Kalpana's Full Circle Journey

Every year on her birthday, Kalpana runs a solo half marathon. In April, she completed her seventh.

She’ll tell you the training is as much mental as it is physical. As she’s gotten older, though, she’s learning to embrace the idea that the fourth quarter of life can be about enjoyment and slowing down rather than pushing and proving herself

Kalpana was born in St. Louis, the first person in her family — whose roots are in South India — to be born in the United States. That carries weight in her family story and in her own understanding of identity, belonging, expectation, and achievement. When she was four, her family moved to Nashville. She is an alumni of Percy Priest Elementary School and Brentwood Academy. After high school, Kalpana pursued psychology at Duke University and earned her Masters and PhD in Counseling Psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Thirty years ago, Kalpana met her husband. Together they spent the next decade building their family and moving to three different places… Shreveport, LA, Chicago, IL and Bloomington, IN. In 2005, they moved with their three sons to Murfreesboro and then eventually back to Nashville in 2019.

Her career has moved through several chapters. She began in juvenile justice and community mental health before joining a group private practice in Shreveport. After the birth of her second child and another family move, she stepped away from professional work entirely and spent nine years as a full-time mother.

Once back in Tennessee, she returned to work as an adjunct professor at MTSU and officially opened her own private practice in 2010. In 2020, she rebranded her practice as Quiet Point Psychotherapy and eventually opened an office in Nashville.

Kalpana's clinical specialty is traumatic loss and grief and she is passionate about helping young women navigate identity, transition, and belonging — especially those carrying the invisible burdens and pressures that no one else sees. The most rewarding part of her work is watching clients connect to and become their true selves.

Outside the therapy room, she loves running, yoga, hiking, reading, traveling, and spending time with the people she loves. Some of her most memorable trips include trekking through Patagonia and traveling to Kashmir, a place she describes as equally intense and beautiful.

Fun Fact: she appeared in Trisha Yearwood’s music video, Every Girl, and once modeled for jewelry designer Margaret Ellis. Kalpana jokes that her dream job would be singing backup vocals for a lead singer, which made appearing in Trisha Yearwood’s video feel especially fun and memorable. Being photographed by Margaret Ellis — and more recently here as part of the 40 Over 40 portrait experience — gave her the chance to express herself and have fun in a completely different way.

Collaborating with Kalpana during this photo shoot was such a wonderful experience. She is calm and grounded, but also vibrant, thoughtful, and deeply present. I love how many sides of her come through — both in her photos and in her story.

Ready to level up your business presence with personal branding headshots?

I'd love to collaborate with you and create images of you that capture the real you and will help elevate your business and online personality.

Nashville Headshots and Branding

Previous Post Next Post

40 Over 40: All about Kalpana

Kalpana's Full Circle Journey

Archive

Quick Links

Contact Me

Areas Serviced