
THE STORY
From Founder, Shelley Henk
Welcome to my corner of the world. I’m Shelley, founder of Whole Soul Studio, a Nurse turned Artist of the Soul. My own journey through trauma, chronic illness, career burnout, and disconnection from my creative power has shaped a lifelong mission: to guide others home to wholeness.
THE BIRTH OF
WHOLE SOUL STUDIO
Whole Soul Studio is not just a space; it is the outpouring of my journey. Born from my many years as a nurse, my walk through trauma, complex grief, chronic illness, and my return to creativity as medicine, the studio carries both the weight of wounds and the promise of wholeness. A place where suffering breaks forth into beauty. In high school, I knew in my soul that I was born to heal with Art, I just did not know how yet. I was told Art was not important and to get a real job, so I became a Nurse, I got a “real job” to help heal. Little did I know Nursing would break me open, and reveal my true calling. It would teach me everything I needed to know about being an “Artist of the Soul” and how to come home to my own story.
Every part of this studio is designed to hold and transform the hidden fractures, untold stories, and quiet grief we all carry, so you can rise restored, renewed, and revived
MY PILGRIMAGE THROUGH
GREIF AND HEALING
I carry the imprint of witnessing my father’s suicide at just 26 yrs old, a moment that fractured my world and left me with wounds too deep for words. Nearly a decade later, those hidden fractures surfaced as symptoms in my body, the breaking point that became my turning point.
From that place of unraveling, I discovered the creative path of restoration that is now the heart of Whole Soul Studio.
Through my own healing journey, I have come to understand that when we heal, everything changes. Life realigns, we begin to see from a higher vantage point, and we step into the purpose God placed within us.
In 2015, God called me to leave traditional health care as a Nurse and begin the work I am doing now.
EMBRACING THE
CALL OF WHOLENESS
Shelley Henk Credentials & Experience
RN, BSN – Lakeview College of Nursing
Certified Whole Health Educator, Coach & Patient Advocate – National Institute for Whole Health
Certified Enneagram Relationship Coach – with Dr. Tom LaHue
Certified Therapeutic Art Practitioner – Scholistico
Trauma Thriver – lived experience integrated into professional practice
Coach & Educator – Guided over 1,000+ women through healing and wholeness
Expressive Abstract Artist & Photographer
Creator of Artful Storywork™ Method
Co-Author – Just Say No (bestseller)
Featured on PBS Documentary – Medical Stories: Under Control
Milan Art Mastery Program Student
Creator of Artful Storywork
Kingdom Minister – School of Kingdom Ministry

My Purpose:
HELPING GODS CHILDREN BE WHOLE
Whole Soul Studio is a sacred tribute to my dad and my heavenly Father, Who have taught me how to love deeply. It honors the process of losing what we loved so dearly. a person, a marriage, a dream, our innocence, our health, and celebrates how suffering breaks forth into beauty through shapes, color, and texture. It is a place for me to continue moving forward and to guide others on their path. My purpose is to help God’s children be whole, transforming grief into love, chaos into creativity, disease into health, and wounds into wisdom by partnering with the Spirit.
“When your head and heart disagree, your body tells on you. When they are in harmony, your body thanks you”
— Shelley Henk
HEAL, the Water element, was about allowing myself to feel, release, and tend to the emotions I had long ignored. I learned to forgive and to grieve for the first time. I discovered that healing is not about perfection or doing it ‘right’ but about listening deeply to my body and heart. I began practices that nourished my nervous system, gave space to my grief, and honored my inner needs. Water taught me that true healing flows when I allow emotions to move through me, not when I try to control or silence them. In this element, I discovered how to care for myself with gentleness, trust, and compassion, opening the door to restoration and inner peace.
MY PATH THROUGH
THE FOUR ELEMENTS OF WHOLENESS
My journey began with FEEL, the grounding of the Earth element. After spending a year going from doctor to doctor, undergoing two surgeries, and seeing every specialist known, I had to admit that I could not hold one more thing in my story, that I needed help. In prayer, God told me to care for myself like a houseplant with complicated emotions. That was the beginning of my healing. I learned to slow down, connect with my body, and truly inhabit the present moment. Along the way, I released religious and cultural programming that told me my body was bad, something to be silenced, and that my emotions were not holy, meant to be managed, not tended to with care. I had also believed that if I grieved or looked back on my story in any way, I was not being faithful or full of the joy of the Lord. I fired all my doctors, rethought my faith, and took my health into my own hands, becoming a self-healer who trusted that my body wanted to heal. Walking this path taught me that stability, awareness, and gentle presence create the foundation for true healing, helping me feel rooted, safe, and fully alive in my own skin.
DREAM, the Wind element, was about freeing my mind and spirit. I began to release limiting beliefs and old stories that had held me captive for years. I learned to use my divine imagination instead of using it for my destruction. The wind taught me to embrace possibility, hope, and the power of creating from within. I started to envision a life beyond fear, beyond shame, beyond what I thought was possible. In this element, I discovered the courage to dream boldly, to trust the guidance of my intuition, and to feel the joy of possibility stirring within me. The wind carried me forward, helping me expand into a life of freedom and creative expression.
CREATE, the Fire element, was about stepping into my power and bringing my healed self fully into the world. I reclaimed my creative power that everyone carries within them because of their divine nature. I learned to transform my pain and experiences into purpose, using my voice, my creativity, and my energy to light the way for myself and others. Fire taught me courage, clarity, and the boldness to act on my visions. I discovered how to set healthy boundaries, ignite passion, and take inspired action. In this element, I became a co-creator with God, turning the lessons of my journey into a life of joy, authenticity, and radiant wholeness.
Disclaimer:
The programs and services offered by Whole Soul Healing Studio, including Artful Storywork™ and the School of YOU, are for personal growth, creativity, and wellness purposes only. They are not a substitute for medical, mental health, or financial advice. Results may vary, and participation is voluntary.

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