Kelly Howe
Working as an RN and raising three babies, Kelly Howe looked like she was thriving on the outside, but on the inside, it was a different story. After exchanging her certification from RN to EFT, she began integrating mind-body healing into her own life, and eventually into the lives of other strong, driven women.
We caught up with Kelly to learn more about her journey from burnout to mind-body healing and her advice for entrepreneurial healers.
Healer Name ( = street you grew up on + birthstone):
Martha Garnet
Healing Specialty:
Emotional Freedom Technique (Tapping)
How did you discover your passion for mind-body healing?
It started when I recognized I had big reactions to emotions. I relate it to being an empath, but I didn’t know that at the time. I decided to teach myself to override that stress response and I recognized I had this power to think my way out of my emotions and move past it. I also had a Dad who was a drug addict and went through rehab after a near death experience. He saw the light and was given the option to come back. My Dad started talking about energy and spirit and God outside of a religious sense. He gave me a book about vibrational medicine and my science mind was hooked.
If you could explain tapping (EFT) in three words what would it be?
Neuroregulatory somatic release.
Tell us about your transition from RN to EFT?
I worked as a nurse for 10 years and was probably burnt out 9.5 out of 10. My body was screaming at me. I was working night shift and had three babies and I wasn’t myself. I had a short fuse and I wasn’t thriving. I hated my job, but loved caring for people and I didn’t know what to do with that. I got broken down and had a classic middle-of-the-night-surrender moment. I gave it over to the universe and asked, “if there’s something I’m supposed to know to get me out of this, I’m wide open.”
A few days later, I started getting emails about tapping through a Hay House newsletter. I felt like a goofball trying it, but I felt it work fast and my body settled so quickly — I was hooked. I had to learn everything I could about it. For a while, I was in the closest around tapping. I wanted to do it professionally, I just I didn’t know what that looked like. I balanced both part-time for a while, then decided I was gonna go for it.
What would you say the number one stressor is that keeps your clients stuck? And how do they heal it?
The very first thing I look at is how much are you shutting down your own authentic voice. The people that find me are strong, driven women that have learned through survival to shut down emotions. The impulse for those genuine emotions wants to come through and tugs on the nervous system, then we feel physical disease. I help them to see that along with being strong and driven, they’re also beautifully vulnerable, weak and wounded, just like every other human on the planet.
You focus on business owner wellbeing. What advice do you have for entrepreneurial healers?
Healers and coaches are often on this path I was on, in that I didn’t want to be a business owner and it was never part of my goal. It starts with wanting to help people, then you’re plopped into needing to figure out how to be an entrepreneur. My advice is don’t be afraid to ask questions. If that feels scary, and creates stress, it’s workable and part of your soul’s evolution. If you like being a healer, but not so much the business side, that’s okay - figure out what you want to learn about it. Ask yourself questions like: How can I balance money? How can I give and receive? What’s good for me and for them? What would happen if I carved out time for self-care?
How do you find the confidence and stress relief to run your own business?
The only reason I can have a successful business is because of my technique. I couldn’t work through those fears if I didn’t have tapping. I’m a huge scaredy cat. There’s ancestral stuff around staying quiet and small. When I used to post on social media, I would get a full body reaction. I’d start tapping to get back to my baseline and make a rational decision. Then I’d remember, if posting helps one other person, it helps me. The beautiful side effect to stress relief is confidence. When you’re grounded and calm, you can look at the here and now and everything feels different.
What does profound healing look like for you?
When something has truly been healed. When someone can look at me and tell me the story of something terrible that happened to them and have zero physical stress reaction to it. They can look at that car accident, where before their anxiety was at a 10, but now they can share the details and get through the story without emotion — they’ve gotten to a place where they feel safe and can access forgiveness on their own without prompting.
What’s one truth you’d like to say out loud to the collective?
I am a hot mess just like everyone else, even with all this damn healing work.
Connect with Kelly @klohowe and @kellyhowecoaching