05/08/2026
When life happens — whether it is an injury, chronic pain, TMJ dysfunction, tongue tie concerns, airway issues, craniofacial development, or dental and periodontal issues connected to systemic inflammation — it helps to know where to turn.
That is why we are excited to share our new Recommended Providers page.
www.apexdentaliowa.com/recommended-providers
This page includes a trusted group of integrative providers and therapies that we know, work with, and confidently recommend when our patients need support beyond the dental chair.
Recently, this became personal for our family.
My 11-year-old son, Max, is an incredible gymnast on the Chow’s Men’s Gymnastics team, and he has been recovering from an early-season acute lower back injury. Gymnastics is a sport of extreme strength, skill, mobility, repetition, and body control. The training is necessarily rigorous, and while he has been able to push through some lesser injuries and chronic aches in the past with support such as photobiomodulation, this injury was different.
This was his body’s very clear signal that it needed to heal properly.
So, it was time to call in the team. My version of the Navy SEALs.
And when I say team, I mean the kind of providers you want in your corner when you need someone to look at the full picture — not just the immediate injury, but the compensation patterns, breathing, posture, movement, inflammation, and whole-body balance that often surround it.
We are incredibly grateful for the providers who helped Max through this process:
→ **Jon Schultz at Optimum Performance Physical Therapy**
Jon provided comprehensive sports rehabilitation. With his additional training through the Postural Restoration Institute, he not only addressed the injury itself, but also identified and treated related myofascial imbalances throughout the body. Along with recovering from the injury, Max’s posture improved, his breathing improved, and his autonomic nervous system balance improved.
→ **Ryan Esdohr at Superhuman Lab**
Ryan provided targeted massage, manual therapy, and PEMF for sports injury rehabilitation. His work was a brilliant complement to physical therapy, especially early in the injury, by incorporating effective healing modalities alongside the rehab process.
→ **Brian Haupts, PA, at DMOS Urgent Injury Clinic**
Brian was extremely knowledgeable and helpful for the urgent assessment at the time of the injury. We were grateful for his guidance and would specifically recommend asking for him.
→ **Dr. Shawn Spooner, MD, at UnityPoint Sports Medicine Clinic**
Dr. Spooner provided thorough further diagnosis and follow-up care, helping us make sure Max’s recovery was being managed appropriately.
→ **Dr. John Tentinger, MD, at Innovative Radiology**
Dr. Tentinger and his team were efficient in getting Max in for an MRI and providing an expedited report so we could rule out a fracture and move forward with confidence.
This experience felt like the perfect time to announce that we have finally launched our **Recommended Providers** page.
While there are many more providers who could easily be included on this list, I have chosen to include the ones I know firsthand are amazing because I work with them regularly or have personally experienced the value of their care.
If you pay any attention to me, you know I am not the type to simply turn to a pill to mask an issue. I am a firm believer that the body is designed to heal when it has the proper support and the right integrative care team.
That same belief shapes the way we approach care at Apex Dental.
With my treatment focus on TMJ dysfunction, tongue tie, airway, breathing, oral myofunctional balance, and craniofacial development, I fully understand how important collaboration can be. Often, the most effective care requires the right combination of providers — bodyworkers, physical therapists, myofunctional therapists, functional medicine providers, lactation consultants, pediatric specialists, ENTs, sleep providers, and others who understand that the body works as a connected system.
Dental decay and periodontal disease are not always isolated issues. Crowded teeth are not always “just genetic.” TMJ dysfunction is rarely caused by only one thing. Tongue ties can affect far more than speech or feeding. Airway and breathing patterns can influence development, posture, sleep, inflammation, and function.
The body compensates until it cannot.
And when that happens, the right team matters.
Our Recommended Providers page was created to help our patients and families find trusted support when their care needs extend beyond our office. Whether you are dealing with TMJ pain, tongue tie concerns, airway issues, chronic inflammation, breastfeeding challenges, pediatric development, sleep apnea, injury rehabilitation, or simply trying to better support your health, we hope this page becomes a helpful resource.
Here’s to helping ourselves and our kids live healthier, stronger, more supported lives.
— Dr. Mindy
and, in this case, just Mindy — Max and Emma’s mom
