Looking for strange medical conditions in astrology charts can be quite fascinating. Yesterday I came across the chart of a Narcoleptic. Narcolepsy is defined as a chronic sleep disorder, and is characterised by excessive sleepiness. Narcolepsy means that the person is prone to sudden daytime sleep attacks and there may also be an onset of paralysis, night visions and hallucinations.

I personally found this topic interesting to explore because of it leading to sleep paralysis. This is something I have experienced as a teenager, but luckily it only happened once. What happens in sleep paralysis is that your body remains in sleep mode while your mind becomes aware, and this usually happens when we are falling asleep or waking up. It can last for a few seconds or a few minutes, but it is a terrifying experience. I was a teenager when I awoke one morning and my body was still asleep, but my mind was screaming at my body to WAKE UP. I was paralysed all over and couldn’t move any part of my body.  Apparently most adults will experience sleep paralysis at least once in their lives.

The Nervous System

It is not known whether this man suffered from sleep paralysis. The narcolepsy caused him to fall asleep for 18 hours a day while he was at college. Astrologers look for sleep disorders through 12th house afflictions and challenging Neptune aspects. However, if anything affects the central nervous system we would look to the mental rulers in the chart. In Astrology, Mercury is associated with our state of mind, and influences the nervous system. However, the real planet to rule our brain and its function using electrical signals – is Uranus.

If there is a fault in our wiring the whole bodily system can break down.The nervous system links the mind with the body, and this all sounds as if the body is run by one big computer, but the brain is often considered a computer-like organ. For example, a person with Uranus powerful in their chart may suddenly get overloaded with information and know the answer they have been searching for; this is the type of Uranian spark which brings flashes of inspiration. Uranian energy makes us feel restless, mentally overloaded, and it can create shocking and disruptive behaviour.

Uranus in the 6th House

Uranian people tend to make electrical items go funny, and this is due to their overloaded energy, and so things around them cut out. I was thinking along these lines for the narcoleptic, because something kept shutting down his system. In his natal chart he has the Moon in Aquarius opposite Mercury in Leo and both form a T-square to Uranus on the cusp of the 6th house. Uranus is conjunct the 6th house cusp opposite the 12th house cusp. A Narcoleptic’s experiences disturbed (Uranus) nocturnal sleep (12th) and develops an abnormal daytime sleep pattern.

The 6th house rules what we do on a daily basis and represents our day-to-day routine. Uranus in the 6th house is likely yo disrupt normal routines, and there is sometimes difficulty in establishing a stable working life. On the one hand, it could show someone who is an innovative worker, works with technology, and is a visionary in the workplace, they may take a revolutionary approach to health and medicine. Mathematics, technology, or scientific skills may also be highly developed, and this is because the 6th house rules the acquisition of knowledge and skills. The 6th house rules everything we do on a ritual basis. On the other hand, when Uranus is challenged in the 6th house it can bring sudden chaos and disruption to the individual’s daily routine, and it may signify someone who hates following rules and regulations in the workplace. It may also show somebody who requires freedom and space on the job.

On the health side it can signal unusual medical conditions which are difficult to diagnose. In Eugene’s chart Uranus on his 6th house cusp is disrupting the cycles and rhythms of his physical world. He would also need to learn how his body functions on a cyclical basis (6th) because of his unusual condition (Uranus). With Uranus in the 6th house normal habits and routines tend to go awry, but I think there has to be some acceptance that his daily life may not always run smoothly, and even though most people have a structured routine, Uranus is prone to “instability”. I guess we shouldn’t take a “normal” sleeping pattern for granted and count ourselves lucky if we do have a workable pattern of sleep.