Dr. Tess M. Kilwein

10/01/2026

Next stop: right here at home Nashville! 🏀

I’ll be coaching at the 2026 National Gay Basketball Association National Championships from October 9–11.

I’m looking forward to a weekend of competitive basketball, community, and being in a space where LGBTQ+ athletes can play, lead, and belong.

If you’ll be there, come say hi!
Learn more at ngba.org/nashville

09/30/2026

Thank you to the APA members who elected me to the Board of Directors, and the colleagues who encouraged me to put myself forward.

I’m bringing the priorities I campaigned on and the lessons from the communities I’ve worked alongside into this responsibility.

Grateful for the opportunity to serve. There’s work ahead, and I’m looking forward to doing it together.

09/29/2026

I’m heading to Chicago for the National Practice Conference, hosted by The Trust, the National Register of Health Service Psychologists, and ABPP.

The conference focuses on clinical practice and risk management. I’m looking forward to learning with colleagues and thinking through what that means for the people and communities we serve.

If you’ll be there October 2–4, come say hello!

09/25/2026

“Everyone has the same 24 hours.”

Sure. But not everyone has childcare, safe streets, flexible work, disposable income, reliable transportation, or a body that isn’t already managing pain and exhaustion.

And for some people, exercise has never felt neutral. It has meant punishment, shame, comparison, or being pushed past their limits.

Before calling someone lazy, ask what movement actually costs them.

“Just exercise more” ignores everything that determines who gets to.

09/24/2026

Really enjoyed catching back up with the Kevin Love Fund for my latest Psychology Today piece, this time to talk about their new collaboration with NAMI and Real Talk: Strength in Seeking Support.

We cannot tell athletes to ask for help without also creating team cultures where it actually feels safe and normal to do so. Coaches have a huge role in that!

I spoke with the Kevin Love Fund Director of Education Ellie Haberl Foster and NAMI CEO Dan Gillison, Jr. about what that can look like in practice, particularly for teen athletes.

Check out the PsychologyToday Post: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/in-the-trenches/202609/building-team-cultures-that-support-mental-health

Check out the Free Lesson: https://kevinlovefund.org/real-talk-strength-in-seeking-support/

The Kevin Love Fund and NAMI launched a free program to help teen athletes talk openly about mental health, ask for help, and better support their teammates.

09/22/2026

I keep thinking about how often q***r visibility gets framed as something we should always want MORE of.

But visibility doesn’t happen in a vacuum. In smaller or rural communities, work, family, faith, housing, sport, and community can overlap in ways that make disclosure travel fast.

So I’m much more interested in whether someone has real choice around being seen than whether they are “out enough.”

Privacy can be a thoughtful way of protecting safety, relationships, stability, or simply deciding who gets access to you.

09/20/2026

I am excited to share that I have been elected to the American Psychological Association’s Board of Directors!

I am beyond grateful for the colleagues who pushed me forward, even when my own perceptions told me I might not be the “favorable” pick for a position like this, and for the APA members who trusted me and my vision enough to vote for me. That trust means everything.

This moment is also somewhat bittersweet. Stepping into this role means stepping away from some of the Divisional and Committee work in rural mental health, sport and exercise psychology, and gender and s*xuality that I have poured myself into over the past several years. I found my people and my community through this work, and it has shaped who I am as a psychologist and a leader.

While my role with APA may be changing, my commitments are not. I take this responsibility seriously and to heart. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity, and I cannot wait to get to work!

09/18/2026

In some rural communities, sport is MUCH bigger than an extracurricular.

It can be family history, school pride, status, friendships, routine, and one of the main ways someone belongs in their community.

So an injury, getting benched, coming out, or leaving a sport can bring losses that have very little to do with performance itself.

When I’m working with athletes, I’m interested in what the athlete role gives them... and whether there are other places in their life where they get to feel known, valued, and connected too.

09/17/2026

Fun chatting with CanvasRebel Magazine about the story behind Unapologetic Psychology and taking professional risks as a small business owner.

We discussed when I first bet on myself by opening my private practice and the risks that come with having hard, liberatory conversations in psychology.

“I have never been wildly popular, but I have always told the truth.” ❤️

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We're excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tess Kilwein. We hope you'll enjoy our conversation with Tess below. Tess, thanks

09/17/2026

In rural communities, sport often becomes part of the mental health system whether anyone planned for it or not.

Coaches, teammates, and athletic trainers may notice when something is off first. That can be powerful... but it also gets complicated when support, confidentiality, and power all overlap.

Sport doesn’t need to become therapy. It DOES need to know what to do when mental health shows up.