Theraplay Family - Parent Testimonials

Read what others are saying about Theraplay. These are just a few of the letters we are received recently.

I just wanted to tell you how wonderful everything went on Saturday. I can’t tell you what a great feeling it is to talk to people who “just get it.” Lauren did the speech evaluation. She was so sweet and Liam really took to her. We also were able to get into the group class that begins tomorrow night…perfect timing. The best part is Liam really loved it and did not mind backing out of some other extracurricular activities. He went nuts when she showed him the break room with the whale pillow and balls. We are so happy to have been connected with such targeted support.
Cathy S.

I know that you are aware you have an amazing staff, but I wanted to tell you my personal story. It means so much to me that I am able to bring my son in to “play” and all of the therapists are so welcoming and helpful. Everyone can play together, in the sensory room that seems to be the favorite, and no one minds each other’s company. Everyone, from the therapists who worked with Anthony (and even the ones who didn’t) made us feel like welcomed guests in their home, and this has made all the difference. Please share my sincere thanks with Elana, Amber, Jocelyn, and especially Jen. I did not want to miss an opportunity to sing their praises, although I am sure you’ve heard them before! They are all truly amazing, caring people, and my son has learned so much and benefited so much from their “play”ful techniques. What could have been tedious and tiring turned out to be wonderful and so much fun. I will miss everyone, and am so thankful for their hard work and determination. My son is definitely stubborn and bull headed, a toughie to have to work with, but no one seemed to mind and always gave their all. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate that. I am so thankful to have been recommended to your facility, and will not hesitate to do the same for someone else. The last two months have been a great experience for my son and I. Thank you for everything!
Sincerely,
Jane F.

We saw you several times with our daughter Madeline for food therapy. Maddie has just turned 5 and is doing extremely well so I wanted to give you an update. In the last year she has gained almost 8 pounds and grown several inches. Although some of this is due to her medication, I personally believe that some of her progress has to do with what we learned from you. Dinner time at our table improved dramatically after we saw you just a few times and we credit this to the tips you shared with us. I just wanted to say thank you for your help and support. The therapy time with you was so helpful for Maddie but was just as helpful for us in teaching us how to understand her world and frame things more appropriately for her. Maddie still talks about you, by the way, so you obviously had a big impact on her. Thank you again!
Julie M.

After returning from a trip to see my family in Boston, I wanted you to know how impressed my family was to hear Dustin speak. No one could get over how far he has come in enunciation and expression. As his father, it was so heart wrenching to see his frustration in grasping for phrases and words but not quite communicating the way he wanted to. He has always been such a character, that it is truly a joy to hear and see him speak with exuberance and confidence. You have created a wonderful facility where kids can feel totally at ease. I know that he really took to Theraplay and that made it much easier for him to get there. Best wishes for continued growth and success at Theraplay, and thank you, again.
Randy H.

We wanted to say thank you for all the help you’ve been giving Jenna. We took her to the park yesterday and there were 6 steps and she went up and down all by herself (not even holding my hand!) It was awesome. You have been such a big part of all her progress and accomplishments and we want you to know we appreciate all you’ve done and all your hard work. Thanks again!
Susan & John S.

I admit that I was highly skeptical of getting results. It was suggested that we find some sort of OT and Theraplay was covered by our insurance. Dawn was friendly and willing to help me figure out the twists and turns of our insurance company. I was shocked to see such dramatic changes in my son in such a short amount of time! Patti told us that we would notice changes in David’s daily life. Patti worked with David during one session riding his bike. After the session, on the way home, David, for the first time EVER said he was looking forward to riding his bike up and down our street. I tried to contain my emotions. Was this my son? Could he have said something positive about something that has plagued him for years? Before coming to Theraplay I was hearing, “I can’t do it. It’s too hard!” or “I don’t want other kids to make fun of me if I fall down.” As his mother, it’s painful to see him hurting inside so much. My husband and I are thrilled for David’s successes and happy beyond belief that we found Theraplay. After four sessions, I had the opportunity to speak with my son on the phone. I was absolutely dumbfounded when I was clearly able to hear his words. I didn’t have to pretend anymore that I knew what he was talking about. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I listened to his sweet story over the telephone. The other night while having dinner, he picked up his fork and knife and began to cut the hot dog. Amazing! If there is ever a parent, educator, or friend that wonders about the validity of occupational therapists and Theraplay, I am here to testify to their legitimacy. Coming to Theraplay has been life changing for our family as a whole. We look forward to more sessions. We are grateful for all the work being done through Theraplay. With a sincerely grateful heart,
Rachel K.

I just wanted to drop you a line and tell you what a tremendous help and advocate Karen has been for our son David. She has gone above and beyond to help me gain access for him in the IU system for speech. I can’t tell you how wonderful it is as a parent to know that you can trust someone else with the betterment of your child. I absolutely feel that way with Theraplay and Karen. Thank you and your staff for helping David achieve his maximum and decrease his frustrations. We know we possibly have a long road ahead of us, but I feel better knowing that Theraplay is on our side.
Linda M.

