Shadowing Practice: Do You Have Narcolepsy? Here’s How To Tell - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Narcolepsy is a word you're probably familiar with, even if you can't fully explain it.

What first comes to mind is probably someone comically falling asleep at random times.

Hi, I'm Carol.

But what we've seen on TV is, let's say, a bit exaggerated.

Narcolepsy is characterized by chronic sleepiness, and it does take a serious toll on the lives of people affected by it.

But with most people suffering from some sort of daytime sleepiness, how do you know if your sleepiness is narcoleptic in nature?

Well today, let's answer that question by looking at the symptoms, the treatments, and when you should talk to your doctor about narcolepsy.

Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder known for causing chronic sleepiness.

Not your typical after -lunch slump, but a severe daytime sleepiness that can compromise a person's school, work, relationships, and even safety.

This is because, with narcolepsy, the brain can't maintain a normal sleep -wake rhythm.

Usually the sleep cycle begins with a series of non -REM stages followed by REM sleep.

It's during REM sleep when our brain activates the nervous system, does the most dreaming, and processes our emotions and memories.

But for people with narcolepsy, that cycle is not as consistent.

Instead, the REM sleep stage is irregular and can begin right after falling asleep.

It's this disruption to the sleep cycle, and specifically the REM stage, that causes people with narcolepsy to frequently experience daytime sleepiness,

forgetfulness, and difficulty concentrating.

Narcolepsy is classified into two types, sensibly named narcolepsy type 1 and narcolepsy type 2.

First, let's look at the science behind type 1.

Deep in your brain, in a part called the hypothalamus, neurons work to regulate your sleep -wake schedule.

There, hypocretin, also called orexin, communicates with the brainstem to make you more alert during the day and less alert at night.

With narcolepsy type 1, your brain experiences a loss of that hypocretin and the resulting low levels destabilize your sleep -wake system.

Without enough hypocretin to keep your body alert, people with type 1 also experience something called cataplexy,

or brief loss of muscle control triggered by sudden emotions like laughter, surprise, or fear.

In contrast, narcolepsy type 2 is diagnosed if a patient still has the same irregular sleep cycle,

but without low levels of hypocretin or episodes of cataplexy.

However, about 10 % of people with type 2 begin to experience these things later on

and get their diagnosis changed to type 1.

Narcolepsy, although rare compared to other sleep disorders, doesn't discriminate on age, gender, or race.

Anyone can be diagnosed with narcolepsy.

It affects about 0 .04 % of the world population, with type 1 more common than type 2, but this number may not be accurate.

Narcolepsy symptoms are very similar to other sleep disorders, so cases could go undiagnosed.

And although children can have narcolepsy, many won't begin to recognize the symptoms or seek diagnosis until later on in life.

Symptoms, including cataplexy, can look a bit different for everyone, but excessive daytime sleepiness is the unifying symptom all people with narcolepsy face.

And falling asleep from severe drowsiness doesn't just happen randomly, but in situations that can make us all a little sleepy,

like sitting in traffic, studying or reading, or sitting in a dimly lit space.

Other symptoms commonly coexist with sleepiness.

Automatic behaviors happen when people try not to give in to sleep.

For example, a person might continue to scribble lines on paper

or type on a keyboard despite the fact that their brain has already turned off and fallen asleep.

Although many people attribute narcolepsy to sleeping a lot,

the truth is people with narcolepsy actually often deal with insomnia and struggle to stay asleep during the night.

Likely due to their early entrance into the REM sleep stage, people with narcolepsy often feel more energized after only a short period of sleep.

Sleep paralysis, like cataplexy, is common and can make people with narcolepsy feel like they can't move

or like weight is on top of them holding them down.

Because of their irregular REM sleep patterns, active dreaming can cause vivid hallucinations when falling asleep or starting to wake up,

sometimes alongside sleep paralysis making for a very terrifying experience.

But that's not the only thing.

Daytime effects can be just as much of a symptom.

Pay attention to things like restlessness, irritability, and inattention.

These are often misunderstood as behavioral problems rather than sleep problems, especially in children.

Cataplexy may also be difficult to recognize and misread as a twitch or a tick.

Identifying common and persistent symptoms can help a doctor accurately diagnose narcolepsy.

Unfortunately, the exact cause of narcolepsy still requires more research.

As far as experts have seen, the condition is not related to family history, which makes it hard to predict.

