Angler Costa awake, ready for comeback
Two sleeping disorders forced him from professional bass fishing 6 years ago

It took persistence and medicine, but Tim Costa no longer sleeps with the fishes.

Tomorrow, unencumbered by two sleeping disorders that forced him from professional bass fishing six years ago, Costa begins his long comeback on the Potomac River in the Stren Series Northern Division competition, a part of FLW Outdoors.

"It's an amazing change. I was so tired all the time for so long that I didn't realize you weren't supposed to feel that way," says the Erie, Pa., native.

Obstructive sleep apnea and narcolepsy -- a one-two punch that caused him to fall asleep without warning -- made it impossible for Costa to drive his boat or car. He could barely stay awake at his construction job in Plano, Texas, and was a frequent no-show at family activities.

"It was a toxic-type sleepiness," says Costa, 36. "I was living my whole life exhausted, feeling worse when I woke up than when I went to sleep."

Costa admits he was crushed to walk away from his fledgling career in 2001, having worked his way up to 26th place in the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League. But he insists he could never risk harming others.

His home life was no better.

"It was rough on my marriage, rough on the kids. I gave everything I had to get through work to pay the bills. I'd have to keep moving, keep moving, keep moving or risk falling asleep on the job. I waited to sit down until I got home and then I'd fall asleep before dinner and my wife couldn't wake me up," he recalls. "I missed a lot of soccer games."

Costa's doctors diagnosed obstructive sleep apnea, and in October 2005 a surgeon implanted small inserts in his soft palate to help clear his airway. Costa was elated and began plotting his comeback. But that quickly, the familiar exhaustion returned.

After a battery of tests, doctors finally diagnosed narcolepsy, a neurological disorder that affects 135,000 Americans, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) in Bethesda. The cause of narcolepsy is unknown, but in most cases, symptoms first appear when people are between the ages of 10 and 25.

A year ago, Costa began taking Provigil, a non-amphetamine drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1999. He says he felt a difference almost immediately and continues to improve.

Today, instead of promoting the advantages of this fishing tackle or that motor oil, as many sponsored professional anglers do, Costa touts the benefits of Provigil, but more importantly he urges people to be active in their own health care.

"It was a six-year process for me. You have to keep talking to your physicians. Find out everything you can and push for answers," he says. "I'm convinced there are a whole lot more people like me out there."

Indeed, NINDS calls narcolepsy an "unrecognized and underdiagnosed condition," with treatment often delayed because people don't recognize gradually worsening symptoms.

Having battled back, Costa now must master the four-day Potomac competition: Up to 200 professional anglers, fishing for a top prize of $65,000.

If Costa is in the top 40 pro anglers after divisional competition ends this fall, he will be invited to the $1 million Stren Series Championship in November in Mobile, Ala. The top 10 pros from each division also will qualify for next season's Wal-Mart FLW Tour and Wal-Mart FLW Series.

But for Costa, hard work is a dream.

"There's nothing more exciting than going home at night and being able to install a new washing machine for my wife," he says, grinning at the sound of those words. "Really. I haven't missed a soccer game, either."