Meet Jenna Newton

We recently connected with Jenna Newton and have shared our conversation below.

Jenna, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

I would say in general I’m not naturally an optimistic person. As someone who has struggled with anxiety, I’m inclined to look and prepare for the worst and navigating the uncertainty that comes with life is a big challenge. A huge part of my growth in being more optimistic is acknowledging and accepting that many things are out of my control. I know this sounds backwards, but hear me out! This allows me to shift my focus to myself and what I can do, allowing a sense of empowerment and recognition of actions I’m able to take, one of which is the ability to shift my mindset. If you look for the worst, you will find it. I used to fear getting my hopes up would lead to more disappointment. But realistically, by not allowing ourselves to feel joy or hope, we’re missing out on the variety of emotions we’re supposed to feel in life. Plus, it doesn’t really make the disappointment hurt any less. By allowing ourselves to feel hopeful or optimistic we can experience, at least for a small period of time, the pleasant emotions which in turn increases our tolerance and ability to bounce back in the long-term. Disappointments, disagreements and difficulties are inevitably a part of life that we can’t avoid and in order to lead a healthy and fulfilling life, we need to be able to accept and feel the emotions that come with this. We can’t control other people, their thoughts or decisions. We can simply do our best with what we have in the moment and let the rest play its course. It gets easier as we learn we are able to cope with the highs and the lows of life. Additionally, I’ve been honored to get to witness so many people/clients at the lowest points of their lives and see them overcome this with their strengths, perseverance and courage, even when it seemed impossible. Seeing the humanness and qualities of my clients gives me so much hope for our world, as they are truly incredible humans.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Hello! My name is Jenna and I’m a Licensed Professional Counselor in Colorado. I work via Telehealth with clients providing individual therapy using various evidenced based practices, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Most recently I have begun incorporating Internal Family Systems and Somatic Therapy techniques to further help my clients, especially those that have experienced trauma. My specialties include anxiety, perfectionism, self-worth, depression, stress, relationships and life transitions and areas I am actively learning, applying and growing in include trauma and how nutrition impacts our mental health.
I got into this field after my own struggles with mental health. I didn’t have a great experience in therapy the first go-around and looking back, I can recognize it was in large part because I felt uncomfortable, unseen and unheard. Through psychology courses in high school, I found a passion to learn about mental health and what makes us who we are and that continued throughout undergrad, graduate school and to this day. I think my history of struggles helps me relate to and understand clients on a deeper level, despite each of us having our own unique stories. I understand beyond the surface level feelings of anxiety, depression and worthlessness and strategies that may be unhelpful in the long-term.
I have worked in a variety of therapy settings including inpatient, outpatient, intensive outpatient and EAP before pursuing Calm Solutions Therapy, LLC as my private practice. My practice is based on empathy, collaboration and problem-solving. I consider myself down to earth and enjoy using humor in sessions, when appropriate of course. I hope therapy is a transformative experience for you and one that you’ll look forward to each week. I firmly believe I do not have all the answers, nor am I supposed to. I believe my work is to help guide my clients to discover the answers for themselves through creating an open, safe space to been seen, heard and

What is most exciting to me right now is expanding my private practice, the growth and research in the mental health field, implementing the knowledge and techniques and then seeing it work with my clients. There’s nothing like seeing the lightbulb moment when something clicks, having a client be vulnerable for the first time or seeing with my own eyes the progress that’s been made in a clients ability and willingness to challenge their thoughts, cope with emotions and change behaviors. I learn so much from my clients, just as they learn from me,

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

The first skill I think was most impactful in my journey is genuine compassion and empathy.
I believe these skills cannot be understated in what we do as therapists. I feel fortunate that compassion and empathy are innate skills I was born with and have continued to harness. Finding areas in your day to day life can be so beneficial to develop or improve in this area. For example, talking to that stranger on a plane, giving a listening ear to a friend or family member you may typically feel like rolling your eyes at and practicing presence and curiosity in conversations. Putting yourself in the scenario someone is describing to you can help foster the difficult emotions they may be going through to help give additional perspective and empathy. I really recommend this watching this short video from Brene Brown on empathy and how it differs from sympathy!

The next skill that sticks out is honesty, both with myself and with others. I do my best to take an honest look at my work each day and assess for what went well, what didn’t and how I can do better. It’s important to both give credit for what went well and why and to explore areas I felt stuck and would have preferred to do something differently. I also admit when I’m unsure of something or make a mistake of some sort. This can feel vulnerable and uncomfortable, however I believe this honesty with myself and with clients helps recognize the humanness in each of us and fosters deeper relationships, connections and growth. I think a lot of this can come with fear of incompetence and imposter syndrome. In these cases, I think it’s extremely important to do the work on yourself, whether alone, in therapy or with trusted colleagues, and to remember we are doing the best we can with what we have in the moment. Sometimes taking some time between the task and assessment, anywhere between 1 hour to a day so you can be more regulated, can be really helpful to reflect more accurately and honestly.

The final area that I think was most impactful is learning about different modalities. In the early stages of my career, I found myself very drawn to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy. There is often a lot of pressure put on graduate students to find your one modality and stick to it. However, I don’t believe we have to choose only one and stick to it. I think it’s important to have a variety to pull from because not everything is going to work for everyone. Continue learning and finding what resonates most with you. As you grow and feel more competent with different modalities and find your niche, continue honing in on this and staying up to date on research and trainings for what is most effective for you as a clinician and aligned with your clients needs.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

Overwhelm is such as difficult emotion to experience and it communicates that we are being taken over by our emotions. First and foremost, I recognize and name that this is what is happening and what I’m feeling in the moment. Get familiar with your experience of overwhelm and your signs that you are getting close to feeling it, if not already in it. Once I do this and take a few deep breaths, my first step is to write down everything that needs to be done and begin prioritizing. Priorities can look different for different people on different days. For myself, I check in and identify both what would feel most attainable and what would feel most relieving. Some days, I need a small win to get momentum in my favor and start with something that feels fairly doable. Other days, the relief of accomplishing what’s weighing most on me is worthy of completing first.
Another key piece of managing overwhelm is ensuring I am taking breaks that are different from the task at hand. For example, if I’m doing a lot of mental work then my break with involve some sort of physical outlet or something that doesn’t require much thought.
Paying attention to basic needs, such as sleep, nutrition, hydration and exercise is crucial for managing overwhelm. Taking some deep breaths, walking, practicing mindfulness and self-compassion and taking a pause are extremely necessary when our body is in a state of overwhelm and unable to function.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.calmsolutionstherapy.com/
• Instagram: calmsolutionstherapy
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenna-newton/

Image Credits

Charan Bashir