The mother of two spends much of her day napping, and must resort to stimulants to wake her up – and medication at night to help her sleep.

“My limited energy compromises everything. I’m existing, not living,” says Elaine, whose earliest narcolepsy memory is of experiencing terrifying but highly realistic nightmares around the age of 12. These, as she later discovered, were a common symptom of her condition. Because they “intertwine with reality”, she says, the nightmares felt very real and were absolutely terrifying.

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