I got involved with the treatment of sleep apnea. It was a very personal decision. I had a good friend of ours that had a massive stroke. I think with some of the knowledge I have today, if I could have intervened, we could have prevented the sequence of events that happened with him and his family.

Secondly, I was personally affected by the sleep apnea, which I had no idea that I had it. I thought it was really just for obese or overweight people, but my personal experience just seeing without even knowing that I had it, and all of a sudden being treated with it, it’s not only helped my life and given me more energy, feeling like I’m rested. I just feel like I get so much more done.

Probably the most impactful thing too, and I’ve had this with a few patients, but my sister I had spoken with for three years, that we saw some signs that I wanted to get her tested. And she said, “No, I sleep fine,” which is a real common thing that I hear from a lot of patients. I treat sleep every day and I can’t look at a person and say you have this or you don’t, you really have to be tested.

After my mom had passed away, my sister and I were down there and I talked to her again. So she finally agreed, but my mom passed away on a Saturday and my sister a year older than me passed away the following Saturday, and we never got to test her.

So with me, it’s very personal. I don’t want people to have to go through that. Many people that don’t even know they have it. Ninety percent of the cases of obstructive sleep apnea are undiagnosed.