Chronic sleepwalking drives Scottish man to financial ruin
Mark Doyle has suffered from narcolepsy since the age of 11, and the sleep disorder has seen him make several ill-advised financial choices.
We are all prone to dozing off at our desks every once in a while, especially after a busy weekend. But those instances are few and far between and they rarely impact on overall productivity.
For 46-year-old Scottish man Mark Doyle, things are much more serious than this. He is a lifelong narcolepsy sufferer who has struggled to keep jobs due to the frequent and unpredictable sleeping spells that are characteristic of the brain disease.
When Mark dozes off, dangerous things can happen. Most recently, Mark has walked from his home to a nearby town - all the while looking as if he was wide awake - and purchased over £70 (roughly R1200) worth of toiletries.
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He has no memory of walking out of his home to the shop. This is not the first time he has made purchases in his sleep; usually he explains his condition to shop owners and is able to return the items for a refund.
Mark is worried about the increased length of his sleeping spells, which he says used to last only ten minutes but are now closer to half an hour. He says that the condition has now become "dangerous".
He is also concerned about not being able to afford to pay for whatever he buys when the narcolepsy takes over: "I can't afford to be doing this anymore, I don't have that kind of money to spend."
There is currently no cure for narcolepsy, but it can be managed using prescribed stimulants.