Can a Good Night Sleep Save Your Life?

Can a Good Night Sleep Save Your Life?

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In this profoundly moving episode of the More Than Teeth Podcast, Dr. Michael Bennett welcomes Staff Sergeant Josh May—a decorated soldier and survivor of deep emotional and physical suffering. Josh’s powerful testimonial reveals how sleep-disordered breathing, PTSD, and chronic emotional pain nearly claimed his life multiple times—and how addressing the root cause, poor sleep, changed everything.

Josh’s story begins in the aftermath of three military deployments. The physical toll of active duty was nothing compared to the psychological battles he faced back home. He described a suffocating darkness, suicidal ideation, and two close attempts on his own life. One occurred alone in his bunk with a loaded weapon. Another, on a fishing boat in Alaska, nearly ended in a staged fall overboard. “I didn’t understand why I felt this way,” Josh admitted. “I hadn’t seen what many others had seen in combat.”

But the pain was real—and relentless.

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The Turning Point: A Hidden Enemy Revealed

A trip to the ER following chest pain revealed nothing abnormal. Still, the suspicion of something deeper remained. A compassionate physician suggested sleep testing. Though insurance delays persisted, Josh’s wife—a persistent source of strength—paid out-of-pocket for a sleep study. The diagnosis was obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). His apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) was a staggering 44 episodes per hour—meaning he stopped breathing nearly every 90 seconds throughout the night.

It was a revelation. “Everything Dr. Bennett said described my life,” Josh recalled.

He began using a CPAP machine, but like many patients, struggled with discomfort. The breakthrough came when he was introduced to Dr. Bennett’s airway-focused sleep rehabilitation protocol using biomimetic oral devices that expand the airway naturally and stimulate skeletal remodeling.

Within two months, Josh began sleeping more deeply. Headaches subsided. Depression lifted. “By June, I boxed up my CPAP and put it under my bed,” he said.

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Rewiring the Brain, Healing the Heart

Josh emphasized how better sleep changed more than just his energy levels. It fundamentally reshaped his mental resilience.

Before treatment, the smallest household stressors—like dishes in the sink—triggered explosive reactions. The body, trapped in a sympathetic fight-or-flight state, left no room for rationality or calm. “I thought I was just an angry guy,” Josh said. “Now I understand—my brain was exhausted and overloaded. I wasn’t breathing. My body thought it was dying all night.”

Since improving his sleep, Josh reports profound psychological clarity and emotional balance. “The thoughts still come, but I’m strong enough now to say, ‘That’s a dumb thought’ and move on.”

Even his dreams changed. Once haunted by nightmares and combat scenarios, he now experiences vivid, happy dreams—many recalling cherished childhood memories. “For the first time, I can process my thoughts in my dreams. I wake up rested, not terrified.”

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Saving a Marriage, Rebuilding a Life

At one point, Josh’s wife asked him to move out temporarily because of his mood swings. “That would’ve broken me a year ago,” he said. “But this time, I had the strength to reflect and work on myself.” He credits that inner fortitude to restorative sleep. “Because I’m breathing and sleeping well, my mind is clear. I can think through stress, not be ruled by it.”

Today, Josh continues to wear his biomimetic device a few nights a week. He’s active in therapy, physically healthier, mentally resilient, and emotionally connected with his family. He sees a future again—watching his kids grow, enjoying life’s beauty, and helping fellow soldiers avoid the fate that almost claimed his own.

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A Call to Action: Sleep as National Service

Josh’s story is not just personal—it’s a call to transform how we care for veterans and active-duty military. He shared heartbreaking news of a fellow soldier who took his own life—a young man Josh had mentored. “I’d bet my next paycheck he had undiagnosed sleep apnea,” Josh said, reflecting on facial features and snoring he remembered.

He pleads for the military to screen every soldier for sleep-disordered breathing. “Mental health services alone aren’t enough if the brain isn’t getting oxygen. Fixing the airway and the sleep cycle makes all the difference.”

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The BIB-DMD Protocol: A Framework for Healing

Dr. Bennett reiterated the model he uses to approach complex cases like Josh’s:

• B – Breathing: Ensuring clear, unobstructed nasal breathing during sleep.
  
  
• I – Inflammation: Reducing systemic inflammation, especially from poor airways, diet, and stress.
  
  
• B – Balance: Aligning the jaw and musculoskeletal system.
  
  
• D – Decompression: Restoring healthy joint and nerve space to reduce stress on the body.
  
  
• M – Movement Disorder: Addressing nocturnal grinding, clenching, and restless sleep patterns.
  
  
• D – Dental/Developmental: Evaluating and guiding facial and airway development for long-term resolution.
  
  

This framework changed Josh’s life—and it has the potential to change countless others.

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A Grateful Nation, A Healing Warrior

Josh’s closing words speak volumes: “I didn’t believe this would work. I did it to prove Dr. Bennett wrong. Instead, I’m alive. I’m a husband again. A dad. I see the mountains outside my window now. I’m not surviving—I’m living.”

To our veterans, to families in pain, and to every provider serving them: this episode is your wake-up call. If someone snores, struggles with anxiety, or lives with chronic fatigue, screen their airway. Invest in their sleep. You may just save their life.

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