Hi
I'm 44 yrs old slightly overweight, I work at a computer all day although I can have regular breaks from it. I am suffering from excessive sleepiness everyday it started 2yrs ago only really happening at work now I am getting it at home as well I feel like I am going into a trance like state I am aware of what is going on around me although I feel like I'm outside the box, my arms go heavy and I feel like I'm slurring my words although no one has noticed or said anything if I sit down at home and relax I can guarantee I will be asleep within minutes I can't watch a film or drive, if I'm a passenger in the car I am also asleep within minutes I have had a sleep test done nothing bloods tests for almost everything again nothing I am now waiting for a brain scan to be done I am really scared this is something out of my control, it will last anything from minutes to all day and I have no control over it my eyes just want to close please help I am getting desperate
I think you should do more exercise. Don't know what to do to help, hope you will become better!
Thank you I do exercise and keep moving,because if I don't and sit down I dose off , I have had spinal surgery ad well 5 yrs ago it didn't quite go to plan and leaves me in pain all the time, I'm not sure what to do next this feeling of sleepiness is so frightening x
hiya poppy,
you say you are in pain all the time, what sort of pain killers are you on ?? strong ones can definitely make you sleepy especially opioid based ones.
also are you depressed, depression can cause excessive sleepiness too, hope this helps. 
I am on a great mixture of strong painkillers, I have been back to gp and I have now decided to come off them all except pregablin of which I have switched to taking it in the day and now take it at night I am also on anti depressants and have been for 5yrs this sleepiness is ridiculous my husband took me out last night to try to cheer me up and I fell asleep I just could keep my eyes open as much as I tried I kept seeing double until I closed them I'm now signed off work because I can't drive or do my computer duties it's really driving me crazy. Xx
Shrey
I don't really have tips to stay awake Hun that's why I'm here to see if anyone else has any good ideas as to what this is I'm suffering from xx
hiya poppy,
please dont worry poppy, im sure theres nothing sinister going on, its more than likely its the medication thats causing your sleepiness, what with the painkillers, anti depressant meds and pregabalin im not surprised your sleepy and in a dream like state.
pregabalin alone has very common side effects of dizziness and drowsiness and common side effects of weight gain and a feeling of drunkeness, lack of concentration and poor memory amongst other things.
i think its time to review your meds with your doctor, im sure that would help a great deal, keep posting, let us know how you go on.
Thank you for your advise I had a bad day yesterday slept from midday through till school run then just couldn't wake up properly I then fell back off from 5 till 8 .30 then after a cup of tea I went to bed. I have been on pregablin for 5 yrs amongst the other drugs all for spinal pain the excessive sleepiness started 2 yrs ago and it's getting worse i have had to take some time off work because it is affecting my life, I have seen my GP and we have stopped taking some of the meds and we are in the process of changing my anti depressants I now take 150mg of pregablin at night rather than the morning so far nothing has changed I am really worried the earliest brain scan is for August I'm not to sure how to keep going untill this is all sorted
Well it seems after all the testing I have sleep apnea although I don't stop breathing, I also have jumpy blood pressure and a jump heart rate I cannot get on with a cpap machine is there anything else I could try
I’m experiencing a similar problem at work but a bit different. I’m beyond just sleepiness; I feel exhausted almost from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed, everyday. I barely have enough energy to get through the normal working hours. I’m so extremely tired that sometimes I can’t even speak properly. When I do speak, it takes me an extra effort as if I were working out. I feel my blood pressure going up. Few minute into my speech, I feel blood rushing through my head, my eye and ears. I feel the heat coming on just like someone would when working out, but I’m just trying to carry a normal conversation and focus on the other person, which is very hard.
It takes up all my little strength just to have a normal daily live. Night life and normal social life are definitely out of the question. On top of that I get powerful headache easily and my ability to digest food has diminished among other things. And the terrible thing is I can’t even take a nap during daytime no matter how dreadful I feel. Firstly, it is not my habit to take naps and also it will screw up my sleep schedule and I wouldn’t be able to sleep when normal bed time comes. All those are caused by my sleep and physical disorder. I’ve been suffering from this torturous illness for the past ten years.
Hi. Have you been checked out for Obstructive Sleep Apnoea? I'm currently being assessed for it as my
daytime sleepiness is getting worse. Do you snore or have nasal inflammation? It maybe this. Worth seeing.
Plus have you had a virus or infection? Sometimes they can leave us drained and weak. I have M.E. so I know what extreme fatigue is like.
I hope you find the answer 
Hi bc 2013
And trish28
I have now got a diagnosis they think I suffer from sleep apnoea I think that's how you spell it
I'm not to sure as one consultant says no and one says yes ?...
They are going to try me on a non invasive ventilation machine I have to go into hospital at the end of July
Today at work I just lost it fell asleep at the till and had no idea what I was doing my arms and whole body felt so heavy this is not right
Please both of you go back to your doctors and scream and shout untill something is done it truly is awful to suffer like this it takes over your life and disrupts everything you want to do keep me informed xxxxx
Hi. I know it sounded so much like my problem. I've just had the monitor on to check oxygen and heart-rate at night. That went back today to the hospital. I have to see what comes of that, but on the Epworth Sleep Scale I score 18 and my symptoms indicate OSA. http://www.britishsnoring.co.uk/sleep_apnoea/epworth_sleepiness_scale.php
Yes British way of spelling it is Apnoea and US is Apnea.
