Kienya Jones (She/They)

As a queer, Black woman and ex-athlete, building relationships has been the forefront to my experience of life. My approach to therapy is trauma-informed, psychodynamic, emotion-focused, sex-positive, and anti-oppressive. I was directly trained in issues related to domestic violence, delivering clinical care to survivors, crisis stabilization, and safety planning. While I focus on role play, narrative therapy and reality Therapy. I utilize an integrative approach to align with your needs and goals, and I seek resources and research to support my clinical work so I can ensure quality, evidence-based care.

As a clinical counselor, I emulate a warm and approachable nature. I value gaining rapport, fostering feelings of inclusion and safety, and installing trust within my therapeutic relationships. My duty as your therapist is to demonstrate thoughtfulness, compassion, and a willingness to learn throughout our relationship. You are deserving of an opportunity to rewrite your story no matter how that looks. A new journey may seem overwhelming when faced alone. I want to assure you I will do my best to help navigate this therapeutic process with you.

Questions? kienya@forrealtherapy.com

INTERVIEW BIO WITH Kienya Jones

How has therapy influenced or changed how you connect with yourself and others? 

Therapy has influenced me when it comes to giving myself and others a break. I frequently hear people placing too much pressure on themselves. There are so many obligations that it’s hard to recognize what is a priority. Therapy has allowed me to relax and observe what my priorities are. While the world wants so much from us, I tell clients when you come into therapy with me, show up authentically, being whoever you feel most comfortable being when you are here with me. I don't want to put another pressure on you. Not putting pressure on my clients has allowed me not to place pressure on myself or on the wrong things.

If I’ve never been in therapy before - What can I expect or observe in our therapy work together?

Expect an experience, an experience that does not look like the normal therapeutic experience. I don’t want anyone to feel as if they are obligated to be there for anything other than the nature of getting better. Better can look like us laughing the whole session, us being angry about things, or expressing in a manner you have not done before. An experience that feels like you stepped in a time machine and you are brought back to those good or bad moments, but able to feel what you weren't able to feel in the past.

Tell us about someone who inspires you? What did you learn from them and how did you integrate that wisdom into your life?

My mom inspires me, because she’s that girl! No matter what obstacles she faced. She is such a factual woman. When it comes to her personal experience and testimony, she has been through it all. She is an inspiration to embody what it means to love and care for someone. I wish she could give that love and care to herself more, but she’s selfless. She is such an inspiration because the life that she was given is not centered around her identity as a Black woman. The way she lives life, you would think the things that happened to her never happened. My mom has molded me in times of confusion and needing some answers that everything will work out and be alright. Shout out to my mama.

Talk to us about your passion - What are you passionate about? How has your passion informed your approach and connecting with others?

I believe that I am passionate about taking care of people. I find it important to handle people with care. Handling people with care is important to me because sometimes the first person to handle people with care is potentially me. People don’t care because it is easier for us to avoid others than to care for them. 

I am passionate about making people feel cared for and modeling for others what care looks like and does not look like.

Given that you have a background in sports and athletics - Could you describe the intersections between mental health, physical health and how it relates to therapy?

I believe everyone should do a sport - Volleyball, pickleball, wall-ball, anything. Sports provide a different type of community than other activities. My background in sports allowed me to realize perspective. If you don't choose an environment to grow in personally, others will pick where you grow. You have people willing to pull you up and bring you with them. In sports and psychological health, it is important to remind yourself that you're welcomed. There are times in sports you can feel you’re there, but life hits you hard and you're there physically, not mentally. There are a lot of times as humans where we are physically here but not present.

What is the hardest truth you had to accept? 

That I am going to make mistakes - We all will. That is how we learn but it can be difficult to learn new things and make mistakes. I struggle with the idea of perfectionism which is a result of living under capitalism and accepting that is the reality of the world I live in. I work constantly to try to find ways to attain perfectionism cause the world isn't perfect and neither are we, but there is this idea of perfectionism that creeps up every once in a while.

Have you ever struggled with your self-esteem, confidence, or ability? How did you manage this struggle?

Yes, I tore a ligament in my ankle. I was incapable of walking on my own for 3-4 months. I felt as if asking for help felt like a task that no one wanted to help me with. This was not true. My ability to communicate my needs were lost even with myself. It took me a while to realize, I was in undergrad and had a professor who sat me down and told me. “There is so much more to life than just the things you thought you would do.” My senior year of college I did not want to hear that. I expanded on things that were more powerful and bigger than myself. That was a time I felt most secure finding ways to be comfortable with myself.  I managed this struggle by upholding a standard to trust myself and my community in order to feel better about not being 100%. 

Healing can look and feel like a lot. Getting to your lowest point and realizing you can stack up to be your best self, but know you can always go back to that lowest point. You can become uncomfortable or comfortable with your lowest point. Healing physically depends on how hard you are willing to fight or face yourself. When I was hurt, I kept trying to get better but I had to get worse in order to realize I am capable of being better and healthy.

Where do you think the future of therapy and mental health is going?

It is going in a direction where continuous growth is going to happen. Where people are going to be comfortable talking about things that don't make them feel like themselves and there not be any dragged out judgment behind it. The future of therapy is going to start being something that people are not realizing is happening because it will be so natural. It is going to be something that is unique and addicting. 

What is your universal piece of advice?

Sit back and enjoy the ride. I know that sounds so corny but sometimes you need to allow things to play out to know what’s next. If you sit back and enjoy the ride, you will be able to experience those ups and downs as if they didn't stick to you or as if they were a roadblock.