Man with 'mysterious condition' left unable to sleep for two years

A bloke has told of the endless 'torture' he endures because of a mystery condition which he claims has left him unable to sleep for more than two years.

Oliver Alvis has stumped doctors, neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists and sleep clinics around the world with his inability to nod off - and even powerful anaesthetics can't knock him out.

He explained that he has been living in a 'waking nightmare' since December 2023, which is when he first joined the wide awake club 'without any warning'.

The former train driver, 32, said he was previously able to get between six and ten hours of shut-eye each night, until one evening, he simply couldn't get to sleep.

"I thought nothing of it," Oliver told the Daily Mail in August last year. "But the next night, sleep didn’t come again. Days passed - still no sleep.

"The strangest thing is, I didn’t even feel drowsy. There was no drifting off, even for a second. My brain felt as if it was stuck in an emergency mode that would never turn off. From that moment, I’ve barely slept at all."

Despite 'living cleanly', exercising regularly and enjoying plenty of fresh air in the great outdoors, this sleep issue suddenly reared its head and turned the Brit's life upside down.

Oliver Alvis says he has tried everything to try and get to sleep - but nothing has worked (Reddit/Oliver_Alvis)

'I’ve been dismissed, ridiculed, humiliated'

He claims to have tried everything at his disposal to help him slip into a slumber, from over-the-counter remedies to sleeping pills prescribed by his GP - but nothing has worked.

"The most powerful sleeping medications are just like taking a sugar pill to me," he said.

Ultimately, the lack of sleep forced Oliver to give up his job as a train driver in January 2024, before he then sold his house and moved back in with his mother, Jill.

He alleged that during his desperate search for answers, some doctors have branded him 'delusional', while others have ironically told him they're 'tired of him'.

"One told me to go home, light a candle and relax," Oliver claimed. "Another said I was delusional. Then I was told: 'I’m tired of you now. There’s no more we can do for you'.

"I’ve been dismissed, ridiculed, humiliated. I asked my doctor: 'What do people with serious sleep issues do?' He said: "They stop calling us'."

He was also referred to a psychiatrist by the NHS, who Oliver says 'admitted [that] he just didn’t know what the answer is'.

He had to give his job as a train driver up due to the absence of sleep (Reddit/Oliver_Alvis)

'I am a ghost of the person I was'

Medics have pointed to other mental and physical health problems that may be contributing to Oliver's sleep struggle, as he has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.

But he claims he was simply given 'useless advice' after receiving this news, as doctors supposedly just instructed him to 'pace himself and rest between activities'.

Meanwhile, Oliver says he 'couldn’t brush my teeth without feeling he was going to die' - as he poignantly confessed: "I am a ghost of the person I was."

Explaining the impact his sleep troubles have had on his life, he continued: "I’m locked in a perpetual state of alertness. Endless days bleed into interminable nights - and it’s torment.

"Sleep deprivation isn’t just exhaustion; it dismantles your spirit. I’ve lost almost everything. The person I once was has disappeared. How can something as natural, as essential as sleep be completely stripped away?

"I used to wonder what pain could drive someone to wish for death. Now I understand. I don’t want to die, but I can’t survive this torture much longer.

"I would give every penny I have worked myself into the ground for, just to be able to close my eyes and sleep."

Oliver said he has been in a 'waking nightmare' since his sleep struggles began in December 2023 (Reddit/Oliver_Alvis)

'My body feels like it’s on fire, burning from the inside'

As well as this internal turmoil, Oliver explained that his 'body feels like it’s on fire, burning from the inside', while the 'most torturous pressure imaginable' mounts up in his head.

Detailing his other physical ailments, he said: "My joints, bones and muscles scream with pain. I feel like I’m in an iron suit. My eyes feel like they’re melting out of my skull.

"I cannot walk in a straight line. My sight is impaired. I can’t digest food properly. I cannot relate to anyone anymore.

"Nothing gives me pleasure or enjoyment; not watching a film, eating, reading a book. And through every day and night, I remain awake, not even drowsy - trapped in a mind that cannot rest, cannot recover, cannot reset. It’s desperately lonely, because I feel I’m the only person in the world who suffers like this."

Consultant neurologist Professor Guy Leschziner told the Mail that Oliver could be suffering from paradoxical insomnia, which is a sleep disorder where individuals believe they are sleep-deprived despite having a normal sleep cycle.

"This used to be considered a psychological issue, but recent evidence suggests that what might actually be going on is that while most of the brain is in sleep, regions of the brain responsible for consciousness or awareness do not show such deep sleep activity," he said.

"Occasionally, paradoxical insomnia can also be seen alongside mental health conditions, and the treatment of associated mental illness is also very important."