Meet carolyn

My Commitment to Compassion.

 

Welcome!

I’m Carolyn Lentz, MA. I’m a Registered Psychologist, licensed through the College of Alberta Psychologists, and have been serving my community in this capacity since 2002, when I first registered as a Psychologist.  

My specialty is adult individual counselling and psychological healing through therapeutic approaches such as Attachment Theories, Parts Work, Somatic Psychotherapies, Trauma Theories and mindfulness. I have personally seen these modalities (and a few others) help my clients with trauma, addictions, relationship distress, depression and anxiety. 

My personal experiences and relationships were the driving force that got me into this work in the first place. 

I get it.

I get what it means to feel confused; to feel very far away from yourself. I get what it means to have an inner harshness that holds you back from opening up fully to others. I also get what it means to shut down and disconnect, to attain a false sense of safety, which just ends up separating your mind from your body. 

I grew up on a farm close to Clyde, Alberta. I still call myself a “farm kid.” 

When I think about my childhood on the farm, the picture that shows up for me now is faded, grainy, softer.  The hard edges are gone.  I am so grateful for my life on the farm; so grateful for my parents and my four siblings. 

‘Place’ is character…

Life on the farm immediately aligns you to an energy, an expansiveness, to something much larger than yourself – nature, cycles, life and death.  This connection to this ‘something larger’ would never leave me. 

Life on our farm was pretty typical as far as farms go.  Hard work and sacrifice were non-negotiable. We shared the space with dogs, cats, chickens and cows… lots of cows. Sometimes geese (meanies). Fields of grain and alfalfa surrounded us. Gravel country roads led us to our neighbours.    

As much as my parents were wounded, and they were very wounded, they modelled a tremendous caring and sensitivity to others.  This caring extended well beyond our immediate family and farm.  They were devoted to their church. They volunteered and visited elderly in the hospital. Giving was important. Caring about those who were suffering was important.  

Without a doubt their example was a huge influence on the values I hold and the choices I have made.  

Throughout the 90’s, I supported residents at WIN House, a shelter for women and children fleeing domestic violence.  I remember the moment I decided to work for a women’s shelter.  I was in my early 20’s without a lick of experience in the helping profession.  Call it my intuition, a felt sense, or that ‘something larger’ that told me, like a shot in the dark, I needed to work there.  I followed.  I did front line crisis work and then headed their Public Education Program.  The time I spent at the shelter changed my life and career focus. 

My own healing journey

Through my own healing journey, I have come to appreciate the journey itself. I view it as an intimate and spiritual process. I not only treat my clients with compassion, I encourage them to speak compassionately to themselves, every step of the way. 

I feel deeply honoured to have had the opportunity to sit and connect with hundreds of clients over the years as they seek, feel and heal. It has been a privilege to watch each and every one of them accept and express their wholeness. 

Education

  • Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, University of Alberta, 1990

  • Master of Arts, Counselling Psychology, Pacifica Graduate Institute, California, USA, 1998

Certifications

Certified Hakomi Therapist, Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy, Hakomi Institute, USA, 2014

Professional affiliations

  • The Psychologists’ Association of Alberta 

  • The Canadian Psychological Association.

 

My Therapeutic Approaches

Attachment Theories

Parts Work

Trauma Theories

AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy)

Mindfulness

Somatic Psychotherapies

Analytic/Depth Psychology

Self-Psychology/Object Relations

Values

 
 

Compassion

It all starts with compassion. I believe that psychological healing can only happen in an environment of emotional safety. Regardless of what brings you in for counselling, I always promise to meet you with respect and compassion. You are worthy of being treated with compassion. 

Collaboration

From a place of trust, we can connect and collaborate. Together, we will unpack and explore the root of your behaviours and beliefs and create a therapeutic strategy that will help you get to a place of comfort and well-being.

 
 

Counselling

I intentionally combine my personal experience, education and professional development to offer a robust psychological counselling perspective. Then through a multi-modal approach we delve into the patterns that keep you “stuck” and focus on psychological therapies that can help you release behavioural and cognitive blockages.

Creativity

Creativity to me means opening up our mind and heart to all the available possibilities and opportunities to learn and grow. The creative process is always happening, in dark and in the light. I open up my space for you and your healing journey. To explore, share, learn and create happiness, trust and well-being.

 

Ready to Work Together?

Feel free to reach out with questions or session bookings. Sessions can be conducted online or at my office in Edmonton, Alberta.