Today we’d like to introduce you to Leena Alexander
Hi leena, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I was born and brought up in Sultanate of Oman . My father is a physician and mother a house wife . I have 2 siblings both physicians . I am married to steven who helps me manage my practices and I have 2 children ,son a sophmore at UNT for computer science and daughter junior at high school . I graduated dental school from india and came to us completed advanced standing program at Marquette Dental school ,WI . I moved to Texas in 2011 and joined a practice Starshine Dentistry in corinth tx in 2016 and eventually took ownership of practice in 2018 December . I have a passion to learn and understand oral structures and how our body is all interconnected . In my continuing education I understood role of mouth as high in the totem pole . Front part of the upper jaw and brain neural cells are all formed at the same time which is primarily why mouth plays such a crucial role. Mouth to humans is like roots to plants . My primary interest is role of teeth , position of tongue and upper and lower jaws in relation to the airway and how it crucially impacts breathing and sleep ,hence I completed mini residency with university of Michigan for dental sleep medicine and now I primarily practice sleep apnea ,airway and tmj . I am a firm believer in a whole body approach and nutrition is a big component . I love when i get to impact people with their sleep and nutrition and overall health and keeping the balance of body in play. My approach is integrative where we work along side myofunctional therapists , neuro chiropractors , functional doctors to get our patients in balance . My primary interest is to educate especially pregnant moms about nutrition and its key role in development of fetus and help children with nasal breathing and avoid mouth breathing as it is so detrimental to their jaw growth and prevent downward spiral . I want to help patients BREATHE,SLEEP,REJUVINATE . This passion has led me to start DFW DEEPSLEEP AIRWAY TMJ which we hope to launch in november 2024 .
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has never been smooth . Along the way I was not well (severe back and neck pain and limited range of shoulder movement )which really catapaulted me into sleep medicine. It has been very hard to collaborate with like minded professionals as the philosophy of whole body approach is not mainstream . Mainstream thinking of “i will do it only if insurance covers” has made it very difficult to help patients . Trying to educate patients that prevention is the best cure is a tough task with the traditional thinking. Instant results with pills is what everyone prefers rather than a Holistic approach.Like minded professionals are having a hard time staying in business because of the way our medical system works . traditional doctors are not able to spend time with patients and really get to root cause . our society is quite content with reactive medicine and happy to take a pill and not take a proactive approach. Even approaching banks it has been hard as they only will help fund what is traditional which makes it very hard to scale and reach larger audience . it has taken me almost 2 years to start the process of a sleep clinic due to challenges in insurance reimbursements and having to save personal cash to open a clinic . As a small business owner finding quality staff also is a challenge .
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Dfw deepsleep airway tmj – offers a whole body approach to sleep apnea and tmj . airway involves orthodontics where posture is also addressed and restorations to keep the treatment intact .
we are in the contruction process and hope to launch in nov 2024 . my specialty is sleep apnea and tmj . known for sleep and wellness . i offer a whole body approach which sets us apart .
Koala is my mascot as it has a serene and nurturing presence in stressful situations which is what i want to help with . they are also known for trust and known to find way from destructive co-dependence to interdependence where we can empathize the need for others and be able to help
we offer sleep apnea, tmj , airway orthodontics , nutrition and help with control of inflamation like ozone therapy
starshine sentistry offers traditional dental services that are available to people that ate just wanting traditional services
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
More we can spread the awareness of holistic and collaborative approach and find collaborative providers will be key in success . As more patients get more awareness they can help spread the word . media would also be a great help to bring some of this mainstream and finding some financial support who do not charge an arm and a leg will help sustain business that are in this space .
