The Woman Who Couldn't Wake Up: Hypersomnia and the Science of Sleepiness
Quinn EastmanThe Woman Who Couldn’t Wake Up tells Anna’s story—and the broader story of her diagnosis, idiopathic hypersomnia (IH), a shadowy sibling of narcolepsy that has emerged as a focus of sleep research & patient advocacy.
Quinn Eastman explores the science around sleepiness, recounting how researchers have been searching for more than a century for the substances that tip the brain into slumber. He argues that investigation of IH could unlock new understandings of how sleep is regulated & controlled. Eastman foregrounds the experiences of people with IH, relating how publicity around Anna’s successful treatment helped others form a community. He shows how a group of patients who felt neglected or dismissed united to steer research toward their little-known disorder.
Sharing emerging science & powerful stories, this book testifies to the significance of underrecognized diseases & sheds new light on how our brains function, day & night. It is essential reading for anyone interested in sleep & sleep disorders, including those affected by or seeking to treat them.