Stephen V Sobel Inc

It boggles the mind to read so many negative reviews for one of the country's umost elite, most knowledgeable, most in tune with the latest cutting edge research, treatments, and medications.I have had many bad experiences with psychiatrists. Some who will write whatever script they think you wanted. Some who treat your brain like their own personal chemistry set. And some who don't listen that the negative side effects outweigh any benefit you might getting. He is the best psychiatrist. To the point where I actually have faith in the specialty after being jaded. \r He respected my horrific experience with Paxil. He is so sensitive to the limited military budget I have to work with. And he explains how and why any drug works and lets me make an informed decision about the course of treatment I am comfortable doing. \r \r He won't coddle you. But that does not make him mean, abusive, or unprofessional. Too many people rely on the hour they spend with Dr. Google or what worked for their neighbor's kid. Read the man's CV. He is a leading expert. And he will not his patients do irreparable damage to their brains on unnecessary psychotropic drugs. Nor will sign off on someone like me with a panic disorder deciding I'm okay and I can stop taking my medicine. Once your brain creates pathways and secretes certain chemicals from depression or anxiety, your brain is permanently damaged by the event. \r \r I'm not going to say he's never had a snarky moment with me. But when he's mistaken about a factual thing I will respectfully let him know or remind him of the circumstances. He's always willing to give a genuine mea culpa if he was mistaken. And he cares. And he listens. \r \r He saved my life and I will only see him. And if God forbid we PSC, I will only see someone with a personal recommendation from Dr Sobel. \r \r Oh, and some of you folks with the awful assessments of the good news doctor should remember a few things, if you were an expert in your field, you wouldn't want a lay person disregarding you - especially when the stakes are as high as they are in his field. Secondly, he's Jewish. We yell we argue. We either are proven wrong or we give it back. It's just a cultural style! more

I hightly recommend Dr. Sobel. I didn't know any doctors in the area and found Dr. Sobel in the Yellow Pages. I don't regret one minute. He does not 'baby' his patients, however, there is good dose of empathy mixed in with the discussions. If you're looking for someone to sit and agree with you and say 'Poor Baby' he isn't the one. I get my feelings hurt easily and quickly 'got over myself' as I sought out changes in my life from postpartem depression, molestation as a child, or life difficulties in general. He returns his own phone calls on a regular basis. His office manager is a delight. Dr. Sobel is an asset to this community. more

MY OPINION: Seems knowledgeable, but did not spend enough time with me to really get anywhere. Saw him for several years and never got comfortable speaking to him. Appointments are always a very rushed 10 minutes (but he is always on time). I dreaded going to appointments, made me feel worse than before I saw him. I felt belittled and degraded at appointments. Very cold, borderline rude. Did not take the time to really understand my problems. Perhaps he is better at instructing other doctors. Terrible bedside manner. If you want help, go somewhere else. PS if you are obese, you will hear it. There seems to be a real resentment toward the obese. more

This is my fifth psychiatrist over the course of my life and I can undoubtedly say that he is BY FAR THE WORST! He was short with me (pardon th pun), too apathetic, and possessed an overall unprofessional/doctor-like demeanor. He only offered a handfull (3 to be specific) of options regarding how to treat my anxiety symptoms, leaving much to be desired. Spend your hard-earned money and time elsewhere and see a real professional, not Dr. Sobel. Pros: Knowledgeable Cons: Short...tempered, overpriced, poor bedside manners more

I saw Dr. Sobel for almost a year before I finally switched to a new provider. Dr Sobel didnt seem to have my best interests in mind. He didnt provide the medication I needed and as I suspected, when i switched to a new care provider, I was put on a completely different medication regimen. Dr. Sobel also YELLED at me and belittled me via telephone during a moment where I NEEDED him. He made me feel worse than I already did. He never apologized for his behavior. Pros: Very knowledgable Cons: Insensitive, Rushes, Rude more

I do not recommend this doctor. I saw him for four months. The 15 min appointments were usually about 8 min. In my last meeting with him I brought up the possibility of weaning off my meds as I have made great strides in therapy and feel quite stable. He raised his voice saying ""absolutely not"" and that he would not be party to me ""ruining my life."" When I started to explain my thoughts on the subject he put his head down and began writing the prescription for my meds. When I expressed displeasure in the fact that he was not listening to me, he said that when I finished saying ""whatever it is you're going to say, I'm going to tell you that you need to be on these meds for at least a year."" He then pointed out to me that my personality type called for being told directly what to do because I ""don't know what is best for me."" When I told him that I no longer wished to see him because I felt that not being listened to in a psychiatrist's office was unprofessional he said that perhaps he ""overestimated - rather than underestimated - my health"" and that he was being respectful by being direct with me ""rather than listening to what you had to say and then trying to cajole or patronize you"" into doing what was best for you (me.) He then went on to say how much he has helped me and how he has always been kind, caring and compassionate. In the end, perhaps it would be best for me to remain on the meds for a year, but that will be my determination based on a respectful dialogue that I have with a psychiatrist who has the decency to engage with me in meaningful communication rather than raising his voice at me and telling me that I am not as healthy as he thought because I am not bowing to his wishes unconditionally. Do yourself a favor and get your psychiatric needs met elsewhere. Pros: courteous Cons: unprofessional more