It's theorized

that a specific gene mutation found in as many as 98

% of people with narcolepsy type 1 could play an important role in your risk of narcolepsy.

It's also theorized

that narcolepsy should be considered an autoimmune disorder after new evidence

showed the body's own immune system can mistakenly attack the healthy brain cells that produce hypocretin.

And in rare instances, a medical condition, infection, or brain injury can affect your hypocretin levels and result in secondary narcolepsy.

In general, narcolepsy is considered sporadic and should be thoroughly assessed case by case.

If you experience significant daytime sleepiness or other symptoms of narcolepsy for three or more months, talk to a sleep specialist familiar with the disorder.

They are best equipped to provide a careful and accurate diagnosis.

A review of symptoms, sleep habits, and medical history can help eliminate other potential conditions.

Involving friends and family in this review can also help paint a clearer picture of your experiences, as they may have witnessed behaviors you didn't.

Polysomnography, or sleep study, uses sensors to monitor brain and body activity during sleep.

This can help you and your doctor understand your sleep better and can be done at home or in a sleep clinic.

A multiple sleep latency test can also assess how quickly you fall asleep and when you enter the REM sleep stage.

If you don't experience cataplexy, testing cerebral spinal fluid for hypocretin is the only way to distinguish between narcolepsy type 1 and narcolepsy type 2.

This requires a spinal tap and is recommended if a sleep study has already confirmed your narcolepsy diagnosis.

Although there is no cure for narcolepsy yet, behavioral approaches have been successful at reducing the effects of narcolepsy and improving one's quality of life.

Let's get into some of those approaches.

Plan your naps.

People with narcolepsy often feel more alert after a brief nap, so try to budget time in your day for a nap reset.

Avoid sedatives.

Avoid any substance that can worsen sleepiness like alcohol and moderate the caffeinated ones.

These could leave you crashing later.

Drive with caution.

Avoid long drives and driving at night if you're more susceptible to falling asleep on the road.

Set active and healthy goals.

People with narcolepsy are at a higher risk of obesity, high blood pressure, depression, and anxiety.

So regular exercise and a balanced diet can help both your physical health and sleep health.

Form good sleep habits.

Setting a consistent sleep schedule, making your bedroom the best place for sleep,

and steering clear of electronics before bed can help get your brain ready for sleep when it's time for sleep.

And finally, seek support from those close to you or others experiencing narcolepsy,

and ask for guidance from your doctor to counteract the negative day -to -day effects narcolepsy can cause.

While medications that promote wakefulness can also combat sleepiness, not all patients may react the same and an evaluation is recommended before taking any stimulants.

In today's busy world, daytime sleepiness is a very real and very common issue.

And narcolepsy, though relatively rare and not life -threatening, can be difficult to overcome without a better understanding of it.

And if your daytime sleepiness is due to a nighttime lack of sleep, check out our video right here on how to treat insomnia.

If feelings of drowsiness are starting to take over your life, don't wait until you're falling asleep at the wheel.

Start asking questions about your sleep.

Thanks for watching everyone.

Sleep well.

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Vocabulario y notas de pronunciación para esta lección

Esta lección de conversación se basa en el vídeo “Do You Have Narcolepsy? Here’s How To Tell”. Las palabras que más se repiten: narcolepsy, sleep, type, sleepiness, symptom. Este vídeo tiene 96 frases y 1378 palabras para practicar shadowing. La parte hablada dura 7:52. El hablante habla a un ritmo natural de unas 175 palabras por minuto, cercano a una conversación cotidiana. Solo el 77 % de las palabras está entre las 3.000 más comunes del inglés, por lo que el vocabulario es exigente.

Vocabulario clave de este vídeo

15 palabras del vídeo que vale la pena aprender, con su pronunciación y significado:

Palabra	Pronunciación	Significado
symptom sustantivo	/ˈsɪm(p)təm/	síntoma
asleep adjetivo	/əˈsliːp/	dormido, jato
daytime sustantivo	/ˈdeɪtaɪm/	día
disorder sustantivo	/dɪsˈɔɹdɚ/	desorden
alert adjetivo	/əˈlɝt/	alerta, vigilante
diagnosis sustantivo	/daɪəɡˈnəʊsɪs/	diagnóstico, diagnosis
irregular adjetivo	/ɪˈɹɛɡ.jə.lɚ/	irregular
consistent adjetivo	/kənˈsɪs.tənt/	consistente
habit sustantivo	/ˈhæb.ɪt/	costumbre, hábito
chronic adjetivo	/ˈkɹɑ.nɪk/	crónico
emotion sustantivo	/ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/	afecto, emoción
assess verbo	/əˈsɛs/	evaluar, estimar
behavioral adjetivo	/bɪˈheɪvjəɹəl/	del comportamiento, conductual
spinal adjetivo	/spaɪ.nəl/	espinal, vertebral
bedroom sustantivo	/ˈbɛdˌɹum/	alcoba, dormitorio