CPAP machines are great. I may have to have one, we'll see. I hope it helps you. Oxygen deprivation can make you feel awful and has serious consequences too. I saw 5 GP's before the last one referred me and yet OSA is serious.
Yes it will have an effect on your health and it makes you feel really unwell and so tired and rundown. The British Lung Foundation do a good leaflet about it, this is their website: http://www.blf.org.uk/Conditions/Detail/OSA
Good luck and keep us posted
I'm so sorry you're struggling! Sleep training is ill advised before six months. Some have tried it as early as 4 months, but definitely not at 11 weeks. Sleep deprivation is the worst, and I really feel for you, but I think if you make sure she gets plenty of food and some nap time in the day, there's not much you can do. I would not, at this age, discourage napping in hopes of getting more night time sleep. In my experience, sleep begets sleep, so good naps help good nights. I hope you get more sleep soon!!!
Sleep deprivation caused by sleep disorder is one of the worst and most cruel symptoms of all illnesses. I wouldn’t wish it to my worst enemy. It robs and steals a patient of his/her valuable life. I can testify to that as I’ve been torturing by it for a full decade. It’d take me a long time to be fully recuperated and back to normal again even if my sleep disorder disappeared tomorrow. It is the most inhuman of sickness a person could suffer.
I'm being checked out currently for OSA and I think there is a link with the medication, too, as many people on heavy meds like Gabapentin and antidepressants seem to get this, along with people who have autonomic dysfunction. I've put on a lot of weight with the Gabapentin despite eating a strict low carb/sugar diet.
May be using CPAP shortly. Anything to feel more wake in the day. I score 18 on the Epworth Scale, so in the abnormal range.
It could be Sleep Apnoea which has no know cure yet. This is when you relax and your air tubes also relax a little bit too much. and less oxygen gets through. At Nighttime, this "wakes you up with a jerk" to get the body going again CPAP machines are supposed to help but are limited in their success. I found Plenty of Exersise and keeping active as long as possible helps a bit..
Hi mark
sorry for the late rely. Well so it seems I have had this now for the last 3 yrs. I have recently had n MSLT test done, well here was me thinking I was going in for a nice rest and a read and I have to say it was the worst test I have ever had to endure.
I have had spinal surgery 6 yrs ago for slipped discs L5 S1, I had a meeting with my consultant 6 weeks ago and need nuts and bolts put in due to rapid deteration. I take 12 hr 30 mg morhine for this along with co- codomol / pregabline 300mg an antidepressant at 225mg, I have also a very week bladder and Akers oxeybutin and mycriobyonm
this seems to calm ire down a little,.
anyway I had to come off all meds to have these test done. I feel like a cloud has lifted from my shoulders , however after the sleep test the consultant said I didn't need the machine and I do not have sleep app a
I have do thing called brain stem hyperstonmia aura very painful migraine
THIS IS VERY SERIOUS! I am a retired nurse and the exact thing happened to me! VERY hard to diagnose! I had to stop driving and just stay at home crying and writhing in pain on the couch. SHORT ANSWER: It sounds like you may have Sleep Apnea (I have both Central AND Obstructive) as well as Hypoxia! Hypoxia (you don't get enough oxygen, especially while sleeping) I had a Sleep Study and it proved the Sleep Apnea. I had to have a CPAP machine to wear at night. Very difficult for me to get used to since I'm very Claustrophobic. I cried and tore it off the first week but eventually got used to a less face covering one called nasal pillows. Then they sent me home with a monitor to wear on my finger to measure my oxygen saturation. It went down to the 40's and 50's at night! The next day a company wheeled an oxygenator into my room and hooked it up to the CPAP. The first night was like night and day and I had no body pain!!! It was like being reborn. I had gotten so bad that I had started blanking out and had driven over a curb, luckily just a few blocks from my house, not the highway. I was taking narcotics for pain and was lucky I didn't die because my oxygen only became more depressed trying to get rid of the intense pain. I can now in comparison, after studying the effects of low oxygen on the body, compare it to a patient with Sickle Cell Anemia. It's horrendous pain! All due to not enough oxygen. I bought a "Pulse Ox" that I can put on my finger at any time to tell me if I am low. I have a small carry around oxygen tank in my car, but only had to use it once in 8 years when I was visiting friends in a high altitude. I hated it but otherwise I get enormous headaches. I need to bring oxygen on airplanes and when I travel above 1400 ft. You may have different boundaries. I have been worked up inside out by the world famous Mayo Clinic and the only thing they can come up with is this is Pulmonary Hypertension secondary to Sleep Apnea. This sub-catagory (they say) is not terminal like plain Pulmonary Hypertension. There are 5 sub-catagories. Please let us know your progress. You really need a specialist for this diagnosis. Oh, I am married and felt less than a female having to look like an alien at night. We have worked it out to where he stays in the guest room during the week so my machinary does not keep him up at night. I just make sure I put it on and go to sleep after he does on the weekends. I may be getting on in years but have always taken great pride in my looks and am not about to give up now! You have to have a sense of humor because this is your quality of life and worth it!