John Hesch

After 15 months of a continuous migraine headache, thousands of dollars in medical bills, four doctors, three hospitals, and dozens of procedures and tests we have a diagnosis for James! He has Narcolepsy. Not a lot is known how Narcolepsy is contracted but apparently what happened is when James had bronchitis and sinusitis last year a virus destroyed the brain cells that controls REM sleep. Because his REM sleep is not regulated properly this migraine began and it has not gone away in 15 months.

During his sleep study James went into REM sleep within minutes of falling asleep which is not typical. He then had a few short periods of REM sleep throughout the night but not nearly enough as what would be considered typical. During his five daytime naps, James experienced REM sleep four of those times which the doctor has never seen before. Typically we don’t experience REM sleep during the day, it’s reserved for our night time sleep. But four out of five naps James went into REM sleep almost immediately after falling asleep.

We’re now waiting for approval from our insurance company and to learn how much the medication will cost us. Without insurance it costs $470 a month and James has to take this medication for the rest of his life. Once he begins the medicine he should be back to normal within a month.

We’re hoping and praying that this will be the answer. Thanks so much for all the prayers and warm wishes that we received over the past year and a half. I know James gained strength from your prayers. I’ll keep you updated.