Phrasal verbs que vas a escuchar

Palabra	Pronunciación	Significado
check out verbo		investigar, chequear
take over verbo		apoderarse, enseñorearse
turn off verbo		apagar
wake up verbo	/ˌweɪk ˈʌp/	despertarse, recordar

Gramática en este vídeo

Las estructuras que más usa el hablante, con las palabras exactas del vídeo:

Estructura	En el vídeo
Voz pasiva be + participio pasado — importa lo que ocurre, no quién lo hace	is characterized · is classified · is diagnosed
Present perfect have/has + participio pasado — una acción pasada que sigue importando ahora	we've seen · has already turned · have seen

Pronunciación a tener en cuenta

El hablante usa 14 contracciones y formas reducidas, como can't, you're, doesn't. Dilas en su forma corta, tal como las oyes.

Los sonidos de “th”: thoroughly /ˈθʌɹ.ə.li/, rhythm /ˈɹɪð.əm/, threaten /ˈθɹɛt.n̩/, theorize /ˈθɪɹ.aɪz/
Los sonidos de “sh” y “zh”: emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, contrast /kənˈt(ʃ)ɹæst/, infection /ɪnˈfɛkʃən/, specialist /ˈspɛʃəlɪst/, evaluation /ɪˌvæljuˈeɪʃn̩/
Palabras largas — cuida el acento: irregular /ɪˈɹɛɡ.jə.lɚ/, behavioral /bɪˈheɪvjəɹəl/, anxiety /æŋˈzaɪ.əti/, automatic /ˌɔː.təˈmæt.ɪk/, difficulty /ˈdɪfɪkəlti/

Sonidos difíciles para hispanohablantes:

s + consonante al inicio — sin añadir una “e” delante: spinal /spaɪ.nəl/, specialist /ˈspɛʃəlɪst/, steer /stɪɹ/, sleepy /ˈsliːpi/, scribble /ˈskɹɪbəl/
/v/ — no es /b/: los dientes tocan el labio inferior: behavioral /bɪˈheɪvjəɹəl/, involve /ɪnˈvɑlv/, overcome /ˌəʊ.vəˈkʌm/, evaluation /ɪˌvæljuˈeɪʃn̩/, excessive /ɪkˈsɛsɪv/
/z/ — sonora, no /s/: anxiety /æŋˈzaɪ.əti/, compromise /ˈkɑmpɹəˌmaɪz/, drowsiness /ˈdɹæʊːzinəs/, theorize /ˈθɪɹ.aɪz/, characterize /ˈkɛɹəktəɹaɪz/

Cómo practicar con este vídeo

Escucha el vídeo entero una vez sin hablar y anota las palabras que no conoces.
Empieza a velocidad 0,75×, haz shadowing frase por frase y vuelve a la velocidad normal cuando te resulte fácil.
Grábate y compara con el original, prestando atención a palabras como symptom, asleep, daytime.

¿Qué es la Técnica de Shadowing?

Shadowing es una técnica de aprendizaje de idiomas respaldada por la ciencia, desarrollada originalmente para la formación de intérpretes profesionales y popularizada por el políglota Dr. Alexander Arguelles. El método es simple pero poderoso: escuchas audio en inglés nativo y lo repites en voz alta de inmediato, como una sombra que sigue al hablante con solo 1-2 segundos de retraso. A diferencia de la escucha pasiva o los ejercicios de gramática, el shadowing obliga a tu cerebro y músculos de la boca a procesar y reproducir simultáneamente patrones de habla reales. Las investigaciones muestran que mejora significativamente la precisión de la pronunciación, la entonación, el ritmo, el habla conectada, la comprensión auditiva y la fluidez al hablar, convirtiéndola en una de las metodologías más efectivas para la preparación del IELTS Speaking y la comunicación en inglés en el mundo real.

Técnica de shadowing: lee la guía completa paso a paso →

Shadowing Practice: Do You Have Narcolepsy? Here’s How To Tell - Learn English Speaking with Video

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