Connor Baker is a recent nursing graduate from Aurora University in Illinois. He was diagnosed with narcolepsy with cataplexy at 20 years old. Now, as a trained speaker with Project Sleep’s Rising Voices program, he wants to share his story to help spread awareness and end stigma surrounding narcolepsy.

The Rising Voices Series features a variety of first-hand stories from people living with sleep disorders around the world. At Project Sleep, we believe in the power of storytelling to raise awareness and break down stigma. This is why we train people with sleep disorders on how to share their experiences through the Rising Voices program. To request a Rising Voices speaker or apply for an upcoming training, visit: https://project-sleep.com/rising-voices/

Please note: this audio was originally recorded in 2020. For up-to-date facts about narcolepsy treatment options, visit https://project-sleep.com/facts-about-narcolepsy/

Amanda Myers is a college student who splits her time between studying biology and competing in olympic weightlifting. At the age of 20, she was diagnosed with narcolepsy, and now serves as a speaker for the Rising Voices program. In her presentation, she’ll detail the symptoms most people don’t attribute to the condition and offer some perspective on de-stigmatizing invisible illness.

The Rising Voices Series features a variety of first-hand stories from people living with sleep disorders around the world. At Project Sleep, we believe in the power of storytelling to raise awareness and break down stigma. This is why we train people with sleep disorders on how to share their experiences through the Rising Voices program. To request a Rising Voices speaker or apply for an upcoming training, visit: https://project-sleep.com/rising-voices/

Please note: this audio was originally recorded in 2020. For up-to-date facts about narcolepsy treatment options, visit https://project-sleep.com/facts-about-narcolepsy/

Project Sleep's Sleep Helpline: https://project-sleep.com/helpline/

Kristen is a marketing professional and pageant titleholder from Florida. She was diagnosed with narcolepsy at the age of 35 after 25+ years of misdiagnosis. As a speaker with Rising Voices, Kristen shares her story with others to build awareness and to help others find a quicker path to diagnosis.

The Rising Voices Series features a variety of first-hand stories from people living with sleep disorders around the world. At Project Sleep, we believe in the power of storytelling to raise awareness and break down stigma. This is why we train people with sleep disorders on how to share their experiences through the Rising Voices program. To request a Rising Voices speaker or apply for an upcoming training, visit: https://project-sleep.com/rising-voices/

Please note: this audio was originally recorded in 2020. For up-to-date facts about narcolepsy treatment options, visit https://project-sleep.com/facts-about-narcolepsy/

Project Sleep's Sleep Helpline: https://project-sleep.com/helpline/

Alexa Cuevas is a pharmacist in Mexico. In this episode, Alexa recounts the hypnagogic and hypnopompic hallucinations she has experienced. She was diagnosed with narcolepsy type 1 in 2019, and graduated from Project Sleep’s Rising Voices Program in 2020. Alexa uses her voice and social media platform to raise awareness of this often misunderstood condition and share empathy with others.

The Rising Voices Series features a variety of first-hand stories from people living with sleep disorders around the world. At Project Sleep, we believe in the power of storytelling to raise awareness and break down stigma. This is why we train people with sleep disorders on how to share their experiences through the Rising Voices program. To request a Rising Voices speaker or apply for an upcoming training, visit: https://project-sleep.com/rising-voices/

Please note: this audio was originally recorded in 2020. For up-to-date facts about narcolepsy treatment options, visit https://project-sleep.com/facts-about-narcolepsy/

Project Sleep's Sleep Helpline: https://project-sleep.com/helpline/

Kayla is a Life Coach from Indiana who loves learning. She has lived with narcolepsy her whole life, and now, as a Rising Voices speaker, is sharing her story to raise awareness and understanding of the condition.

The Rising Voices Series features a variety of first-hand stories from people living with sleep disorders around the world. At Project Sleep, we believe in the power of storytelling to raise awareness and break down stigma. This is why we train people with sleep disorders on how to share their experiences through the Rising Voices program. To request a Rising Voices speaker or apply for an upcoming training, visit: https://project-sleep.com/rising-voices/
Please note: this audio was originally recorded in 2020. For up-to-date facts about narcolepsy treatment options, visit https://project-sleep.com/facts-about-narcolepsy/

Project Sleep's Sleep Helpline: https://project-sleep.com/helpline/

Dr. Klar Yaggi is a professor of medicine and the Vice Chief for Research in the Yale Section of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine. He also serves as the Director of the Yale Centers for Sleep Medicine. 

