The Center for Mindful Healing at the corner of 4th Street and Main Avenue in Moorhead is quiet and serene, with big windows, big pillows and luscious succulents.

Melissa Dahl founded the Center last June and is pleased with the organic growth in classes and teachers.

“This is all about being gentle with oneself,” she says and lives. “I opened the space to integrate multiple forms of healing by offering counseling, yoga, mindfulness meditation and courses on self-compassion. While in graduate school, I completed an extensive review of self-compassion as a form of self-care for helping professionals. It was through my training with the University of San Diego Center for Mindfulness that I decided to establish The Center.”

She is one busy woman. Monday through Wednesday, she works as a clinician serving two rural Minnesota communities, mostly women and children.

“My passion is working with women on the topics of attachment, shame and self-compassion. On Thursdays and Fridays, I am able to be at The Center. My day will start with tea or coffee, seeing a few clients and then preparing for my evening class. We offer yoga throughout the week. Practicing in the space I work in helps with creating balance. The Center lets in the most peaceful morning sun. I feel most alive and congruent when I am here. Most days, I feel a large amount of gratitude for the path my life has brought me and I look around with amazement,” Melissa said about a “typical day.”

The Center for Mindful Healing has its foundation in research and evidence-based practices. Our goal is to provide mindfulness-informed practices by offering a calm, thoughtful and engaging environment. Research strongly supports the benefits of integrating mental healing, working with the mind; and somatic healing, working with the body. The Center can offer you the opportunity to practice both in one space, Melissa says.

“We welcome those who may be experiencing fatigue, chronic stress, insomnia and symptoms of anxiety or depression,” she said, noting the other teachers who use The Center.

Family is her priority. “The practice helps me know where to put my energy,” she said.

“This kind of work is slow. Clients often begin with an eight-week course. Some clients choose to go on to individual work,” Melissa says. “It is all about being patient and kind with themselves, seeing the change in their lives.”

Her life inspired her choice to provide mental health services. Her mother struggled withuntreated, undiagnosed mental health issues. “I became aware that being proactive about my own mental health was as important to me as it was to be of service to others through counseling. I found my calling as a mental health counselor,” she said.

She is a trained teacher of Mindful Self-Compassion, and holds a Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Minnesota State University Moorhead. She has completed an extensive review on self-compassion as a form of self-care for helping professionals. She is a graduate of Mindful Self-Compassion training and Mindful Self-Compassion Teacher Training.

All classes with all instructors are held in the Mindfulness Studio at The Center for Mindful Healing, 23 4th St. S., Moorhead.

Check class schedules at The Center’s website, www.thecenterformindfulhealing.com or email, melissa.dahl@thecenterformindfulhealing.com.