When I decided to go to therapy, I approached it with a healthy dose of skepticism. I was ready to…read morewalk away from it before I even started. That was my fear talking, because living in what I knew was less scary than walking away from the pain. I fought my therapist every step of the way, because I couldn't believe that there was something else on the other side, or that I was worthy of it. For years, I felt never good enough and for even longer I felt that I wasn't good. Ten years later, I know that the other side is a real thing. I know that I am good. I know that I am worthy. I know that healing exists and that it is happening a little bit at a time, on my time. All this to say that I am so grateful to God for never leaving my side, especially during the darkest periods of my life. Thankful to God for helping me stumble into the doors of Bay Area Mental Health because I know that was when He carried me in. Thankful to God, for always sending someone to me as an extension of His love and compassion, when I couldn't have it for myself. Through my healing, I am more able to be present and closer to wholeness. And I am so grateful. I am truly blessed. I have more moments where I can experience joy and am better able to navigate the hard things. Please know that healing is real and that you deserve it. That every journey is different and happens when it is supposed to. And that there are people ready and willing to support you. And that asking for help doesn't mean you're weak, it's actually an act of courage. The first step is always the hardest, but your wholeness and healing are worth it. Thank you, Linnea for your kindness, compassion, and deep empathy. The work that you and your team does saves lives. I know firsthand because it saved mine.

Being new to therapy I've had to try out a few before finding one I felt comfortable with. It's…read morehelpful beyond words to have learned some coping tools for anxiety and also gain perspective. If you're looking, this is a good place to try.

Shellie is one of the most caring, insightful and knowledgeable therapists I've ever had the…read morepleasure of working with. She has a depth of wisdom that can only come from a great deal of experience. Shellie helped me on my journey of dealing with the "empty nest syndrome " and starting a new career path. I have also referred many of my patients to her and they have all reported positively on their experience. I can't say enough good things about Shellie- not only is she an intuitive therapist, but she's a wise and wonderful human being!

Eh I still remember doing a session of "exposure therapy" with her. She proceeded to sit on a…read morebench while I went around the block making a fool out of myself to rid myself of social anxiety. Looking back on it, this was not adequate care.

Sent her an email stating my need and to see if she has any availablity, and never heard back. That…read morewas 4-weeks ago.

I was thinking about my life today, married for 33 years and have 2 children. Very happily married…read moreby my and my wife's account. If my wife followed Deborah's advise we would be divorced and not had our son. Most of our issues were with our very similar alcoholic parents. My wife was in a women's group with Deborah as well. I joking called it the we hate men group as when my wife came home from this group I wondered what I had done this time? Our first couple sessions with Deborah were normal, talking about what we thought was going on lasting about 45 minutes. The last session, Deborah ripped into me for an hour and 15 minutes. I was to blame for everything. Alcoholic, druggie for smoking pot. An alcoholic when I had been in Ala-non for 6 years already? On the way home my wife tells me that Deborah has recommended that she should divorce me and I should be checked into a rehab facility. I said, if that is how you feel, let's get a divorce and I meant it. She doesn't want to get a divorce and we went to another counselor. After a few sessions, the new counselor gave my wife a homework assignment, how many of the women in this group were married, not interested in men or in a happy marriage. Next session she reports that no one is in a happy marriage, most not interested in men and one was separated from her husband. The therapist says she thinks my wife should find a new counselor and stop going to this group. A few weeks later the counselor tells my wife if she does not stop going to this group and go to another counselor that she would recommend to me to move on. She said she sees allot of women in late forties to early fifties that determine through counseling that their husband is an alcoholic and divorces them. Only to find out that their husbands fair much better. That many of these women do not remarry and end up with financial issues. As soon as she started counseling with another lady and stopped the women's group we moved forward to a better marriage. My point is, how many marriages were destroyed because of her bad advise? How many individuals are wondering where they are now or could have been if had not come to such a hasty conclusion? How did they fair financially? I say a prayer everyday for my wife and son being in my life. It is an inside job, do the work first before you make big changes.

