The enigma of Married to Medicine’s Dr. Heavenly Kimes
Despite all the racial, gender, and socio-economical barriers Kimes faced as a young woman, her message to others is less "I did it, so you can too," and more "I did it, so what’s your excuse?"
Dr. Heavenly Kimes grew up in a bedroom without a window. Now, she lives in a mansion full of them.
Kimes persevered through her tumultuous childhood, going on to break barriers as a Black woman studying medicine before becoming a multi-published author and reality television star on Bravo’s Married to Medicine.
But when it came time to decide what type of specialization Kimes would pursue, she put her love for her family first.
"When I looked at being a medical doctor, I saw somebody being on-call, somebody not having a whole lot of time with their families," Kimes said. "My purpose in life and one of my goals was always to be a wife and a mother."
Little did she know a recruiter from the Harry Medical College would help Kimes on her way to becoming a dentist. The recruiter told her that "dentistry was an art as well as a science." That ability to weave her artistic creativity into a more scientific background was attractive to Kimes.
After shadowing a dentist in Nashville, Kimes received a scholarship to attend dental school. The rest is history.
"I think a lot of people consider a dentist not as important as going to a medical doctor," she said.
But, she added, those same critics are overlooking the fact that many diseases can be diagnosed by visiting a dentist.
"Your smile is the light of your heart. Your smile is so much to you," she said. "So when I give people their smile back, I give them their life back."
Becoming Dr. Heavenly
Growing up in a low-income neighborhood, Kimes didn’t realize having no windows in her room was abnormal until she was on reality television.
From as early as she can remember, Kimes’ mother told her she would grow up to become a doctor.
"My mother instilled in me that she wanted me to go to the top," Kimes said. "She told me I was smart, so I believed her."
Her mother, who passed away in 2021 at the age of 89, saw becoming a medical doctor as the epitome of success.
But the type of school Kimes went to didn’t offer the kind of programming she needed to get into a competitive medical school.
"I think that I was set back just a little bit, because I was smart enough not to get held back," she said.
On the one hand, the fortitude and tenacity of Kimes are inspiring. But on the other hand, Kimes appears out of touch with the barriers facing others like her.
"I feel like I didn’t have all the opportunities as someone else, but I honestly don’t think it’s so much about your environment as much as it is your mindset," she said.
Kimes claims she was the only one in her life to have that innate mindset, saying "nobody around me had it."
Despite all the racial, gender, and socio-economical barriers Kimes faced as a young woman, her message to others is less "I did it, so you can too," and more "I did it, so what’s your excuse?"
Breaking barriers
While she didn’t leave medical school as a brain surgeon, she did leave with one.
"I always knew what kind of man I wanted, and I was very intentional about every area of my life," Kimes said.
As a young woman in university, Kimes wrote a vision board of what she envisioned in a man. He had to be short, dark-skinned, and in medical school. He had to be tough, she tells me, but also sensitive in certain ways. Most of all, Kimes wanted the man she would spend the rest of her life with to love her unconditionally.
Her manifestation worked. She would soon fall for another medical school student, Damon. Together, they would have a daughter, Alaura.
But Kimes’ beliefs that a wife should be subservient to her husband have often clashed with those of her co-stars on Married to Medicine.
"My husband allows me to be the person I am. He allows me to do everything I want to do now that my kids have grown," she said.
Viewers watched Heavenly’s daughter Alaura grow up on television. Even from a young age, Alaura has offered insightful and profound lessons beyond her years.
"One of the great things that my daughter has taught me is to have more patience, and also to have more empathy for other people," she said.
Kimes admits that her thought process has long been "there are no excuses," suggesting "a lot of people try to use different situations as crutches."
"My background wasn’t the greatest," she said. "If you want to do something, all you have to do is try hard."
While Heavenly says Alaura also taught her that "people around us, some people just don’t have it in them," it’s clear her daughter is trying to convey something entirely different.
Heavenly doesn’t understand how people can be down on their luck in America. After all, she says, the United States has a world of opportunities. But in the same breath, Heavenly added that she believes Black women are "at the bottom of the totem pole" in the country.
"If I came out of the inner-city schools, being a Black woman, there’s no excuses in my opinion," Heavenly, who received a full-ride scholarship to dentistry school, says. "A lot of my friends had kids early on, but still, that’s not a crutch."
"You make mistakes along the way," she says, "but still, that’s not a crutch."
Navigating COVID-19 as a dentist
When the country went into lockdown in the spring of 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Kimes was affected in multiple ways. She could no longer provide dental services, her daughter couldn’t go to school in-person, and worst of all, her husband would be on the frontlines — leaving the family at an increased risk of contracting the virus.
"It scared the hell out of me," she confessed.
But as the pandemic escalated, the country saw an uprising begin to combat anti-Black racism and police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s murder.
That’s when Kimes knew she could step in to make a difference. Along with her Married to Medicine co-stars, Kimes volunteered to provide rapid tests to attendees of the March on Washington. Through the process, she was able to meet with Rev. Al Sharpon and Martin Luther King III.
"It was an amazing experience because it was so needed," Kimes said. "The March on Washington meant so much to so many people."
Reflecting on Married to Medicine fame
Last fall, Kimes attended BravoCon in New York City, where she appeared in a heated panel with her Married to Medicine co-stars.
"I don’t think it was over and beyond," Kimes said. "I just think it was what the people wanted."
Asked which co-star she’s learned the most from over the years, Kimes said she has to give credit to Dr. Jackie Walters.
"She came on reality TV with a plan and never really deviated from it," she said of Walters, who used her newfound fame to build her own skin-care line, become an author, and open a second surrogacy center in Atlanta.
Kimes wasn’t as forthcoming when asked about her relationship with Dr. Simone Whitmore.
"No comment," she said.
When it comes to Dr. Contessa Metcalfe, who will not be returning for season 10 of Married to Medicine, Kimes holds no hard feelings for their feud.
"She did what she had to do to keep her job," she said. "It’s fine."
Despite the glitz and glamour that comes along with being a Bravolebrity, Kimes doesn’t feel like her life has changed much since joining Married to Medicine.
"I don’t consider myself a reality TV star. I’m just a regular person," Kimes said. "My identity has been changed because people recognize me, but it really hasn’t changed anything."
"I think I'm the best person I know, honestly," Kimes said.