Narcolepsy and emotional experience: a review of the literature.
Behavioral and brain functions : BBF December 26, 2018 C Schiappa, S Scarpelli, A D'Atri et al.
Narcolepsy, a chronic sleep disorder marked by excessive daytime sleepiness, cataplexy, and hallucinations, profoundly disrupts social, work, and emotional life. Cataplectic attacks are often triggered by emotions like laughter, surprise, or anger. Evidence points to dysfunctional interplay between the hypothalamus and amygdala, along with altered hypocretin levels, as underlying causes. People with narcolepsy-cataplexy may develop coping strategies to avoid emotional triggers, even during sleep, where they experience more vivid, bizarre, and frightening dreams than healthy individuals. This review synthesizes behavioral, neurophysiological, and neurochemical findings to clarify the complex link between narcolepsy and emotional experience, aiming to guide future research.