Iris Vasconcelos

Imagine living life constantly on the edge, where a simple joke could cause your knees to buckle, or a surge of anger might send your body into paralysis. This was...

Living with narcolepsy type 1 has made me extremely aware of how this condition impacts every part of my life, even my menstrual cycle. For many women, that time of...

As someone living with narcolepsy, I have often wondered if my condition makes me an unreliable person. Narcolepsy is an incredibly unpredictable condition, so it seems only logical to me...

Living with narcolepsy type 1 (with cataplexy) has given me a unique relationship with sleep. I’ve become quite adept at handling the complexities of daytime sleepiness and cataplexy, but my...

The journey to receiving a narcolepsy diagnosis often resembles a rollercoaster, fraught with misdiagnoses. It can take a long time to get diagnosed correctly. Since initiating my advocacy journey in...

Cataplexy is a sudden, brief loss of muscle tone often triggered by strong emotions. If you have never witnessed a cataplexy attack, it can be difficult to describe. Despite suffering...

Living with narcolepsy is like living with an extra, constant shadow by your feet, not just as a medical condition, but as a relentless companion in my life. It's more...

In my journey with narcolepsy, TED Talks have been a beacon of inspiration, not just as a source of information but as a vital tool in managing my mental health...

Living with narcolepsy is a rollercoaster of realities that often collide, leaving me caught between wakefulness and dreams in a way that's far from whimsical. Let's walk through the raw...

The first stimulant I was introduced to was Modafinil, and as much as I used to view it as one of the best and most memorable moments, I now realize...

Living with narcolepsy is a unique and often misunderstood journey, marked by the ever-present stigma that infiltrates various aspects of our lives. Unlike many other chronic conditions, narcolepsy doesn't come...

When I express how much I want to live on my own again, people always ask me, “Is it a good idea to live alone with narcolepsy?” It’s a question...

Aside from the condition itself, there's an added burden tied to narcolepsy that hardly receives recognition — the struggle to be financially independent. In an ideal world, money would be...

As the years go by, there's a subtle weight that descends, a deepening sensation of isolation that accompanies the unrelenting hold of narcolepsy. It is more than the neverending struggle...

I’ve realised that since I was diagnosed with narcolepsy, I’ve learned so much about myself, and I continue to do so the more time goes by. For a while, I...

When I was diagnosed with narcolepsy at 28 years old, there were many things I worried about... but my weight was certainly not one of them. Like most recently diagnosed...

Narcolepsy is no laughing matter. As a matter of fact, no chronic illness is something to laugh about. Having said this, I do believe that humour and chronic illness aren’t...

Living with narcolepsy isn't just an individual journey; it's a shared experience within the intricate web of family dynamics. While we hope for understanding and support from our loved ones...