\r \r I was surprised by some of the negative comments posted about Dr. Sobel. Perhaps some people are overly sensitive or feel they need a ""touchy feely"" therapist. Dr. Sobel is direct and compassionate. I found him to be sensitive to my problems but very specific about what he felt would be most useful for me. He did not coddle me but I left feeling like he fully understood my problems and would work with me to make my life better and me happier. Dr. Sobel was open to my questions and answered all of them. He was the only psychiatrist my therapist felt comfortable referring me to...not only becasue of his expertise, but becasue he is so highly regarded by other doctors in the community. I can tell you that the first visit and the visits I have had since then have been remarkably helpful. The office was comfortable and any business transactions were handled professionally. I would feel quite good about referring anyone I cared about to Dr. Sobel Pros: Knowledgeable, Compassionate, highly regarded more

Would not recommend this DR. He does not act like a a nice person and can even be hostile at times. HIs attitude suggest that he believes very highly in himself which interferes with the quality of his services when he is simply average at best. He also seems to be quite greedy which makes customer patients uncomfortable. His office is inefficient to the point of being unprofessional. Pros: Average DR Cons: Hostile, Greedy, Inefficient Office more

As some of the others have commented regarding this physician and his negative behaviors, I have found this ""psychiatrist"" to be insensitive, callous, non-professional. During one session he commented that ""we could not have felt this way."" Do physicians normally argue insensitively with their patients? I always thought they should be compassionate, and, if they disagree, they should get clarification rather than react critically. One friend of mine came with me, and, while waiting in the waiting room, could hear some of the comments he made regarding my statements on the other side of the wall. Are his visits considered confidential? I am going to report him to my insurance company and perhaps they will reconsider contracting with him. Good luck to anyone that is referred to him. My psychologist referred me to him and now I am considering terminating his services based solely on this referral. more

I walked out of Dr. Sobel's office this afternoon, after he yelled at me because I was not interested in the medication he recommended. I opened up to him about the pain I was going through and he treated me like garbage and called me an alcoholic because I drink 5 drinks a week, which apparently is a crime at 23. Not only did he yell at me he ripped up my paper work in front of me and made comments to me, said I didn't trust him because he was white and male? Crazy! His bedside manner is awful and I felt like he generalized all my symptoms and then decided he thought I had some depressive disorder I've never heard of and he wanted me to start meds, I wonder what they pay him to press so hard on handing out meds! The worst experience I've ever had. more

I went through a tough time earlier this year and was hesitant to ask for help. I had a family member who has been a patient of Dr. Sobel for over ten years and she immediately took me to see him. I was a mess and unable to function or care for myself. Upon meeting and talking with Dr. Sobel, I realized that he was a doctor who really knew what he was talking about. I liked that he wasn't overly emotional and didn't drag out explanations, but rather took the time to get to the basics and figure out a way to get me healthy. The first combination of medications was not successful and I became discouraged and wanted to quit. I didn't think that life was going to get any better. Dr. Sobel encouraged me to continue to work on getting healthy and eventually prescribed me a new combination of medications. After several weeks, these medications with the addition of therapy and a healthier lifestyle changed my life around. I listened to him and was honest with him about my life because I respected him and believed that he could help make me better. He told me things that I didn't always want to hear but needed to. I would highly recommend Dr. Sobel as a psychiatrist to anyone. Pros: Informative, knowledgable, easy to talk to more

I am in the medical profession so I know a good one when I meet one. Dr. Sobel has been my doctor for over 15 years and has also cared for many of my friends and a family member. I have always found him to be willing to listen, open to new ideas and always up on the latest research on my disorder. Over the years we have had to make many med changes and during my pregnancy I was unable to take any meds at all. What I have found most impressive is how engaged he has stayed with me all these years, how closely he follows me and how much he cares about how I am doing and how my family is doing during the many ups and downs of my life. I don't know any family doctor who has been as interested in keeping tabs on the overall health of my family both mentally and physically. Dr. SObel has a thriving practice in San Diego and it is not hard to imagine why. I have no reservations when I recommend Dr. SObel, a caring, compassionate informed and up to date provider of psychiatric services. Pros: Knowledgable, informed, up to date, compassionate, caring, very available more

It is apparent when you talk with Dr. Sobel that he has many years of experience. However, I found his ""bedside"" manner leaving a lot to be desired. It's rather obvious when you visit him, that he can only limit you to a certain time frame and talks very fast during the visit to get you out of there in time. Our last visit with Dr. Sobel was especially ugly. He asked my questions and would not wait for me to finish my answer - just cut me off halfway through each time and appeared very impatient. He also berated my son who suffers from depression. Maybe Dr. Sobel was having a bad day but when I talked to other psychiatrists about Dr. Sobel's response to my son, they could not believe that a physician could be that insensitive. We have switched psychiatrists and found an incredible one in Old Town who takes time to listen and not cut the patient off midway in their sentence; and acts as though she cares about her patients. I had written psychiatrists off completely after our interaction with Dr. Sobel but not I have more hope. I think Dr. Sobel would be good for someone who just wants medication visits but there is nothing else there, as far as I can see. Pros: good to get meds, because he is anxious to try any meds available Cons: insensitive to patients more

Its hard enough just making the phone call to ask for help. However, when your psychiatrist listens to your story and then efficiently and effectively helps you make choices that effect you and your family's life...well then he's a keeper. Our time together wasn't all"" poor me."" Dr. Sobel is funny..not like a stand up comedian, but he's not like one of the docs you see on TV that just takes notes, nods, and never looks at you. He doesn't talk down to you or assume you know nothing. There was medication involved. He makes sure that he explains everything to you so that you can make an informed choice. I actually look forward to the visits. Even if what we talk about is difficult, I know I will leave with something.He's great. more