Kim Jones, California Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist

While attending graduate school I taught in Los Angeles Unified and Pasadena Unified School District and worked in youth recreational programming across private and nonprofit settings. These experiences shaped how I understand emotional development, stress and resilience and continue to inform my work today.

Over the years, I’ve learned that people rarely come to therapy because they’re “not strong enough.” More often, they’ve been strong for so long that they’re exhausted from carrying everything on their own.

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My Therapeutic Approach

My approach to therapy is active, collaborative and practical. After more than 26 years as a therapist, one thing continues to stand out to me: no matter how different people’s stories are, most want the same things. They want to feel understood. They want healthier relationships. They want more peace of mind. And they want to feel like themselves again. Helping people move toward those goals is still the most rewarding part of my work.

What I bring to every session is genuine curiosity about your experience, a practical focus on tools you can use in your daily life, and a collaborative approach that makes therapy feel active and engaging—not something that’s happening to you. My goal is for you to feel supported in our work together, gaining new awareness and a clearer sense of what’s beginning to shift over time.

That means I’m an active, engaged presence in the room—not a passive listener who simply reflects your words back to you. I bring in psychoeducation, neuroscience-informed techniques, and clear, practical explanations to help you understand what may be happening beneath your thoughts, emotions, and patterns.

The goal is to feel less confused and overwhelmed, so you can stop white-knuckling your way through it and begin creating real, lasting change. I’ll share observations, offer honest feedback, and gently challenge the stories you’ve been telling yourself when it’s helpful, while always following your lead and meeting you where you are.

I believe one of the most important parts of therapy is transparency. I’ll explain why we’re doing what we’re doing, connect the work in session to your real life, and check in regularly to make sure it’s helpful. If something isn’t working, we adjust together. Therapy should feel supportive and useful as we work together, even as the process naturally moves forward, pauses, and shifts over time. Clients often tell me they appreciate the way I show up—asking thoughtful questions, sharing observations and helping them connect the dots in ways they hadn’t considered before.

Sessions are a mix of exploring what’s underneath the patterns keeping you stuck, building practical skills you can use right away, and helping you develop a clearer, more compassionate relationship with yourself. I also pay attention to what’s happening in your body as well as your thoughts—because anxiety, stress, and trauma don’t live only in the mind.

I integrate evidence-based approaches tailored to your needs, including CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), trauma-informed care, interpersonal therapy, solution-focused therapy, family systems, attachment-based therapy, strategic intervention, and human needs psychology, depending on what’s most helpful for you.

My ongoing continuing education includes CBT, anxiety, depression, trauma, emotional regulation, somatic treatments, women’s health issues, relationship challenges and narcissistic abuse recovery — areas I continue to deepen my training in to better support the clients I work with.

You don’t have to arrive ready for change. Sometimes you just need a space to be truly heard first — and that’s exactly where we start.

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Specialized Training, Certifications & Professional Experience

My clinical and professional background includes:

• Gottman Method Level 1 Couples Therapy Training – a research-based approach for improving communication, managing conflict and deepening emotional connection in relationships.
• Advanced Certification in Strategic Intervention (Madanes Training Institute)
• Founding member of Robbins-Madanes Strategic Intervention Training Program & and Marriage Education
• Extensive continuing education in anxiety, trauma, depression, somatic work, and emotional regulation
• Presenting Workshops on communication, stress management, parenting, and relationship skills
• Experience in outpatient, residential, school-based, and community mental health settings
• DIS counseling provided in past to Poway Unified and Vista Unified School District
• Work with families impacted by trauma, domestic violence, and significant life stressors
• Collaborating with medical professionals, teachers, school staff and community professionals to support client wellbeing
• Owning and managing a small business, giving me direct insight into the work-life balance and professional pressures many of my clients face
• Extensive volunteer experience working with children and families experiencing life-threatening medical conditions

I am a member of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT) and remain committed to ongoing professional development.

I’ve always believed that good therapists never stop learning. Continuing my education allows me to bring the most current knowledge and effective approaches into the room, while never losing sight of the fact that every client is unique.

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