We were lucky to catch up with Sally Fryer Dietz recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Sally thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

When I moved to Dallas from San Francisco in 1990, I had joint degrees in Child Development & Physical Therapy and had been a practicing pediatric physical therapist for over 10 years. I had worked with children of all. ages in the hospital setting as well as in the local outpatient learning & development center & I knew that no two children were ever alike, and they all had unique needs when it came to healing, learning and development. I had a two-year-old son and another in the plan, so I decided to take some time off to focus on getting settled into Dallas life. Being a full-time mom was a whole new experience as compared to working, and inspired the turn my professional life was about to take.

I had found a wonderful Montessori School for my oldest, but after a few years his teachers raised concerns over his learning style. While he appeared to be thriving in many ways in this self-directed environment his teachers observed a reluctance to engage in the basics, like reading, writing & math. By the time he was five they were strongly suggesting he be evaluated for attention & possible learning challenges. I started with his pediatrician who quickly diagnosed him with “attention deficit” and recommended medication. As his mother I honestly never saw this coming. As a pediatric therapist, I began to wonder and started to look for help.

Given my experience as a therapist, I knew there were other options besides medication, but I was unable to find anyone in Dallas at that time who could provide him with what I. felt was the right therapy. I was first introduced to sensory integration (SI) therapy in the 1970’s, when volunteering at a school for special needs children. Even back then, I was amazed at the progress & positive changes children made in their learning and behavior with this approach. I decided to open my own practice so that I could help children like my own son as well as all the other super bright kids out there who appeared to be so mis-understood.

I believe that our children are our greatest teachers. I was guided by my son’s needs, my own skill set and a large gap in what was available to parents and children at that time. Knowing what I needed to do was the easy part, how to do it was another matter. When it came to opening my own therapy practice, I viewed this as a huge responsibility to create the best possible environment for children to thrive. I was trained as therapist, not as a businessperson, so I needed to do a lot of homework. I sought out professional advice from my professional association, other therapists, doctors, lawyers, bankers, and financial advisors. It was overwhelming at first, but there is nothing more motivating than helping your child. My back up plan was to offer my engaging, fun, treatment space for birthday parties if I couldn’t see enough patients to pay the rent. Fortunately, I never had to resort to that.

Even though this recent pandemic has presented us with some of our greatest challenges to date, I think we are now emerging stronger than ever with not only a safe and healthy environment but new & creative ways of getting quality therapy services into homes and schools. Our incredibly talented team of 17 physical, occupational and speech therapists continue to change lives for the better every day. by offering multi-disciplinary services for all ages from birth through adulthood.

If you were to ask me what contributed most to my success, I would have to say it is my absolute passion for helping others, especially children. I have always been guided by my heart but have also been blessed with good sense and the intelligence to seek out answers and ask for help when needed. I also believe in lifelong learning and continuing to be open to new treatment ideas and methods that can further enrich the quality of someone’s life.

Even though I have now been practicing physical therapy for over 40 years, and am officially a “grandma”, my “work” still excites me. I had a little boy tell me once that because I got to play with children like him that I “never had to work a day in my life”, and he was right! I increasingly run into some of my early patients who now have their own successful careers and both of my sons have grown up to find success and happiness in their own lives. My oldest who I was so worried about when he was a little boy, is now a wonderful father, husband and practicing attorney and my youngest is a businessman engaged to be married. I can’t imagine having done anything any other way. It all worked! I can’t imagine a time when I won’t want to go into the office and continue with what I started & doubt I will ever retire. I just can’t imagine doing anything else that I might enjoy more.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a doctor of physical therapy specializing in pediatric therapy and concussion rehab. I started Integrative Pediatric Therapy (IPTkids.com) in 1994 when my own son showed signs of a learning difference. Since then my practice has grown to include a staff of 20 and provides physical , occupational and speech therapy services for all ages, but primarily children.

We treat patients in the clinic, at several schools in the metroplex and via telehealth. In addition to IPTkids, I also started Integrative Concussion Therapy (concussion -therapy.com), which specifically targets problems that are often not addressed following concussion.

I received my first degrees in Child Development & Physical therapy in 1988 & 1980, and seven years ago earned my doctorate in pediatric physical therapy.
My first book “When Kids Fly! Solutions for Children with Sensory Integration Challenges” was published in 2015.

We recognize that everyone is different and as such deserve unique, individualized treatment programs. We offer a multi disciplinary approach (Physical, occupation and speech therapy) to address developmental, learning & behavioral concerns, as well as medical problems.

I am most proud of the men my two boys have grown up to be. I am rewarded daily by the successes actualized by the children we have been able to work with and help over the past 28 years.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Probably the most challenging time of my career was when COVID hit. I was out of the country with my husband for a long weekend celebrating a wedding with some close friends when COVID hit Dallas. Our phones started to blow up with reports that customs in Dallas was a nightmare and that flights were being cancelled. By the time we got home, my husband had developed a cough and I wasn’t feeling great, but we assumed we had picked up some little bug from traveling. Two days later my husband was in the hospital headed to the ICU. We found out we both had COVID a day later. From there things got worse. I was sick and isolated at home and he was placed on a ventilator. I wouldnt see him for 2 months.

Meanwhile, despite the fear, stress and my own bout with COVID, I still had a practice to run and a large staff to take care of. Those days were a total blur, but thankfully for the hard work of my employees, business associates and financial advisors I survived. We were able to pivot to telehealth so that we could continue to take care of our patients remotely and stripped our clinic of anything that might carry germs or viruses. I added special air purification systems to every room and we developed protocols for social distancing and cleaning. My accountant and bookeeper helped me get a ppp loan and I. was able to pay my entire staff for those first two months while my husband struggled for his life and I recovered.

This time highlighted for me and so many others how important it is to stick together and support each other. We were all there for each other, in our remote, individualized and socially distant ways, and we made it through an incredibly challenging experience. As a result my entire practice is stronger for it. We made changes that will remain in place for the better and we will always remember the power of teamwork and sticking together!

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

You have to love what you do! Be smart, be proactive and keep learning!!! I believe when people get bored with their work (especially when working with kids), they loose the ability to make a big difference. In the field of pediatric therapy, you can not fool a child. If you are not passionate about what you are doing, kids will pick up on it and will resist your efforts. You also need to be creative! Think like a child and come up with new creative ways to solve problems and set up an environment that really motivates. When kids are having fun they can thrive. When you believe in what you are doing and get to experience this success along with them, it’s an incredibly rewarding experience! When I hire a new therapist I always do a working interview. I look for their passion & skill in relating to and motivating a child. I can always teach skills, but it is a lot harder to teach someone how have fun in their job and relate skillfully with a child.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.iptkids.com. & www.concussion-therapy.com
• Instagram: integrativepediatrictherapy
• Facebook: Integrative Pediatric Therapy
• Linkedin: Sally Fryer Dietz PT, DPT, CST-D
• Youtube: Integrative Pediatric Therapy

Image Credits
All photos are owned by me