Cataplexy is a unique form of muscle weakness experienced by some people with narcolepsy, but how can you recognize this symptom? What are the emotional triggers? And how do you cope with cataplexy? During Narcolepsy Nerd Alert: Coping With Cataplexy, sleep medicine physician Dr. Katie Sharkey and Rising Voices speaker Katie Mehin shared their insights.
Narcolepsy Nerd Alert: Coping With Cataplexy
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Dr. Katie Sharkey, MD, PhD is a sleep medicine physician and associate professor of Medicine and of Psychiatry & Human Behavior at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She earned her MD-PhD and completed a combined internal medicine and psychiatry residency at Rush University in Chicago, IL. Dr. Sharkey is a recognized expert on sleep and circadian rhythms, particularly as they relate to mood regulation and women’s health. She is an Associate Editor of Behavioral Sleep Medicine and Frontiers in Sleep, and serves on the editorial board of Sleep Health.
Katie Mehin is a project analyst for an educational tech company specializing in empowering adult learners to thrive in higher education. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two elementary-age sons. She was diagnosed with narcolepsy with cataplexy as a college sophomore, almost five years after the initial onset of her symptoms. As a trained speaker with Project Sleep’s Rising Voices program, Katie hopes to spread awareness of this neurological sleep disorder to help others in obtaining more timely diagnoses.
Project Sleep’s live broadcast series Narcolepsy Nerd Alert takes a deeper dive into specific topics related to narcolepsy. Hosted by award-winning geek Julie Flygare, each live event invites fellow #NarcolepsyNerds to explore unique aspects of the narcolepsy experience, contemplate bold questions, and learn from each other.
Tune in to Narcolepsy Nerd Alert live events on Project Sleep’s Facebook page. Catch up on past broadcasts, download accompanying toolkits, and see the schedule of upcoming topics on our Narcolepsy Nerd Alert page.
