The real sleeping beauty.

Date:
2011
  • Videos

About this work

Description

Louise Ball has a rare neurological disorder called Kleine-Levin syndrome or KLS (also known as Sleeping Beauty syndrome). The syndrome is characterised by periods of time during which Louise will sleep for up to 22 hours a day while during the few hours she is awake she displays altered consciousness. This documentary follows her as she faces her GCSE exams, school prom and a free style dance competition that she desperately doesn't want to miss. She has begun taking a hormone treatment called Cytomel which she and her family hope will keep her awake for longer or at least shorten the length of the sleep episodes. However, the drug doesn't seem particularly successful and Louise misses her major exam week at school. The Ball family meet another family with an eighteen-year-old son who has the same condition. Louise also travels to Paris to meet Kleine-Levin syndrome specialist, Dr Isobel Arnulf. In the hospital there she has blood tests and a brain scan. The brain scan shows that there are abnormalities in Louise's temporal lobe which may affect her memory and learning ability.

Publication/Creation

UK : BBC 1, 2011.

Physical description

1 DVD (60 min.) : sound, color, PAL.

Copyright note

Raw Television

Notes

Broadcast on 9 August, 2011

Creator/production credits

Filmed, Produced and directed by Emily Smith.

Type/Technique

Languages

Where to find it

  • LocationStatusAccess
    Closed stores
    4955D

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