Today we’d like to introduce you to Jordan Fields.
Hi Jordan, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, let’s briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
The path to the current state of my career started on a very different track. I was an undergraduate at Dartmouth College, majoring in Psychology. Early in my academic career, I decided to pursue a career in the CIA, so I chose an academic minor in Arabic and joined the university’s Army ROTC program. However, I was ultimately disqualified from earning an ROTC scholarship due to injuries sustained while playing football in college. Thus began my exploration of other career options. At that time, our collective knowledge about the invisible wounds of war (PTSD and TBI) was growing, which led me to take a course called “Psychology in the Trenches.” This course introduced me to the sequelae of war and the nature of clinical work in Psychology. My professor for this course became a critical mentor as I debated pursuing a doctorate in medicine or Psychology. Ultimately, the medical model did not suit me, and I entered graduate school to attain my Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Memphis.
During my graduate work, the military came recruiting future Psychologists with promises of a waiver for my injury. Around this time, tragedy struck as one of my high school friends who had enrolled in the Air Force Academy was killed in a roadside bomb in Afghanistan. This reignited my desire to serve and caused me to choose my friend’s beloved military branch. After specializing in the study of the treatment, etiology, and epidemiology of PTSD in graduate school, I began an active-duty career as a Psychologist in the United States Air Force. During my time in the Air Force, I served in various capacities, from training residents to deploying as a Special Operations SERE (Survive, Evade, Resist, Escape) Psychologist in Afghanistan. In my last few years in the Air Force working with Special Operations, I have shifted my focus from psychopathology to performance as I developed a love for helping people learn to achieve and sustain high-performance levels. This love was spurred on by the fact that psychopathology creates a focus on a relatively small yet significant subset of the population, while performance psychology includes virtually everyone.
I left the military seeking greater control and flexibility and landed a role as the Assistant Director of Mental Health Services at Washington University of St. Louis’. My tenure in this role was short-lived as one of my former residents contacted me about a career opportunity at a startup that they thought might be an excellent fit for my interests and current career goals. I shifted to my current role as a Clinical Supervisor at one of the nation’s most innovative mental health tech startup companies. I supervise, manage, and consult with therapists nationwide in this role. I can also pursue performance psychology, as I carry a select caseload of clients with whom I engage in performance coaching.
Let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
I argue that anyone who has pursued an advanced degree has experienced various and unique roadblocks. My path, while unique in the sources of roadblocks and the pain points I experienced, was no different.
The first struggle that comes to mind presented itself early on in graduate school. I had a clinical supervisor during my third year of graduate school who had a vendetta against me. Her evaluation of my clinical work frequently left me stunned and bewildered. Each time I met with her, my confidence in my skills and abilities would wane. It took me much of the year to realize that her valuation of my work was highly biased.
After group supervision one day, a fellow student came to me similarly surprised at how I was being raked through the coals. This confirmation of how I was being treated and feedback from my clients that directly contradicted my supervisor’s statements provided some solace. I was fortunate enough to simultaneously have another supervisor and mentor who provided me with much more balanced feedback. Despite this, there were times when my confidence in my work decreased so much that I considered leaving graduate school. In the end, graduate school is about persistence, and with the help and guidance of friends, my father (who holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry), and other mentors, I could wade through that year’s struggles.
The subsequent struggle that became central to my experience occurred during my deployment to Afghanistan. While deployed as a SERE Psychologist, one of my best friends from college passed away. The pain from grief, deployment trauma, and politics in the deployed setting set the stage for the most challenging period of my professional career. This time was so impactful that I am writing a book based on my deployment experiences.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My primary source of employment is as a Clinical Supervisor for Lyra Health, a company that provides companies with comprehensive workforce mental health solutions. I train, supervise, and consult with mental health clinicians in this role. This work is gratifying, as my team of clinicians positively impacts the lives of hundreds of individuals every week.
My first specialty, and the thing that drew me to Clinical Psychology, was PTSD. For years before entering the military, I studied and treated PTSD in veterans and college students. The focus of my research was the role that physical activity could play as an adjunct treatment for those suffering from the disorder.
As time has passed and the mental health space has become flooded with practitioners treating PTSD from different perspectives, the focus of my clinical work has shifted to a broader application of my clinical skills. I now enjoy working with people seeking to improve their lives outside of a traditional mental health context. I bring a unique lens to performance psychology as a high-level former athlete, veteran of the United States military, and psychologist. From my unique perspectives and work experiences, I work with many people and help them reach their individual goals.
While only tangentially connected to my current work, I am most proud of the work I did on deployment. Deployment offered me a unique opportunity to combine my leadership and psychology skills in novel and challenging situations. It challenged me mentally and emotionally in ways I never imagined. Overcoming those challenges and the great work I did amid those challenges is what I am most proud of.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Something that might surprise those who don’t know me well is that I am a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and have freelanced as a voice actor. I trained in Brazilian jiu-jitsu for around 10 years, and my martial arts practice has informed my clinical work and my life. The impact of training BJJ was so profound that I wrote about it in my essays for psychology residency. In terms of voice work, I have narrated a documentary and will return to voice work when I have completed writing my book.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jordanafields.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesuperpsych/?hl=en
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanfields1123/
