Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Melissa Dierker . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Melissa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you share a customer success story with us?

Families and Professionals approach us for a wide variety of needs. Some are looking for classes their kids can take because they loved yoga in school, some have never heard of yoga and mindfulness but were referred by mental health or medical professionals, and some are in crisis needing one on one support. People experience a lot of grief and loss in life and our kids are no exception.

One day a mom reached out to us looking for classes and private sessions for her child, as they had just experienced the death of a parent. This death was sudden, suicide. This amazing youth showed up to class and while quiet and mostly observed class, they reportedly loved it and continued to come back. We also started private sessions together, too. One activity we do with kids is to let them draw their own yoga cards. This could be anything they want. It could be an abstract card, a literal person doing a yoga shape, or whatever they come up with. This student was so excited in our one-on-one to create these cards together and quickly chose 3 pieces of paper. They quickly and thoughtfully drew out each card.

When it was time to show our cards they showed the first card of a beautiful flower. We stood tall and smiled at the sun, waving in the wind. Just as we were enjoying ourselves it was the second card’s turn. We went from happy and carefree to shock. Our flowers were being picked out of the ground and our bodies moved wildly on our yoga mats. Once we had moved through that, it was time for our final card. We stomped on the flower and fell to the ground. We had just gone through the entire cycle of this kids grief, and this child’s experience.

I met with this fantastic kid for a couple of years. In classes, in private sessions, and then one day they learned the details of their parent’s death, and after many years of processing in different avenues of life including therapy, their mom, community, and yoga and mindfulness they were ready to move forward.

It is beautiful to see the toolbox of skills a kid creates and fine-tunes. Tools they can pull out when things get scary or difficult. Being part of this child’s process and journey was truly a humbling experience to be a part of.

Melissa, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

When I was young I told my mom I wanted to be a teenager. That goal was easily met, and I then realized that I really wanted to be a Social Worker. I had my own Social Workers growing up when the state would come in and out of our home. I remember the legal and medical systems all working together to keep me safe and find answers to their many questions and concerns. I had many different Social Workers in my life growing up from case workers, to therapists, and they all impacted my life. Being a Social Worker was exactly what I wanted to do. To support kids in their journey, to keep youth safe, and support families during difficult times, just like I felt my Social Workers did for me as a kid.

I worked for the state of Missouri for 5 years as a case manager and adoption worker. I then worked for an amazing local non-profit for 7 years following that. I was doing all the things I had set out to do in life. Then one day my own trauma and adoption story was triggered and I was finding myself searching for answers and alternatives to support my individual therapy. That’s when I stumbled across yoga.

After completing my yoga teacher training and really connecting to myself, I realized I needed to do this full-time. I knew I needed to take this to mold and shift it to work for kids who have experienced trauma, have mental health diagnoses, and have all abilities. So that’s what I did. I left the non-profit that I loved, gathered my family up, and started a small business supporting youth.

Over the years it continues to grow and mold. When I first started I was looking at individual classes so kids had a safe space to show up and move. From there it developed into specialized series, weekly drop-in classes, private sessions, and fun events. It now has all these things but an added community element of supporting families as a whole and supporting our community. Through all of this, the goal has always remained the same, a safe space to connect with yourself, others, and the world around you.

A lot of kids who show up to the studio have experienced abuse, the death of a parent, divorced parents, bullying, trouble making friends, incarcerated parents, domestic violence, depression, foster care, adoption, aggression, overwhelm, and anxiety. Our goal is always to create a safe space for all kids to show up in their authentic selves. This allows for kids to explore topics like boundaries, identity, communication, social skills, coping skills, self and co-regulation, and so much more! We love showing up and working with youth and watching how they discover what works for them to explore their feelings, regulate their nervous system, and connect to themselves, others, and the world around them.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Grace approached me while she was in the heart of her Yoga Teacher Training. She was searching for how to take this practice and show up in the world with it. She was actively talking to yoga professionals about how they bring yoga to others. Grace and I met in a Starbucks one evening after I taught. I really wasn’t sure what this meeting would look like, but for some reason it felt important to me.

As soon as I sat down with Grace and listened to her journey, her story, and just being with her it felt so encouraging. Grace was eager to learn about what I did and how I was doing it. She listened, asked questions and genuinely was processing all the information she was hearing. Our conversation flowed naturally and we genuinely enjoyed each others company. We then parted ways.

I never thought I would hear from Grace again. She was exploring what yoga practice looked like, what modality she felt connected too. I was sure that what I was doing and how exhausted I looked was probably not what she was looking for. Little did I know it was exactly what she was looking for!

We met again and started the process of having her as my apprentice. She dove right in taking additional trainings, and meeting for hours a week to talk about and process trauma, mental health, the body, movement, mindfulness, and our own stories. We became incredibly close during this whole process. Grace has evolved from this person I met at Starbucks to my friend, my confidant, my sister, and now my partner.

We are navigating what partnership in a business is. How we show up, how we give and take, and how we continue to process and show up for each other and our own stuff. We know that this work is hard. It requires so much of you, and having Grace alongside me has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. Meeting Grace and showing up authentically at that Starbucks 4 years ago truly changed my life.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

As a social worker, I didn’t have any extra funds to start a business. I also didn’t know how loans worked, and I didn’t really want to take out a loan either. I had just quit my job to pursue this passion but I still needed to be able to support my family.

My life partner and I decided to start really small and gradually grow. So that’s what we did. I had some fantastic friends and supportive people who offered to support my dream. I paid minimal rent and used minimal supplies to get started. I basically took $100 and put it in a checking account and started a business. It wasn’t easy, and it hasn’t always been easy but I”m pretty proud of how far we have come.

We later took out a loan to support the move-in of our own brick-and-mortar studio, after building our business for 2 years. It has been one of the best things I have ever done!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.completeharmonystl.com
• Instagram: Complete Harmony STL
• Facebook: Complete Harmony STL
• Youtube: Complete Harmony Yoga for Youth

Image Credits
Images provided and taken by Complete Harmony