuable information to work on. You've done an impressive job
    and our whole community will be thankful to you.


    My homepage :: patio doors

    ReplyDelete