At 83, Dana Lehman has no plans of slowing down! A psychologist who is still seeing clients weekly, Dana has been moving at full speed in her career for nearly 60 years now. As the first woman to be accepted into the postdoctoral fellowship led by renowned psychologist Dr. Albert Ellis at The Center for Rational Living in New York, Dana has been a true trailblazer for younger generations.

Dana pushed through any intimidation she may have felt being the only woman in the group. As a “little midwestern girl” coming all the way to New York City from small-town Oklahoma after college, she felt grateful for the opportunity and understood it’s impact.

The Women’s Right’s Movement took off while completing her fellowship in New York, which she recalls changed the way she was treated in her profession greatly. “There was a period of time,” says Dana, “when people only wanted to see a male psychologist.” But, as the movement progressed, she remembers people would sit in her waiting room begging to see a female psychologist!

Now serving clients in our very own community for over 40 years, Dana’s passion for helping others is what drives her to keep going—still meeting with nearly 15 clients a week, continuously taking courses, and learning and growing more each day. Her advice to young people would be to “never think you have it all figured out”, which is something she reminds herself every day.

Dana has felt a pull to help others since she was a small girl, and throughout her life she’s done just that. Dana has no plans of stopping anytime soon. As she puts it, “if people still want to meet with me, why would I not?”

Now, Dana doesn’t just work. She embarks on nature walks and the occasional Bahamas cruise… Because for Dana, seeking out what you love is the key to longevity.