I am sending you this letter in regards to your staff member Janel. I wanted to let you know what an asset she is to your organization. Janel has been working with my son Matthew for the past few months and is doing a wonderful job. She is very dedicated and patient. As a parent, I cannot tell you how reassuring this is for us. Matt has really shown great progress due to his therapies. We truly appreciate it.
Tom and Peg M.

We have been so pleased with the service and staff at Theraplay!!! My son John loves to get his physical and speech therapy and enjoys every minute with each therapist!!! He has made tremendous improvement since we began and I completely credit your staff and professional philosophy for his progress! I can not say enough about the staff…from Elana at the phones to each and every therapist…we have experienced nothing but the best treatment. John can skip, hop and run because of Theraplay! Both his confidence and physical abilities have tremendously improved and we are looking forward to him entering kindergarten this fall with very few limitations! Please feel free to use my letter in any marketing materials…I love to share how I feel about Theraplay with others! Thank you!
Jamie T.

I just wanted to let you know how pleased my wife and I are with the therapy treatments that our daughter Marissa is receiving through Theraplay. The County, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Theraplay have evaluated Marissa and we feel very confident that she will receive the best care at Theraplay. Dana takes care of Marissa as if she was her own child and takes the time to make sure that my wife and I understand everything that she is working on. As a business owner I know the importance of the impression that your staff and facility can make on your clients. All of sessions are at night, and we are always impressed how clean the office is and friendly and caring the entire staff is, even at the late hour.
Ken K.

My 2 year old daughter, Colleen, is receiving speech therapy through Theraplay. I just wanted to let you know how well it has been going. Anu and Jennifer do a wonderful job, and Colleen does especially well with Dana who seems to know exactly how to get Colleen to respond. Also, Elana does a great job dealing with the physicians, the insurance companies, and the parents. She is on top of everything and so well organized and still very friendly. I am very happy with things at Theraplay. It can be very emotional as a parent to see your child struggling, but so encouraging and exciting to see her progressing.
Laura Y.

Just a note to let you know how much I appreciate your organization and especially one of your employees, Michelle. We all love Michelle! She is very knowledgeable in the area of physical therapy and offers a lot of practical and helpful advice. I really appreciate the paper with notes and sketches that she faithfully leaves behind each week. Michelle is always on time and always enthusiastic about her work. Moreover, she is very kind and loving towards our daughter and even gives ample attention to her big sister. I know another mother who is the mother of one of Michelle’s clients. In fact, Michelle introduced us so that we would network and share with one another the experiences of having a child with special needs. This mother and I both rave about how great Michelle is and how lucky we all are. Our daughter has Down syndrome and is our special angel from God. She is growing and prospering beautifully, thanks in part to Michelle and to all those who love her. Thank you for the work that you do and for the early intervention services that you provide to children with special needs and their families. On behalf of our family, we thank you for sending Michelle into our hearts and home.
Donna C.

It is with great sincerity that we express our gratitude for your expertise, skills, guidance, and caring in treating our daughter, Kathryn. Kathryn started with Theraplay just about two years ago at the age of three with significant speech and fine motor delays. You helped us get an accurate diagnosis of apraxia. It was a relief to finally know what was the problem after getting other opinions that didn’t seem to fit Kathryn’s presentation. You helped develop an intensive treatment plan and were an encouragement to us as parents. She experienced acceptance, caring and more importantly, fun. Kathryn has a great spirit and energy plus a great deal of courage. You used her God-given gifts to promote growth in her area of weakness. Most importantly, she never saw her speech as a disability and always found ways to communicate her needs while her speech was becoming clear. As a result of her creativity of communicating plus the acceptance and love she received in all her environments, she never experienced herself as “delayed”. I credit your staff with finding ways to harness her energy and spirit in such a way as to help her grow in her speech and fine motor control while maintaining her self esteem and sense of joy for life. She thrived with your support. Today, two years later, she has been discharged. She has the speech of an average five year old and her fine motor skills are age appropriate. Thank you, thank you for helping our daughter successfully navigate her speech delay and develop her speech to age appropriate understanding. Thank you for helping her to use her gifts to overcome this weakness. Thank you for playing with her while teaching her. Thank you for supporting and teaching us as parents how to best help her.
Tom and Carolyn R.

As we were preparing a list of things that we need to do for the holidays, we began to reflect on what we are grateful for this Thanksgiving season. You and the entire Theraplay staff are right at the top of our list. How do you thank someone for playing such an important role in the life of your child? How do you tell them you appreciate their extraordinary patience and talent? Can you ever communicate the gratitude you feel when someone is focusing their direct attention on your child and you see the benefits of it that last far longer than the allotted session time? Ken and I would like to thank you from our hearts for always being upbeat, optimistic, professional, hard working, and dedicated to your work. Already, we can see that Shane’s making progress from spending quality time at Theraplay, working, interacting, playing and learning.
Ken & Pat M.

