Bingo!OK, I think I see what you're saying. You're not so much that OMG I my heart is going to enlarge if I take a 30 minute nap without and so forth. So it is more like the opposite - are you saying that for example with regards to Barrets esouphagus, that that any time you fall asleep without xPAP your are making the condition incrementally worse? Or rather, possibly bringing on a new problem. Ok I think I need to nap.
Are you familliar with the term "cumulative trauma"? It means people that develop tendonitis or carpal tunnel syndrome don't develop these injuries from one isolated incident, but constant, frequent micro-trauma that adds up to one big injury over time. That's the damage from apnea, too. Every time you sleep without CPAP, you are causing micro-trauma to your body. Who knows how many of these incidents are needed to make the problem serious? The best practice is prevention--sleep with your CPAP each and every time.
And you don't need REM sleep for apnea. I become apnic immediately--easily seen by the fact that I snore like a train within seconds of falling asleep, regardless of position. Each snore is harming my body.