Dr. Carole Matlen
Experienced psychologist blending practical and relational work
CA Psychologist 17461 California
- Experience
- 30 years in practice
- Focus areas
- Stress, Anxiety, Relationship, Trauma and abuse
- Approaches
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Languages
- English
About Carole
Dr. Carole Matlen is a licensed clinical psychologist in California with three decades of clinical experience.
Background and approach
She draws on a varied background that includes teaching and ministry to inform a thoughtful, compassionate approach to care. Her practice focuses on a broad range of concerns including stress and anxiety, depression and bipolar conditions, trauma and abuse, relationship and intimacy issues, eating and addiction problems, grief and parenting difficulties, and professional or life transitions.
She blends several evidence-informed approaches to match each client's needs, using cognitive behavioral techniques alongside acceptance-based and attachment-oriented work, client-centered listening, and emotionally focused interventions. That integrative stance is intended to strengthen coping skills, clarify values, and rebuild confidence while addressing underlying relational patterns and trauma where present.
Dr. Matlen emphasizes a collaborative, strengths-based process that helps clients identify practical steps for change and deepen emotional understanding.
Clients can expect a respectful, nonjudgmental environment in which treatment is tailored to the individual. Her long experience across clinical settings shapes a flexible, reality-oriented style aimed at restoring functioning, improving communication, and supporting recovery from difficult life events.
Integrative approaches and online care
Dr. Matlen routinely uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy as part of her online practice. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focuses on identifying unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns and learning practical skills to change them, which can be useful for anxiety, depression, and stress. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy helps clients clarify values and develop psychological flexibility through acceptance and mindful action, supporting work on avoidance, distress tolerance, and meaningful life changes.She also brings attachment-informed perspectives to understand relational patterns and how early bonds influence current relationships. This approach can help clients explore closeness, boundaries, and communication in ways that feel manageable and grounded. Choosing an approach is collaborative: the therapist and client evaluate needs, goals, and preferences together and adjust methods as therapy progresses to find the best fit.
Online therapy with Dr. Matlen is available via video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging, offering flexibility for scheduling and modes of interaction. These options make it possible to access consistent care from different locations in California while fitting treatment into a client's daily life and responsibilities.
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Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
30+ years
Licensed
California
Languages
English