The 5th annual international Idiopathic Hypersomnia Awareness Week runs from Sept 4 to 10; the 2017 focus is “research changes lives.”

Idiopathic hypersomnia is a neurological sleep/wake disorder. It can cause a range of symptoms including excessive nocturnal and daytime sleep despite more than adequate good quality sleep, chronic daytime sleepiness, persistent “brain fog,” sleep drunkenness (ie, severe sleep inertia): extreme and prolonged difficulty awakening from sleep, confusion, disorientation, irritability, and poor coordination with an uncontrollable desire to go back to sleep. It can also be accompanied by automatic behavior (performing tasks without consciously knowing it and not remembering you have done them eg: turning off alarm clocks or answering your phone).

The official hashtags are #IHAW2017 and #ResearchChangesLives.

Social media accounts are:

Facebook www.facebook.com/IHAwarenessWeek

Twitter www.twitter.com/IHAWeek @IHAWeek

Instagram www.instagram.com/ihaweek