!['I fall asleep six times a day – people think I'm lazy'](https://cdn.magzter.com/1583506613/1722935789/articles/YfagpRlGW1722946980176/I-FALL-ASLEEP-SIX-TIMES-A-DAY-PEOPLE-THINK-IM-LAZY.jpg)
Mum Belle Breukelman has fallen asleep in changing rooms and even nodded off on dates in restaurants. The 29-year-old suffers from the debilitating condition narcolepsy – which affects around 30,000 people in the UK – but she has been accused of being drunk or on drugs when she struggles to stay awake.
Belle, who is mum to 10-month-old Billie, naps up to six times a day, sometimes for 25 minutes a time. Without medication, she would fall asleep every time she sits down.
She explains, “My sleep attacks come on without warning. When out shopping, I’ve had to jump into a changing room and lie down to nap. I’ve fallen asleep on dates, I’ve had people assume I’m drunk and out of control. My doctor thought I was a drinker or smoked cannabis and when I was younger they blamed me for ‘staying up too late on my phone’.
“As a mum of a young baby, it can be really hard. Sometimes, I will be feeding Billie her dinner and start to fall asleep.
“I can feel my eyes getting heavier and I start to feel cold, so I lie down, before I fall, and snooze. My daughter is used to this now and thankfully smiles when I wake.
“I manage to work around my condition and sometimes I put her to bed unbathed rather than trying to bathe her in a sleepy state – it’s too dangerous. I’d never put her at risk.”
Belle, from Oxford, first started suffering from the condition at 15 when she struggled to stay awake on car journeys – by 16 she was frequently napping in the classroom at school.
“Falling asleep in front of people was awful. It would happen on school trips and every time I sat down in class. They would poke fun at me and say, ‘Oh, she’s going to sleep again!’ It was so upsetting and embarrassing.
この記事は New UK の August 12, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
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この記事は New UK の August 12, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
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