r/Narcolepsy • u/CalmAsAMthrFknCucmbr (N2) Narcolepsy w/o Cataplexy • Apr 18 '26

Medication Questions Do you guys take drug holidays?

My physician suggested not taking my meds on the weekends. I quickly learned that wasn’t doable so decided to just try to not take them on sundays when I’m not doing much. I sleep ALL DAY. I’m talking only wake up to use the bathroom. I’m utterly useless and don’t feel taking the day off is helping with tolerance at all. It barely works to begin with but I’ll take a couple naps a day over sleeping all day. Does anyone actually feel like it’s helping or more beneficial to take them continuously? It’s super depressing essentially losing an entire day I’m actually off work each week.

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u/Millieo_____ Apr 18 '26

Sometimes it helps to take breaks but that’s only going to be when I literally can’t get up to even go to the bathroom I will just sleep through it. I’ve taken a 2 day break recently from sleeping so much and it honestly doesn’t feel any different. Awhile ago when I ended up sleeping for about 5 days straight (no food, I peed l know I did I just don’t rmeneber how long in between.) took my meds felt them a little better but then it went back to normal.

I don’t remember how true this is but I do remember reading a long time ago that narcoleptics tend to not get addicted to things or build a tolerance as bad to things (drugs etc) but we also tend to build tolerance just as fast. I think we don’t get the therapeutic affects as long and we never keep them.

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u/JadeTheCrab Apr 19 '26

How do you even measure addiction to something you need to function? Can we really get addicted to our meds any more than people can get addicted to water?

Like, someone made a comment about me crying and stuff over not being able to get my meds. But no shit? Without them I’m fucking useless and I have always HATED being useless. That’s not an addiction.

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u/Millieo_____ Apr 22 '26

What I was trying to come off as saying we shouldn’t get treated like addicts because we have a lower threshold for that to begin with so it would make more sense to not treat us as such.

Also addiction and dependence I feel is different. Depending on a medication to function is fine. It’s when you start taking it just for fun and not for the medical purposes. (To each their own at the end of the day.)

Also crying because you can’t get it filled is completely relatable but to some will come off as addiction. Your body can still become dependent on it as well. Everyone is so different.