Meh. I remember this therapist in my shopping, and there's better options, hopefully still. I think…read moreshe does well with lightweights (ie where the initials 'MFT' come from) but complex cases will stump her. She has "analyst voice," sort of a pretension from 70s movies that somebody might find annoying. Also forgot simple but critical fundamental details about my life a little too frequently. Generally a mismatch, but what troubled me was that she didn't see the discord herself--which makes me believe she is not that insightful. A bit reluctant to leave a review here with my real name but think it's important, given the branding and self-promotion going on here, that others know what they might be getting into. Bottom line: okay for couples counseling or the odd startup employee dealing with mild depression or what have you. Short term coaching, maybe. Serious mental illness? Not likely. Given the lack of good therapists on insurance panels, you might be better off with a trained psychologist for counseling.

Warning- This is deeply personal and could be upsetting/triggering to some…read more It is difficult to find the words to describe the life-saving, compassionate, expert doctors, nurses, and staff who literally saved my life. After a personal trauma and then the traumatic deaths to not one but two fiancés, I had battled treatment resistant depression for decades, and itstole so much of my life. I hid it for so long because I had to work to support myself, but it was taking everything out of. When my fiancé in college committed suicide after I said things I didn't mean out of insecurity, his friends took him to a pub crawl to cheer him up. He called me later than he was supposed to, and I was madly in love so had been waiting by the phone which made me upset, and even though he sweetly asked me THREE TIMES to please pick him up, I said no. I had no idea what had happened before that call to me. Only after coming home and finding his body on the blood soaked couch would I learn that he had discovered something heartbreaking just before he called me. If trying to live with that for years wasn't hard enough, my best friend, who kept me from killing myself, and I became engaged, but on his 30th birthday, we learned he had stage four pancreatic cancer, and the doctor literally gave him 6months to live. In spite of the cruel 4 years of pain and suffering he endured and fighting it by trying experimental drugs and everything under the sun, he lost the battle, and my precious love passed away. Once again, I was truly devastated and alone. I knew what suicide would do to my mother, and even though we had never been close, I never wanted to put anyone through the hell that I was trying to live with, so I was pretending to be ok but was consumed with PTSD, grief, and depression. . My life was a struggle to keep my chin above water because I was drowning, and nothing I had tried was helping. I met the man who I married and then began living a double life where I had an amazing man and life, but I was still pretending to be alright hiding the depression that I lived with. The years of anti depressants and counseling never amounted to anything, and after having my first child who brought me so much joy to have, I developed severe postpartum depression too. This is where I still shudder thinking about it because I began to thinking that I had to die. I couldn't let my child and husband be around me because I would only bring them down, make problems and ruin their lives. I believed it, and made plans to make it look like an accident. Imagine having an amazing life with the most incredible gift of a tiny human who had a loving, doting father and having a wonderful husband...but I could not feel it. I BELIEVED I had to save them from me. I researched ketamine and found an angel who answered my phone call named Linda. She told me it didn't have to be this way and to meet with Dr. Ghorieshi. It was my last attempt of finding help, and I can tell you that I am writing here and now because Dr. Ghorieshi, Linda, the world class PAs, nurses and MAs, and the kind staff. Saved my life. Let me be clear that I would not be alive, not live to see my beautiful son turn another year older, not experience the joy that life offers if it wasn't for the ketamine and then Spravato treatments that I truly know cured my incurable depression! My life now is joyous, I am the strong, intelligent, funny, and capable mother and professional that I knew I could be once the TRD was gone. No matter the trauma, suffering, and hell you're going through, there IS treatment, and you can honestly trust the professionals like Dr. Ghorieshi, Dr. Yaghoobi, and Nazanin to name a few to succeed where all else failed. This has been my personal story of triumph over trauma, life after loss, and the hard working dedicated people who chose to help even the toughest cases like mine. PAMB saves lives, and I am living proof.

