Why You Should
See
a Sleep
Specialist

Narcolepsy is a complicated condition and is often misunderstood—even by many doctors. Primary care physicians generally have limited training in sleep disorders, so their knowledge about narcolepsy is also limited. They are generally not very comfortable diagnosing narcolepsy and often do not use the appropriate tools and tests to make the diagnosis. Therefore, they usually refer patients to a sleep specialist to be screened for narcolepsy.

Why You Should See a Sleep Specialist
In fact, a family doctor may work an entire career without seeing a single case of narcolepsy, and the odds are even lower that he or she would recognize narcolepsy in a child. That’s why you should visit a sleep specialist if you or your child has any of the major narcolepsy symptoms. Some physicians even specialize in sleep disorders in children.

In a study of different doctors, here’s how often they correctly diagnosed their patients who had narcolepsy:

Neurologists

Internists

General practitioners

Psychiatrists

Pediatricians

55%

24%

22%

11%

0%

Many doctors are not aware that narcolepsy affects children.

Have an informed discussion about narcolepsy with your sleep specialist.

Get the Narcolepsy Conversation Starter

Where can you find a sleep specialist?

Find a sleep specialist near you
"I really started to just look into researching sleep disorders, trying to find somebody that could help us."Watch Kiah and his mom discuss finally getting a diagnosis.