Today we’d like to introduce you to Luisa.
Hi Luisa, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
The Therapy Garden really grew from both my personal life and my professional experiences. My brother, Sal, has Down syndrome and is non-speaking, so the disability community has always been a part of my life. Growing up alongside him shaped the way I view communication, independence, inclusion, and what meaningful support should actually look like.
I went on to become a speech-language pathologist and began working with children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. As I gained experience in the field, I kept noticing the same gap: there were not enough spaces where individuals with disabilities, especially adults, could receive support while also being treated as whole people. I wanted a place that felt welcoming and comfortable, where communication looked different for everyone, where competence was presumed, and where therapy wasn’t centered around compliance or making someone appear “less disabled.”
That vision eventually became The Therapy Garden. I opened TTG in February 2023, starting small and building it one step at a time. What began primarily as a therapy practice has grown into something much bigger than I originally imagined. Today, we provide speech and communication services for children, teens, and adults, with a major focus on supporting individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We’ve also created classes, social groups, community outings, pop-up events, adaptive opportunities, and other ways for people to build friendships, explore their interests, and simply have places where they belong.
One of the things I am most proud of is that many of the ideas we introduce come directly from the people we support. I never wanted TTG to be a place where we decided what someone’s life should look like for them. We listen to our clients, learn what they want to do, and then figure out how we can help make those opportunities happen.
Over the past few years, I’ve also learned that building a business like this means constantly evolving. There have been plenty of challenges, mistakes, pivots, and moments where I’ve had to figure things out as I went. But the mission has stayed incredibly consistent: create the kind of space I would want my own brother to have access to.
As we continue to grow, my hope is that The Therapy Garden can keep showing what disability services can look like when we lead with respect, presume competence, listen to the people we’re supporting, and prioritize genuine connection and quality of life. I can’t create a Therapy Garden in every community, but I hope the work we’re doing can help push the larger conversation toward creating more inclusive, meaningful spaces for people with disabilities everywhere.
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 definitely has not been a smooth road, but I think that has been one of the biggest parts of my growth as both a business owner and a person.
I started The Therapy Garden as a speech-language pathologist with a vision, but I didn’t necessarily start as a business owner who knew how to run every aspect of a company. There has been a lot of learning as I go, figuring out insurance, Medicaid and DDD funding, hiring and managing a team, finances, policies, scheduling, marketing, and all of the behind-the-scenes pieces that no one really teaches you when you become a clinician.
One of the biggest challenges has been navigating systems that are constantly changing, especially when many of the individuals we support rely on state funding. There are services and opportunities that I know are incredibly valuable for our clients, but figuring out how to make them financially sustainable and accessible isn’t always easy. I’ve had to learn how to adapt without losing sight of why I started TTG in the first place.
Growing a team has also taught me a lot. When you care deeply about the culture and mission of a business, learning how to delegate and trust other people with something you’ve built from the ground up can be difficult. I’ve had to learn that I can’t and shouldn’t do everything myself.
There have absolutely been moments of stress, uncertainty, and wondering whether I was making the right decisions. But every challenge has forced me to become more intentional about what The Therapy Garden is and what I want it to become.
I think one of my biggest lessons has been realizing that growth doesn’t always mean getting bigger. Sometimes growth means simplifying, changing direction, setting better boundaries, or saying no to something that no longer fits. I’m still learning and evolving, and I don’t think that ever really stops when you’re building something you care about.
As you know, we’re big fans of The Therapy Garden. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
The Therapy Garden is a neurodiversity-affirming therapy and community space in Hazlet, New Jersey. We provide speech, language, feeding, and communication services for children, teens, and adults, while having a particular passion for supporting adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
What really sets us apart is our philosophy. We believe in presuming competence, honoring all forms of communication, and providing support that is person-led rather than compliance-based. Our goal is never to make someone look or act more “typical.” We want to understand the individual in front of us, how they communicate, what matters to them, what their goals are, and what support will help them participate more fully in their own life.
Communication is a huge part of what we do. We support individuals who communicate verbally as well as those who use AAC, gestures, verbal language, and other forms of communication. We want every person who walks through our doors to know that their voice matters, regardless of what that voice looks or sounds like.
But The Therapy Garden has also grown into much more than traditional therapy. One of the things we are probably most known for is creating opportunities for adults with disabilities to connect with other people and be part of their community. We offer social groups, art classes, adaptive yoga, coffee shop meetups, community outings, pop-up events, girls’ nights and other experiences that evolve based on what our clients actually tell us they want to do.
That piece is incredibly important to me. Adults with disabilities deserve more than a schedule filled with “services.” They deserve friendships, hobbies, new experiences, places to go on a Friday night, opportunities to make choices, and communities where they genuinely belong. Sometimes our role is therapeutic, and sometimes our role is simply creating the space for people to be people.
I’m most proud that the TTG brand has become associated with that feeling of belonging. I never wanted us to feel overly clinical or institutional. I wanted to create a space where families feel comfortable, where individuals are respected, and where our team is encouraged to think beyond a diagnosis or treatment plan.
We are also intentionally small. I don’t want growth to come at the expense of knowing the people we serve. Many of our ideas have come directly from conversations with our clients and families, and I want to protect that as we cont
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
During our busy hours, when everything is hectic and filled with laughs and joy in the office, I try to make myself take a moment to sit in my chair and just watch. The moment when I see all the things that I built come together makes me feel happy tears every time.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thetherapygardennj.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetherapygardennj
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/The-Therapy-Garden-100089958684438/
