SMALL BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT: Connections Therapy Centers

IDAHO FALLS — A 23,000 square foot construction project will become the home for Connections Therapy Centers next spring.

While the building may be new, the business has been around since 2002.

That’s when Michelle Dahlberg opened the Speech and Language Clinic in Idaho Falls. Over the years it has grown to include occupational and physical therapy at five different locations in east Idaho with two in Idaho Falls.

The new building, located on Elk Creek Drive, will bring the services offered at both Idaho Falls locations into one building. Dahlberg says this new building will give her staff the space to provide better care for their patients.

Dahlberg is passionate about what she does and loves being a speech and pathology therapist. She works with kids everyday who struggle to communicate. This struggle, she says, can be a source of frustration for those kids.

“Throughout high school I had been babysitting some twins from the time they were born. One of their twins had speech apraxia. This is a condition where your brain is not telling your mouth what to say. So he (the twin) was really hard to understand. He had been going through speech therapy since he was two-years-old. I just found it so interesting,” Dahlberg says.

That’s when Dahlberg knew speech therapy would be her life’s work. Despite working with many clients over the years, Dahlberg says she never tires of seeing the impact of speech therapy in a child’s life.

“You watch them develop. They get better. They gain self confidence and they start to do all these things they weren’t doing before. If we can do everything we can to help them be the best they can be, then that means everything to me,” says Dahlberg.

One of Dahlberg’s clients is 5-year-old Eli Hix. He has Sotos Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes developmental delays.

Eli’s mom, Sara, has watched Eli’s progress in therapy since he was a baby.

“He has surpassed our expectations. We’re so grateful for his progress and what he has accomplished,” Sara Hix tells EastIdahoNews.com.

Dahlberg says there was a time when she wasn’t sure if Eli would ever talk, run or play.

“He can out-talk anybody. I love to see his personality come out. He is so smart and always excited to come to therapy. Every time I see him outside of therapy he always gives me a hug and we’ll talk. He is doing amazing,” Dahlberg says.

Dahlberg says the new name for her clinic, Connections Therapy Centers, defines what they are all about— connecting patients with the people and the resources they need to help them achieve their goals.

“We have a thousand kids that we see. Many of those kids graduate and do better throughout the years. I think that’s pretty awesome,” Dahlberg says.

Connections Therapy Centers is the new name at all east Idaho locations. The new building will include a splash pad, climbing walls, sensory gardens and other top of the line equipment for their patients. Construction is slated for completion Memorial Day weekend.