Hidden Gems: Meet Elizabeth Mintun of Reflections Counseling Center of Columbus, Inc. & The Calming Ground

Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Mintun

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I have been a psychotherapist in private practice for well over a decade. I believe all therapists also need to be a client in therapy, so I have been in therapy much of that time, too. What I found both as a client and as a therapist, is that – while therapy is amazing in so many ways for transformation and growth – there was a missing piece for me. I realized that the missing piece was mindful and intentional practices of daily self-care and the help to prioritize this in every day life (in between therapy sessions).

This started me on a journey of mindfulness, meditation, and intentional practices of all kinds. I traveled to Costa Rica and became trained and certified as a forest bathing guide (I already had a love of nature, so this seemed like a logical next step) and I also discovered the practice of meditative qigong, which is the grandfather of tai chi, and offered me a meditative movement practice that was incredibly soothing for me. From there, I became immersed and ultimately received a certification to teach qigong, as well.

These simple practices of meditating, forest bathing, and practicing consistent mindful self-care in my life were astoundingly influential. I discovered that I was able to find my peace anytime, anywhere – a reality that I had not ever known before. I felt such gratitude for the ways that these practices impacted my life, I decided to create offerings in the community so I could welcome others to try these simple practices, too.

This is how The Calming Ground was born. The Calming Ground began as a membership for women online and in-person (for those who are local) to receive weekly nuggets of support and guidance around prioritizing their mindful self-care in their lives. The intention was to help women go from feeling depleted, overwhelmed, and exhausted to feeling inspired, confident, and energized.

Soon, I began receiving inquiries about one-on-one mindful life coaching, as well. So, I added customized mindful life coaching services for those who are seeking more individualized support (the coaching is not exclusive to women).

I also began The Calming Ground podcast to offer a free service available to all who are seeking actionable steps, wisdom, and insight into areas related to self care and physical and emotional wellbeing.

I have offered forest bathing and qigong workshops in various community venues in Columbus, as well, simply to create accessible options for others to explore and experience the tremendous benefits of these practices.

While I still work in private practice and enjoy being a psychotherapist at my private practice Reflections Counseling Center of Columbus, Inc., these other offerings are intended to provide other alternative pathways to help people return to their center, their balance, their peace, and experience more ease and calm in their lives. I have absolutely loved creating the branches of The Calming Ground.

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?
For me personally, the struggles had to do with me focusing on personal growth and transformation and noticing the gaps in my path. For example, I was a dedicated client and therapist, but I noticed feeling stress and did not quite know how to develop a way to consistently attend to my baseline stress to feel more confident and at peace on-going. I tried quite a few options (yoga, sitting meditation, etc.) which were all wonderful and I still use them and talk about these options today – but the forest bathing and qigong were the best fit for me.

The other struggle was creating a membership and coaching and lifting that off the ground. I had done so with my psychotherapy practice, but this was a completely different ballgame! I had to find ways to help very busy people see the benefit of slowing down – when most people feel that slowing themselves down is going to be more stressful because they won’t be able to continue ticking things off their to-do list at the same rate. Ironically, this slowing down process actually helps them be more intentional and focused on their day-to-day life (which helps with the to-do list), but in this society and culture that can be a hard message to get across.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I bring my psychotherapy knowledge, training, and background into my work as a mindful life coach, qigong teacher, and forest bathing guide. I am known for encouraging practices that invite slowing down, tuning in, and compassionately attending to whatever is happening within. I offer many strategies and nourishing practices in line with this, and these practices (especially when done consistently) are literally life-changing. They have the capacity to turn stress into vitality and stretch the capacity for more compassionate and intentional decision-making for myself and others.

I am very real in how I present myself – I don’t pretend to be the perfect yogi or a guru. I’m just as flawed as anyone else and I’m very honest about that. I bring my humility, my compassionate presence, and my ability to laugh at myself into my work and, in doing so, my experience is that others then feel more safety and permission to be vulnerable and real too.

I offer psychotherapy in Ohio for those who are seeking therapy. For those in Ohio and beyond who are looking for an alternative and/or complement to therapy, I offer a low-cost self-care membership for women that provides a community and beautiful mindfulness practices each week that require very little time commitment, and I offer one-on-one mindful life coaching to help people experience confidence, inspiration, and peace – even in their busy lives. In addition, I’m currently in the process of developing retreats.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
My biggest advice is that small matters. Microshifts over time create enormous and beautiful transformations. I think sometimes people feel overwhelmed and think they need to meditate 30 minutes a day or go to an hour yoga class to experience mindful living and/or peace. The truth is – even 5 minutes of an intentional practice a day can make an enormous difference. Also, I would begin with where there’s already less friction. For example, if you like to take walks, start there. If you notice yourself sighing throughout the day – start with the sighs and create intentionality around them. We don’t have to climb mountains – there is tremendous power in what is already accessible.

Pricing:

• $27/month membership
• $140 1-hr therapy session
• $125 1-hr life coaching session

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thecalmingground.com
• Instagram: @thecalmingground
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecalmingground