Kelly Lehman, MA, LMHC

Kelly is a licensed mental health therapist who has been practicing for 21 years, and she offers a holistic approach to working with individuals and clients.

She creates a therapeutic environment that provides safety to explore those hard-to-reach, and sometimes hard-to-accept, parts of ourselves that limit our ability to live life and pursue relationships optimally. Kelly’s approach to therapy is non-judgmental and genuine. She strives to provide empathy while also encouraging clients to allow themselves to be uncomfortable, as it is through discomfort that we grow.

When working with Kelly, you are in the driver’s seat. You are the expert in your life, and it is you who will decide what direction you go in. She will provide compassionate guidance and encouragement, but the decision is always yours. She will offer education and support to help you make the best decisions for your life, and it is through developing an increased sense of empowerment that you will be able to best advocate for yourself. Kelly’s goal is to help you feel confident enough to pursue your life fully and authentically.

Kelly works with adults, couples, and families. She has training in the Gottman Method and will be attending her Level 3 training in the next couple of months. Other modalities she leans into are EFT, IFS, ACT, Imago Relational Therapy, DBT, and CBT. She is currently pursuing certification in Psychedelic Assisted Therapy, as she is passionate about the potential this work can have for clients struggling with hard-to-treat challenges. Areas of special interest are anxiety, depression, trauma to include C- PTSD, couples therapy (across all stages from premarital to empty nesters), infertility, military life issues and transitions, grief/loss, and chronic pain/health issues (particularly cancer, autoimmune conditions, and other ambiguous, difficult-to-diagnose conditions).

Kelly’s personal medical journey as a patient has shaped her holistic approach to healing. She believes physical health is strongly connected to emotional health, and her approach to therapy reflects this. She believes our past life experiences heavily influence our present selves, as well as how we show up in our current relationships. A significant part of healing involves identifying our wounded parts and meeting them with compassion. When we are able to integrate these parts, it allows us to heal and live more meaningful lives focused on fulfilling our greater purpose.

Kelly is married to an active-duty U.S. Marine, and she has two daughters. She enjoys spending time with her family, including her 3 resident dogs and 1 foster dog. Exercise has always been an important part of her life, and she has enjoyed CrossFit and powerlifting in the past. Physical activity has been a great release for her, and she continues to prioritize an active lifestyle as a part of optimizing her health. One of her favorite activities is volunteering with Manatee County Animal Welfare, working with our county’s homeless dogs. Kelly values the healing impact animals can have on our lives, and she enjoys being a small part of their healing from trauma and neglect…and it’s also a lot of fun hanging out with the puppies!

Kelly specializes in the following areas: