Sleep interrupted: Sleep Apnea

My family has a fondness for crime dramas and thrillers. It isn't uncommon to watch a scene in which a peacefully-sleeping individual wakes when a shadowy figure approaches their bedside with a pillow. Predictably, the assailant calmly presses that pillow over the face of their victim and waits until the struggling stops.

For millions of us, the threat in our bedrooms isn't some malevolent other, but rather our own bodies and brains. We may get our next breath, but for those with sleep apnea, it can be a struggle.

Sleep apnea has two basic types. In the most common, obstructive sleep apnea, th...