Always a great appointment experience. From the time you reach the entry point, everything should…read morebe streamlined & easily approachable! Staff is always so friendly, professional, and above all else caring. They ensure your privacy, safety, well-being & comfortability 100%. The offices & private room plus all amenities are beautiful. If you need help establishing other care, the staff is often very helpful in offering referrals. They have many knowledgeable team members that may be able to help you so don't be afraid to ask.

I can't say enough about Carol. I started seeing her with my husband about a year ago and she has…read moremade such an impact on our lives individually as well as on our life together. She is able to see both sides and help us to find middle ground. My husband and I have been very happy with Carol's ability to quickly and intuitively understand our issues. A lot of counselors/coaches help you get through specific issues but don't necessarily help you understand how you arrived there. Carol has helped us both see that the core of our issues stems from long before we even knew one another. She has shown us that in order to move forward together we have to deal with how we came to be the way we are. I have seen counselors/coaches throughout my life and I can honestly say Carol has been one of the best. I'm so grateful we found her and can't thank her enough for helping make my relationship with myself and with my husband stronger and much more enjoyable!

My fiancé and I reached out to Carol the beginning of this year and ever since meeting her our…read morelives have changed so much. We came to her with a loaded basket of infidelities, mistrust, anger and lack of communication and now continue to work with our her on our extended family dynamics and ways to navigate our internal struggles. She has been so keen in understanding what is really going on below the surface so helpful by giving us with ways to keep working on our issues away from the office. With COVID restrictions she has made herself available by phone, video and text conversations and we don't feel alone in resources that she provides after each appointment. Not enough can be said about how emotionally attuned, up-to-date on resources and down to earth she is.

A Life-Altering Experience -- The Therapist Everyone Deserves…read more If I could give more than 5 stars, I absolutely would. Working with this therapist has been one of the most transformative and empowering experiences of my life. I've been her client on and off for over three years, and in that time, I've grown in ways I never imagined possible. Her therapeutic style is unlike anything I've heard others describe--it's compassionate, intuitive, honest, and deeply effective. She creates a space that is safe but not passive, gentle yet challenging in the best ways. She meets me exactly where I am, with no judgment and so much grace, and then walks with me--step by step--toward healing and growth. She has guided me through job transitions, relationship changes, emotional challenges, and deep personal reflection. Her insights are so resonant that I often find myself quoting her in my daily life--little affirmations and truths that now live rent-free in my head and help me stay grounded. Through our work, I've been given tools to not just manage life but to understand myself on a deeper level--to unpack, unlearn, heal, and rebuild. She helped me trace things back to their roots while always reminding me of my power in the present. That's a rare gift. She is the first and only therapist I've ever worked with, and honestly, I've never needed to look elsewhere. I proudly share with anyone who'll listen how impactful therapy has been in my life and how pivotal she has been in that journey. Had I known how life-giving this process could be, I would have started years earlier. Her presence in my life has been a pillar of strength, and I cannot recommend her enough--especially for women of color, but truly for anyone seeking a therapist who will be fully invested in your healing and help you become more invested in yourself. I opt for both virtual and in person sessions when I am in the area. I have moved from the Bay Area and make it a point to do in person sessions once a month. I have been with her through 3 of her offices, and each location is better than the last. Words will never be enough, but I hope this review helps someone take that brave first step. I am living proof that therapy can change your life--and the right therapist makes all the difference.

Sabina is amazing and has help me so much with navigating my emotions when life has its challenges…read more I'm so happy I found her when I did. I was overly depressed and couldn't focus on my goals. The techniques she has provided for me to use have been amazing since being her client for over 2 years now. Thank you Sabina I would give you 10 stars if I could.

Dr Cottini has been my doctor for over a decade and there is nobody I trust more than her with my…read moreinnermost struggles and the all around quandaries of life. Therapists all have different styles, and Betsy's works best for me. She's an active listener and very empathetic. She helps you arrive at many of the answers you need by asking important questions. I don't visit Dr Cottini regularly anymore, but I still check in once a year at least to apprise her of my progress. When life's challenges arise, I see her to gain a different perspective and it's always time and money well spent.