Welcoming Clinical Social Worker Kristen Cascio to Project Sleep’s Board of Directors

In May 2026, Kristen Cascio joined the Board of Directors of Project Sleep, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness of sleep health, sleep equity, and sleep disorders. 

Kristen Cascio is a licensed independent clinical social worker (LICSW) in Massachusetts living with sleep apnea. Specializing in crisis intervention, Kristen’s work has spanned settings such as emergency mental health centers, trauma hotlines, and Medicare/Medicaid health plans. Kristen currently works in Work-Life benefits in higher education. In this role, Kristen ensures employees have access to high-quality mental health and caregiving benefits and trains employees, managers, and human resource professionals in Mental Health First Aid. Kristen also enjoys creating and facilitating presentations for employees on topics such as resilience, stress management, and workplace wellness.

An avid world traveler, Kristen unknowingly began her sleep advocacy journey when she began posting on social media about traveling with her CPAP machine. After connecting with others on the platform, she learned that her long delay in diagnosis was not uncommon. Now, Kristen’s @meandmycpap Instagram account also incorporates content on sleep disorder awareness and tips on managing CPAP therapy.

Kristen leverages her expertise in mental health to educate providers of the need for earlier screening and detection of sleep disorders. At the National Association of Social Workers’ (NASW) annual conference in 2025, Kristen presented a poster titled, “Could your Client Have a Sleep Disorder? The Role of the Mental Health Field in Decreasing Delays in Diagnosis.” The poster reviewed the overlap of symptoms between mental health and sleep disorders, guided social workers how to ask clinical questions about sleep, and emphasized when and how to refer someone to sleep medicine. Kristen hopes to expand on this work by advocating for sleep disorder education to be included in graduate programs for social work, mental health counseling, and psychology.

Since completing Project Sleep’s Rising Voices program in 2022, Kristen has participated in many advocacy efforts including the Sleep Apnea: Let’s Face It! campaign and the broadcasts “Talking to your Doctor about Sleep Issues” in 2024 and “Traveling with Sleep Apnea” in 2026.

Previously a member of Project Sleep’s Expert Advisory Board, Kristen is looking forward to continuing to contribute to Project Sleep’s mission. “When I first got diagnosed with a sleep disorder, Project Sleep provided the supportive patient community that I didn’t know I needed,” she said. “I’m honored to join the Board of Directors of this incredible organization.”

You can follow Kristen’s patient advocacy work and travel adventures on Instagram @meandmycpap or at meandmycpap.com.

Please join us in welcoming Kristen Cascio to Project Sleep’s leadership team! Learn more about our Board of Directors.

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