Can ADD be like Narcolepsy instead of the hyperactive form?

I was diagnosed with ADD March of 2002. I was shocked when my doctor told me that my problems were classic ADD. I have never been hyper, always required a lot of sleep to function, took forever in the morning to start functioning at “typical” peer rates, and could fall asleep at any point in the day (if I didn’t have so many responsibilities and demands on my time). She told me about the ADD that doesn’t include the hyperactivity but the opposite form “hypoactivity” which relates to the basic couch potatoe stance. So, my answer to your question would be “yes” you could be ADD and have problems staying awake. My doctor tried me on a narcolepsy drug and I was able to stay awake but it didn’t provide the missing energy at the same time. I needed both something to keep me awake and something to give me energy to live and enjoy life at the same time. I am now taking Ritalin LA, Focalin and Wellbutrin. The combination helps but I still feel that it isn’t quite the right formula… the energy, motivation, drive, and focus that my husband has on any day and time (without any medication - he doesn’t have ADD) is twenty times better than anything I can muster up on medication.

I hope this helps.

Technically narcolepsy and ADHD - Inattentive Type - are a bit different than one another. There is a paperback book about ADHD - Inattentive Type - with an unusual title - How to Cure Hyperactivity (Journey to Understanding ADHD) by C. Thomas Wild with Anita Uhl Brothers, M.D. which is about how FDA approved caffeine compounds/coffee occasionally work better than Ritalin/other stimulants/alerting agents for ADHD inattention and distractibility challenges.

http://www.keypharmaceuticals.com.au/no_doze.htm

Effects of caffeine on cognitive, psychomotor, and affective performance of children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

M. Roth Leon

Studies examining caffeine’s effects on cognitive, psychomotor, and affective functioning of children with ADHD were reviewed. For children with ADHD, caffeine was more effective than no treatment in decreasing impulsivity, aggression, and parents’ and teachers’ perceptions of children’s symptom severity, and more effective than placebo in decreasing hyperactivity and teachers’ perceptions of children’s symptom severity, and in improving executive functioning/planning. Methylphenidate…

http://www.mhs.com/jad/abstracts/v4n1.htm

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[quote:232e46a139=”Kate”]Can ADD manifests itself in a form of narcolepsy whereby the person has to consume caffeine in order to stay awake and be functional.
I have met a family where the dad and daughter will fall asleep if they are not active or have consumed a caffeinated product in the morning and then again in the afternoon.[/quote]

Narcolepsy can be like narcolepsy. Sorry—I couldn’t resist; impulsive, you know.

i easily sleep about 14 hours a day if i do any sort of physical labor during my waking hours, have 0 desire to get up until im hungry most of the time.

then boredom overcomes me and i go to a friends house and chill with him… which involves sitting on the couch and talking.

While I certainly couldn’t say if the people of whom you speak have ADD or not, some ADD people are definitely drowsy in appearance. ADD is a disorder of the attention span. ADD can present itself as an overalertness or an underalertness. ADD can render a person overly active or overly inactive.