World Narcolepsy Day 2020 Activities Starting Soon!

World Narcolepsy Day 2020 is quickly approaching on Tuesday, September 22, 2020 and Project Sleep has an exciting schedule of activities planned for September. This is the second annual World Narcolepsy Day aiming to raise awareness of narcolepsy on a global scale. I’m a little excited, can you tell?  Project Sleep’s Schedule of Activities While international…

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Woman with Narcolepsy Versus Colossal Marathon

When I hit “publish” on this post, I will be sharing something I’ve been scared to tell you. So here it goes… On March 4th, I will take on the greatest athletic challenge of my life – the Griffith Park Trail Marathon. Will you support me? This beastly race is 26.2 miles while also climbing 3,669 feet…

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What is my secret? Am I a “typical” person with narcolepsy?

I received the following comment on my recent blog post and wanted to respond here. ************ Dear N. Leptic, Thank you for taking an interest in learning more about my experience with narcolepsy. First of all, I am so sorry to hear about your challenging experience with narcolepsy. It sounds like you are facing some very real and significant…

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Speaking in Italy!

This September 23-24, I will travel to Italy to speak at a very special 20th anniversary party of A.I.N. (Associazione Italiana Narcolettici e Ipersonni) in Bologna. Other featured speakers will include Dr. Emmanuel Mignot from Stanford (USA) and Prof. Jean-Charles Schwartz from Paris (France). While there will be live translation, I’m hoping to brush up…

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A Monumental Day: Visiting the White House as a Narcolepsy Advocate

On June 2, 2016, I had the honor of attending the White House/Stanford Medicine X workshop, “Engaging Participants as Partners in Research”, as part of President Obama’s Precision Medicine Initiative. This event far exceeded my wildest expectations. But first, some context. It’s Gonna Be a Good Day: The day before going to the White House, on…

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My best hallucination yet! A Visit from the Phantom Foot Massager

During lunchtime today, I went to my nap room at work, cuddled up into my lovely blanket from Ireland and quickly fell asleep. Next thing, I awoke to the most AMAZING foot massage!! Oh la la. My feet were sore from intense yoga classes over the weekend, so I really appreciated the free yummy foot massage from…. um…. my phantom foot…

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Project Sleep Awards 10 Scholarships to Students with Narcolepsy Entering College

While crossing the finish line of the San Diego Rock n Roll Marathon was an awesome moment, my biggest prize came yesterday when Project Sleep gave out TEN scholarships to students with narcolepsy through the Jack & Julie Narcolepsy Scholarship program. Meet the 2015 Jack & Julie Narcolepsy Scholarship Recipients: View Scholarship Awards Announcement View/Download…

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YOU CAN AND YOU WILL (Marathon Part II)

As I crossed the start line of the San Diego Rock n Roll Marathon, runners started passing me. I laughed when a pack of Elvis(s) passed me. Typical. “Slow and steady. No one to beat. Nothing to prove,” I told myself. My shirt was drenched with sweat within 3 miles. Soon my hands raisined and…

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The Final Countdown… REM Running a Marathon this Sunday!

On my final training run tonight, I got to thinking — last time I ran a marathon, I ended up writing a book about it. I wonder what the Rock n Roll San Diego Marathon has in store for me! So far, this marathon experience has been a wild ride. I started training in the midst of…

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NARCOLEPSY: NOT ALONE Runs Great Ocean Road Marathon in Australia

Just 9 days until my marathon and I’m super inspired by Louise, Jacob and their crew of 20 people who sported NARCOLEPSY: NOT ALONE for the Great Ocean Road Marathon in Australia last weekend. 12 runners wore the shirts (including 3 young doctors who have promised to spread the word amongst their peers!), and 8…

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