After years of counceling, rehashing all the ""bad things"" that have happened in my life, and not getting anywhere, I am so grateful my family practitioner sent me to see Dr. Berner. I had a good first visit, talked about benefits of taking meds vs. their side-effects, and counceling vs. pharm. therapy. I was terrified of being labeled. This imprisoning ""label"" still has not, 4 years later, happened with Dr. Berner. He allows room in my treatment for me to change and ride out the rough spots, adjust things when we need to, but mostly, helps me see with every visit that I am getting better. Life is finally stable, not perfect, not easy, but the rollercoaster is over. Dr. Berner has some quirks, but so do I. It makes him more approachable to me. He is a real person, good and bad days, but I hope if you are looking for a psychiatrist who knows meds, and is actually experienced and educated enough to make a starting diagnosis and give you something to help right away, then adjust as you come to know each other, please try this doctor. He has been in Woodinville for a long time and works with Evergreen paging system, so can be reached immediately by pharmacist for those occasional hiccups. His receptionist is now there during the day, I can't think of a time in the last couple years when I have not had a call returned same-day. I have read these reviews before, but never wrote one until now. I just had to help a teen who was is crisis, and took him to Dr. Berner. I was worried about medicating, as he is still going through puberty, but Dr. Berner was not only able to get through this boy's quills, but has changed his life. He can now listen, filter, and control his impulses for the first time since I've known him! It is night and day! Dr. Berner knew what to do for him, was bold and confident and RIGHT!! What may seem cocky, or brash to some reviewers is an education and more importantly an experience level that may not have an equal on the eastside. That cannot be more necessary when working with brain chemistry and pharmaceuticals. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, amazingly experienced psychiatrist, Dr. Jon Berner is your man. If you want eastside cushions and coddling, lattes and ego strokes, go to a councelor.
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