This letter is to compliment Cindy on what a terrific job she does with my son, Ben. I am the mother of a profoundly brain-injured child with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. Cindy has the difficult task of performing physical therapy on my son. She applies her skills with gentle professionalism and great kindness. My son made nice progress in a very short time – all due to Cindy’s weekly diligence. We feel very lucky to have Cindy in our son’s life. Thank you for your wonderful services.
Jamie T.

Just this past Tuesday, my two-year-old son, Lucas, was discharged from his speech therapy with Maria. When we were referred to Theraplay to address Lucas’ delayed expressive speech, we were worried and anxious. Friends told us that our pediatrician was over-reacting and that therapy at such a young age was a waste of time. Despite this, we made the decision to try Theraplay and I’m so very glad we did. During our six months of Maria’s professional care, we had nothing but positive experiences. Lucas loved coming each week; as he began to speak, he referred to your building as “Ria’s house”. I found Maria to be so gentle and positive in her work with Lucas; our son blossomed, week by week, and now is talking constantly and with greater and greater ease. I can honestly say that Lucas is not the only one who will miss visiting each week. Thank you for the wonderful care you provide.
Anne H.

We just wanted to thank you so much for giving Remy the jump start he needed for speech and his sensory issues. We really believe you all gave him the base he needed to do so well. His expressive speech is excellent!! Now we just really need to work on articulation but that is also really improving. We are also still working hard on sensory issues but those too are coming along. Theraplay was such a gift for our family, every single person there was a delight and so professional. Remy felt very special and wanted to work hard to accomplish goals because of how you made him feel. We are so thankful that we were able to start at Theraplay - Remy continues to feel and show the great effect of your therapies! Thank you from our family!
Tracy C.

I am writing to thank both you and Michelle for all of your assistance over the past year and a half with our son, Mason, now almost two years old. He has been a participant in the Early Intervention Program, receiving physical therapy for torticollis and is currently flourishing! It is often difficult for parents with infants and toddlers to find the time to do much of anything, but adding a disability or serious illness makes moments like this few and far between. I am confident I speak on behalf of many grateful parents to say that to have been able to work with Michelle was miraculous. Please know we are eternally grateful.
The B. Family

I just wanted to thank you for sending Melinda out to our home to provide early intervention services to our daughter. She is very flexible, very nice, and my daughter looks forward to Melinda’s visits and loves to play with her.
Sonya T.

As the parents of a child born four months early at 23 ½ weeks, the health care provided for our son has been our priority. He received exceptional care with Theraplay! The only indication of Gregory’s early birth was that he walked on his toes, and when he was two years old, his pediatrician recommended a consultation with a physical therapist. Lisa provides a bright, happy, stimulating environment in which to administer physical therapy that includes all types of familiar and new toys and activities that made our son feel at home without him knowing that they are served a specific purpose in his therapy. She encouraged our participation during therapy sessions and provided us with guidance and instruction including handouts as reference so that we could reinforce therapy at home. She regularly evaluated Gregory’s progress so that we always knew where there was improvement and what areas needed more effort. After three months of therapy sessions, Gregory had achieved the goals Lisa designated as appropriate for his age. Lisa treats the whole child, not just the specific physical concern and that is one of the reasons for her success. She earns the child’s confidence and respect because she respects the child and shows that a child’s mental and physical abilities must work together to achieve the desired results. Gregory’s reaction to the entire process was very positive. Theraplay provides the most up-to-date physical therapy techniques for children incorporated into a unique child and parent friendly environment administered by someone who really loves children and care about their well-being.
Leslie B.

I am writing to thank you for all the help that Mary has received so far. Jim is a wonderful therapist. Since Mary was 7 months old, Jim has been there every other week working with Mary, and showing me things that I could do to help Mary. Since that time, Mary has really improved. When I think back to where she was before and to where she is now, I can’t believe it. She has come so far. She works really hard on her therapy. I am also thankful for Sarah, her OT therapist. She also works really hard with Mary and because of her, she has shown me a lot of activities to do with Mary. I am so grateful that these types of programs are out there. Thank you to Theraplay and to the Early Intervention for giving my daughter the help that she needs.
Ann C.

I wanted to take a moment to thank you and put forth my feelings about Theraplay into words. Alex has benefited so much from the occupational therapy she has received from Theraplay. It has been a year since Alex was diagnosed with developmental delays, fine motor, visual-perceptual and sensory issues. This time last year, her first grade teach did not recommend her progressing to second grade. After an initial OT evaluation at CHOP, our pediatrician recommended Theraplay, especially for the sensory issues. Alex attended sessions 2x week individually, and 1x week group, through the summer. By the end of the summer, we had decided to send Alex onto the second grade. She has had a very successful year. Her reading support tutor at school noted a dramatic change. She asked what I did over the summer. Alex is reading on grade level and her teacher recommends third grade without hesitation. Thank you all so much. Your knowledge, commitment, and caring shined through every step of the way.
Dierdra M.