In the realm of personal growth and spiritual evolution, Kelly Melear-Hough emerges as a beacon of inspiration and wisdom. As a distinguished Transformational Life Coach and Shamanic Practitioner, she has dedicated her life to guiding individuals on a profound journey of self-discovery and healing. Join Mystic Mag as we embark on an exploration of the transformative landscape shaped by Kelly’s unique expertise, delving into the blend of life coaching and shamanic practices that she employs to awaken the spirit within. Get ready to be inspired and enlightened as we unravel the secrets to a more meaningful and purposeful life with Kelly Melear-Hough as our guide.
Can you share your journey and experiences that led you to become a Certified Life, Spiritual, and Energy Coach, Shamanic Practitioner, and Reiki Master, with a particular focus on trauma-informed and anti-racist practices?
That’s a long story! Some of the highlights are that I have always been interested in spirituality, psychology, people, and culture. I was fascinated with people from foreign countries as a child and began learning Spanish at an early age. I loved learning languages and learning about diverse cultural practices as a child and when I went to college I decided to major in Anthropology and Sociology with a minor in Spanish so that I could learn as much as possible about culture and language. I had the privilege to study abroad in Spain in my junior year of college and to live with a Spanish family which helped me become bilingual. After graduation I lived in Mexico for a while and really immersed myself in that culture.
Another theme throughout my life was spirituality. I have always had a hunger and curiosity for all things spiritual including the occult and those things labeled as “you’re not supposed to be interested in that,” like psychic mediumship, channeling, crystals, intuition, etc. Shamanism has been a draw for me since I learned about it in my teens.
I have been on a path of spiritual discovery my whole life and have studied many teachings including Reiki, shamanism, Christianity, Eastern religions, etc. I have also been a diligent student of personal development and self-help. My goal has always been to learn as much as I can in order to be the best person I can be and to fulfill my mission on earth.
How do you integrate trauma-informed principles into your coaching and healing practices? Can you provide an example of how this approach has positively impacted a client’s life?
Part of my 90-Day Path to Transformation program includes at least one shamanic healing session. During this session I invite my clients to use the felt sense to locate places in the body that need to be healed either from a physical ailment or an emotional/spiritual ailment. Sometimes it’s all three. I find that clients are intuitively able to do this even if they’ve never tried before. Once they locate a place in their body that needs attention, we explore what is going on in that area in terms of thoughts, emotions, sensations, and images. My trauma training guides me here – I don’t want my clients to relive any traumatic experiences, but rather, I want them to observe what’s going on in their bodies so that we can work to release that old energy that no longer serves them and re-write any negative beliefs that they have created and stored in their body.
What type of services do you offer?
Currently, I offer one-on-one coaching in the form of a 90-day program that is designed to help my clients find clarity around the issue/s that are keeping them stuck in confusion, stress and exhaustion. I then help them articulate what it is that they really want and work through their limiting beliefs, blocks and fears so that they gain the confidence and courage to create a life that allows them to have more joy, peace of mind work that is truly fulfilling. I use shamanic tools such as the shamanic journey and energy healing techniques to help my clients in this process.
I am also working on a group course and coaching program that I hope to start offering in the first quarter of 2024.
In addition, I offer a complimentary 30-minute Clarity Call to potential new clients so that we can get to know each other and so that they can experience what it is like to work with me.
I also offer free classes periodically on my Facebook page Journey to Transformation with Kelly Melear-Hough. In August I did a free series on shamanic journeying.
Could you explain the importance of decolonizing one’s mind and how it plays a role in creating a safer and more inclusive space for your clients? What steps have you taken in your personal journey toward decolonization?
I am currently enrolled in the Decolonized Coach Community with Emily Brant whose niche is helping other coaches to decolonize their practices. I am working through her online course and have attended sessions with her to learn about what decolonization means for a coaching practice and how to create safer spaces for people who are Black, Brown, Indigenous or people of color (BBIPOC). I am also intentionally purchasing products from people of color, such as books and trainings, so that I can learn more about the lived experiences and perspectives of these folks.
Previously, I worked in the field of migrant and community health for 25 years and I was very proactive in working to make the healthcare services of the organizations I worked with more accessible and equitable for people of color and, in particular, farmworkers who were immigrants from Mexico, Central America and Haiti. It was my life’s work for many years to design, create and implement programs that eliminated or reduced the barriers for these people, i.e., language, transportation, and financial barriers. This work allowed me to witness and learn from the BBIPOC patients that we were privileged to serve, and I bring those learnings into my current work as a coach. As a white woman I know that unlearning colonialism is a life-long process, and I am committed to this journey and approach it with the beginner’s mindset because I know that there is a lot I don’t know but that I can do better as I go forward.
Can you describe the role of spirituality in your coaching and healing practices? How do you balance spiritual guidance with the individual beliefs and preferences of your clients?
Spirituality is central to my work as a coach and shamanic practitioner. It is my belief that shamanic practices can be used by anyone, regardless of their personal belief system. In fact, shamanism isn’t a religion, and many shamans worldwide are members of faiths such as Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam. Shamanism, rather, is a spiritual methodology of connecting with spirit to receive guidance and healing. I find that people who are open minded enough to give it a try are able to connect with a compassionate helping spirit in animal or human form. Spirit can show up in any form during a journey and often, it shows up in a form that is easy for a person to relate to – such as a figure from their religious education.
The shamanic journey is an incredibly useful tool for gaining helpful guidance around our human problems. During a guided journey, I help my clients travel to the spirit world in non-ordinary reality. There, they connect with a compassionate helping spirit and receive guidance for their lives. This can be incredibly helpful for people who feel stuck and can’t see a way out of their situations. It is a tool that helps them gain the clarity they are looking for in order to make the changes they need to make. It’s a starting point for transformation that leads to a life of greater meaning, fulfillment, and pleasure. It is a repeatable practice that clients can do on their own, anytime they choose which is a tool that they gain from working with me.
In your experience, how can individuals effectively integrate spiritual and healing practices into their daily lives to promote personal growth and well-being?
My own spiritual practices include meditating in the morning which often is a shamanic journey, but other times is a grounding meditation to help me check in with my body and ask what I need for the day. These are simple practices that I teach my clients so that they can become more connected to their bodies and their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs. Taking a few minutes to check in with our bodies, ground and ask what we need can be incredibly helpful for designing our days and our lives to better support us in meeting our needs. The journey is another tool to help us connect with our guides (or our inner wisdom) to help us figure out our next steps towards achieving our goals.
I find that most people today have become disconnected from their bodies and oftentimes their spirit as well. Western culture requires us to focus on productivity more than anything else, which means that we often have to ignore or shut out our feelings, including our physical needs and our emotional needs, in order to achieve success at work. Part of my work is helping people come back to wholeness – reconnecting with how their body is feeling and what they need from an emotional and spiritual perspective in order to feel better. We are born knowing how to do this, but we forget along the way, so it’s a matter of remembering to check in with our bodies and ask ourselves what we need on a daily basis and then prioritize our needs so that we have a greater sense of wellbeing.
To learn more about Kelly, please visit https://kellymelearhough.com/
