Meet Mary Dicaro of Integrated Physical Therapy and Wellness

Changing direction is often a solitary, inside job that is neither glamorous nor convenient.

I had a desire to write a book for about 15 years however, personal and health challenges prevented me from pursuing this dream. As I sought answers for myself, my curiosity was sparked in the field of the mind-body connection and the root causes leading to inflammation and chronic disease. This is when I began pursuing the foundational principles of Functional Medicine and systems biology. I was quite tired of chasing symptoms, feeling unwell, and not having answers. It was at this time that I began connecting the dots.

Following the death of my dad in 2014, the spirit within me called louder and I was determined to write a book. The feelings did not yield to reasoning that it may not be the best timing.

I was often asked questions like, “Why do you want to do this, and why now?”, “How are you going to do this?” and “Who do you think will be interested in this sort of book?” As with most dreams, many times people will not understand why you feel called to do something.

After a serious surgery and a long and arduous recovery in 2018, I was laser-focused on completing the book and bringing this message to others.

I was committed to doing the internal work required to heal, pushing through some dark nights, confusing emotions, and ultimately to understanding the intimate connection of the mind, and past trauma to the physical body.

I was passionate about sharing my knowledge with others through seminars and classes. Above all else, I wanted people to understand that they have far more control over their health outcomes than they realize. I wanted to restore hope in the possibility of healing.

Finally, after almost 3 years of extensive research and hunkering down at my computer on many evenings and weekends, I wrote, designed, and edited my book. In March of 2021, in the midst of a pandemic when many more people became interested in how they can preserve health and prevent disease, my book was born.

The information in my book is more relevant than ever as awareness of the importance of our personal control over our health destiny has been at the forefront of the minds of many.

My book, Staying Healthy Living Longer- 7 Powerful Principles for a Healthier You! has been an Amazon Bestseller in 5 categories and has won 2 book award contests: the 2021 International Book Award for Health over 50 and the Firebird award for diet and nutrition and healthy aging! I am happy to say that it is now widely available wherever books are sold.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Integrated Physical Therapy and Wellness?
I am the owner of Integrated Physical Therapy and Wellness providing in-person consultations at my home office, the patient’s home, or through telemedicine. My practice integrates the mind, body, and spirit and includes a whole-person evaluation of lifestyle factors including, exercise, diet, stress, in addition to physical dysfunctions and concerns. It is an individualized approach that uses the protocol I have developed and that is discussed in my book. The protocol is called HELP, Health Enhancing Life Protocol.

In addition, I provide physical therapy consultation and treatment through select outpatient clinics that accept Medicare assignments.

What are your plans for the future?
I am very interested in additional certifications in treating the physical manifestations of unresolved trauma, and chronic unresolved stress on the body, especially the nervous system. I am pursuing education through the Psychophysiological Disorders Association (PPDA) which is a non-profit established by many medical doctors to increase awareness and treatment of stress-related illnesses. Psycho-physiological simply means there is an interaction of the physical body and psychological (emotional) variables. Some are common conditions with labels such as migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, chronic pelvic pain, abdominal pain, chronic neck and back pain.  Often, medical tests and scans do not provide a clear source or explanation for the pain, or the pain persists even after medical treatment. This is an area we need to give more attention to as chronic pain in society continues to increase.

It is known from studies in neuro-science that subconscious psychological stress and emotional trauma, alter biological function, increase cellular inflammation, and ramp up pain signaling in the brain and nervous system even in the absence of an injury, or tissue damage.

I am also continuing my education through the Institute for Functional Medicine because I understand more than ever that by identifying the underlying, root cause factors early, we can make needed changes to diet and lifestyle and prevent 80-90% of disease states we see. This is hope we can all use.