My son has trouble with sleep too. I sometimes wonder if sz is actually a sleep disorder. People deprived of sleep for several days will tend to hallucinate. Also, my son has described his psychotic episodes as being like a waking dream.
There's a rare disease called fatal familial insomnia in which the person simply cannot sleep. It's always fatal. It presents in several stages with symptoms well-known to sufferers of sz.
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The disease has four stages, taking 7 to 18 months to run its course:- The patient suffers increasing insomnia, resulting in panic attacks, paranoia, and phobias. This stage lasts for about four months.
- Hallucinations and panic attacks become noticeable, continuing for about five months.
- Complete inability to sleep is followed by rapid loss of weight. This lasts for about three months.
- Dementia, during which the patient becomes unresponsive or mute over the course of six months. This is the final progression of the disease, after which death follows.
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I wish my son could be evaluated by a sleep doctor.