His research employs translational methods applied to sleep science, circadian biology, and respiratory neurobiology to investigate the mechanistic pathways between sleep deficiency (sleep deprivation, noncircadian wakefulness/sleep, and impaired sleep quality/architecture due to insomnia/sleep-disordered breathing) and cardio-metabolic disease, substance use disorders, cognitive impairment, and mental illness. 

His research approach integrates physiology, clinical medicine, and novel biostatistical methods in epidemiologic designs, including large, multicenter observational cohort studies of adult populations and mechanistic randomized controlled trials. 

His work has 1) informed the prognostic implications of the phenotypic expression of sleep disorders through polysomnographic physiologic traits and biomarkers and 2) examined the impact of interventions targeting sleep deficiency that may help to improve markers of disease and health outcomes. 

His lab, the Yale Translational Sleep, Circadian, and Respiratory Neurobiology Research Center on Yale’s West Campus, provides infrastructure for supporting multi-disciplinary translational sleep research. 

He is committed to mentoring and training the next generation of scientists, which he considers the most rewarding aspect of his professional work, and he has successfully mentored postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty to independence. 

From being judged as “lazy” to worrying about a partner’s reaction to a CPAP machine, we’re breaking down the shame & stigma of sleep apnea––together. 

In this powerful discussion, we address the issues no one is talking about. Young people can feel confused or even embarrassed by this diagnosis, often associating it with older adults. 

We dive into the emotional side of living with sleep apnea and how we can help change the narrative.

This conversation is part of Sleep Apnea: Let’s Face It!, a campaign launched by Project Sleep to shatter stereotypes and showcase real faces of people living with sleep apnea.

To learn more and to participate in the campaign, visit https://project-sleep.com/sleep-apnea-lets-face-it/.

About our Guests:

Jason Webb

Jason Webb lives in North Queensland with his girlfriend and comes from a family of four, including a younger brother. He enjoys gardening, fishing, and traveling. Diagnosed with moderate obstructive sleep apnea at 28 after experiencing symptoms for about a year, he faced numerous challenges in understanding and managing his condition. With no specialist in his rural town, he struggled to navigate his diagnosis alone. He has undergone nasal surgery to correct a deviated septum, battled depression, and now happily wears a CPAP every night. Having faced these obstacles firsthand, he is passionate about helping others on their sleep apnea journey, so they don’t have to go through the same struggles alone.

Edgar Castro Tello

Edgar Castro Tello is Venezuelan born and raised, but now calls Tampa, Florida his more humid, tropical home, where he lives with his partner, Frankie. He’s an environmental scientist with a passion for programs and policy in the field of refuse and waste reduction. His career started in environmental consulting with migratory birds and informal education in zoos, quickly falling in love with public service and policy change. He was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea in 2016 at the age of 25; a diagnosis that was too late in the making. Edgar hopes his story will shed some light on the prevalence of sleeping disorders in the gay bear community and early signs from teenage years.

Learn more about Project Sleep’s partnership with Hollywood, Health & Society for accurate sleep disorder depictions on TV: https://project-sleep.com/hollywood-sleep-initiative/

This conversation was recorded in June 2023.

What does LGBTQ+ identity have to do with sleep? More than you might think. Experiences shared by many LGBTQ+ people can affect sleep health and sleep disorders in challenging and often invisible ways. Our fantastic panel of community members shares how their identities and sleep are closely intertwined.

This discussion is part of Project Sleep’s ongoing commitment to advancing sleep equity through real stories and lived experiences. Learn more about sleep equity and ways to promote healthy sleep for all: https://project-sleep.com/sleep-equity/.

If you are an LGBTQ+ adult age 18 or older, we invite you to share your experiences in our LGBTQ+ Sleep Survey. Your insights will directly inform future advocacy and awareness campaigns. Take the survey and share it with your community: https://project-sleep.com/lgbtq-sleep-survey/

Need support? Reach out to Project Sleep’s Sleep Helpline: https://project-sleep.com/helpline/