Getty Images Hannah Brown is suffering from narcolepsy.
A “Dancing With the Stars” champ has been dealing with a serious medical disorder that has disrupted her normal life over the past few years.
In January 2022, Hannah Brown took to her Instagram Stories to detail an episode of sleep paralysis that she had experienced
“Do any of you experience sleep paralysis, because I’ve already had an alternate morning in my sleep paralysis state. It’s the weirdest thing, I am like, ‘Hannah, open your eyes,’ in my head while I’m sleeping; like ‘move your body,’ and I can’t,” she said, according to People magazine. “And then it felt like I had woken up and done a whole morning but I couldn’t move. It’s the weirdest thing. So I’m still just recuperating from that,” she added.
More recently, she revealed that she’d also been struggling with narcolepsy.
Here’s what you need to know:
Brown Said She Was ‘Thankful’ for Her Boyfriend During the Challenging Experiences She’d Been Having
In November 2022, Brown shared a post to her Instagram Stories in which she said that she was “thankful” for her boyfriend Adam Woolard and the couple’s dog Wally who had been helping her through a tough time.
“The past few days, anxiety and narcolepsy (and horrible, haunting sleep paralysis) episodes have tried to win, but my boys have helped get me out and get me moving,” she captioned a photo of herself on a walk with Wally.
For those who are unfamiliar with the two types of sleep-related ailments, narcolepsy is defined as “a chronic sleep disorder characterized by overwhelming daytime drowsiness and sudden attacks of sleep,” according to the Mayo Clinic. The condition is considered rare.
Meanwhile, sleep paralysis is more common and is “a feeling of being conscious but unable to move. It occurs when a person passes between stages of wakefulness and sleep,” according to WebMD.
Brown Discussed Her Narcolepsy Diagnosis in Her Memoir
In her memoir “God Bless This Mess,” Brown wrote candidly about her past experiences and how they may be the cause for her sleep disorders. In the book, she revealed that her aunt LeeLee and her two young cousins, Robin, 6, and Trent, 4, were murdered, according to Us Weekly.
Brown wrote that she believes that her struggle with narcolepsy could be “a direct symptom of the trauma of the murder itself.” Her diagnosis came several years ago and E! News reports that Brown is “almost incapable of deep, restorative sleep.”
In April 2020, Brown tweeted, “Sleep paralysis is the scariest thing. I don’t know why but last night I had an episode and it was terrible. I feel for you guys who experience it regularly.”
“Don’t y’all live in a house on a hill?” her ex-boyfriend from “The Bachelorette” tweeted.
“Not today satan. Not today,” Brown responded.
Brown has been going to therapy and trying to heal from her past trauma. Although there is no cure for narcolepsy, it’s possible that Brown can manage the disorder in various ways, including medications and other lifestyle changes.
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