Our Skulls Are Out-Evolving Us
A motley crew of scientists argue that our ever-shrinking skulls are wreaking havoc on our well-being
Lindsey Hanes burst into tears at the wheel of her black Dodge Caravan. Ugly crying. Heaving sobs. Through raindrops on her car window, she glanced back at the medical building she’d just exited. That therapist had been her last hope to address her son Micah’s sleep and breathing problems. Her sweet, cheerful baby had transformed into a withdrawn, ornery, uncooperative 5 year old. As a registered nurse, Hanes felt convinced that sleep deprivation lay at the root of his problems. He snored, tossed and turned at night, and woke up with bags under his eyes.
At age 4, Micah underwent a sleep study and received a diagnosis of apnea — intermittent waking due to a blocked airway. A surgeon removed Micah’s tonsils and adenoids, and the operation seemed to work: Fluid no longer collected in his ears, previously a recurring problem. But a year later, he still snored — a possible sign of continued airway obstruction. It was back to the ear-nose-throat doctor, who ruled out apnea after a second sleep study.
The ENT offered no other ideas. Desperate, Hanes tracked down the only myofunctional therapist in southern Illinois trained in teaching tongue and lip exercises that might reshape…
