Former Army cadet Shannon, 17, suffers from Kleine-Levin Syndrome, which means she can sleep 22 hours a day for almost 12 days at a time.
For the past five years she has slept through birthdays, Christmases, family holidays and even her GCSE exams. She was seen by various doctors before being diagnosed with KLS after her father, Christopher Dodd, researched her symptoms online. There are only 45 people in the UK who have the condition, which is a complex neurological disorder.
Even when I’m awake it’s like I’m sleepwalking
Shannon, of Bolton, said: “It’s like I’m in my own little world and I don’t recognise people. Even when I’m awake it’s like I’m sleepwalking. At first my family thought I was just being awkward or lazy. I kept getting told off at school and got moved to the front of the class.
“It was terrifying. I was only 12 and didn’t have a clue what was going on. I’m like a zombie when it happens and all I want to do is sleep.” Shannon is now on medication normally used for epilepsy. Her mother, Julie Ratcliffe, 56, said: “The doctors thought she was drunk or on drugs.”