MY SLEEPING BEAUTY NIGHTMARE
MEET the real life sleeping beauty - who snoozed for TWO months when a rare sleep disorder took over her life and turned it into a nightmare. Graduate Imaarl Duprey, 23 was in the land of nod for 59 days and acting like a toddler during the episode. She suffers from a debilitating sleep disorder - dubbed Sleeping Beauty Syndrome - which means she can fall into a trance without warning and snooze for 20 hours a day through episodes that typically last ten days. The rare neurological, called Kleine Levin Syndrome (KLS), affects around 1,000 people worldwide and also sees sufferers experiencing extreme exhaustion, paranoia and hysterical behaviour while in the grips of the incurable condition. During an episode Imaarl, a fashion worker of Lewisham, London, relies on round the clock care and assistance from her mum Kerry Griffiths, 46 and sister Shahnequa Duprey, 21.
Other great stories
ABANDONED FARM HOUSE LEFT TO ROT
With a dust covered coat hung from a wardrobe door and a pair of glasses left on a shelf, a remote farmhouse lies abandoned in the Welsh countryside .
FIGHTING BLACKBACK GORILLAS
FISTS fly as two gorillas take each other on in a dramatic battle .
WOMAN LOSES 8ST AFTER ENERGY DRINK HABIT NEARLY BLINDS HER
A diabetic who was addicted to energy drinks has lost 8st after doctors warned her habit was blinding her .
CHIPMUNK YOGA
ARM extended and head flung back, this little chipmunk performs a loose-limbed yoga move .
TEEN WITH 100s OF BIRTHMARKS BEATS BULLIES TO EMBRACE BEAUTY
A teenage girl nicknamed 'spotty dog' by school bullies has embraced the hundreds of birthmarks that cover her entire face and body .
BOSTON BOMBING AFTERMATH - 17TH APRIL
At least three people have been killed and more than 100 injured, some seriously, in two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon .
PRAIRIE DOG AND STARLING STAND-OFF
This starling and prairie dog will not back down an inch as they have a fearsome stand-off over who gets to eat a nut .
BACK TO THE FUTURE WITH AR' KID
HOTSPOT MEDIA - BACK TO THE FUTURE WITH AR' KID: A POSTAL SORTER has perfected the art of time travel by delivering images that are from the past .
BABY WITH HEART-SHAPED BIRTHMARK CONCEIVED ON VALENTINE'S DAY
An adorable baby girl was born with a heart-shaped birthmark on her forehead - after being conceived on Valentine's Day .
MYSTERY OF THE CROOKED COTTAGE
THIS is the fascinating abandoned house, complete with mystery portraits and homely items, that has been dubbed - crooked cottage .
BACKFLIPPING SHARK SOARS DURING SEAL HUNT
Exploding out of the water, a great white shark performs a backflip during a hunt for seals .
BEATEN TO A PULP FOR MY TRANS-FORMATION, BUT I WON’T LET THE BULLIES GET ME DOWN
Ashlee, 20, has always known that she was supposed to be a girl .