My experience with Dr. Birk is that she is spot-on in our talk therapy but does not have the necessary background in psychotropic drugs and therefore makes mistakes. But in the talk therapy realm,... More

My experience with Dr. Birk is that she is spot-on in our talk therapy but does not have the necessary background in psychotropic drugs and therefore makes mistakes. But in the talk therapy realm, she is quite exceptional and insightful. The one problem I encountered was that she is always late to her appointments even if you are the first of the day or first after lunch. And yet she will try to stop at the time the appointment was scheduled to end had she been on time. So she tends to be, as one commenter noted, a bit stingy on her time.
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I have been seeing Psychiatrists since I first starting having trouble with major depression at age nineteen -- I'm 41 now, so you can do the math. I have tried psychoanalysis, cognitive therapy,... More

I have been seeing Psychiatrists since I first starting having trouble with major depression at age nineteen -- I'm 41 now, so you can do the math. I have tried psychoanalysis, cognitive therapy, you name it. I've probably spent over $200,000 to date. In the end, I decided that talk therapy, while comforting in the short term, was really not getting me anywhere and that, at least for me, meds were the primary recourse. I have been seeing Dr. Birk since my last major crash in 2005. I have found that, while my initial reaction was that she was over-medicating me, her choices of meds have really helped me. Most recently, I had terrible trouble sleeping. I went to a neurologist specializing in sleep disorders. The neurologist was not able to help me at all. The next time I saw Dr Birk, she made some fairly substantial changes to my meds which made me feel like my old self within 48 hours. I cannot speak to her skills as a psychoanalyst, but looking back over my last 2 years with her, I don't think she has made a single mis-step on the meds. That being said, my first bit of advice is that if you don't feel a good match with any doctor, try someone else. Second, remember that you are your own best primary care physician and best primary psychiatrist. It is up to you to remind doctors of what has worked in the past and what you feel would be good changes to try. These doctors are not machines. With hundreds of patients under their care, they can't remember every nuance of every thing you've ever told them. Good luck to all of you out there. Things can and will get better for you. -Brian C, Bethesda
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I saw Dr. Birk as a young adult coming out of a childhood and adolescence with a lot of depression, confusion, hostility, and isolation. I didn't feel I accomplished much during my sessions with... More

I saw Dr. Birk as a young adult coming out of a childhood and adolescence with a lot of depression, confusion, hostility, and isolation. I didn't feel I accomplished much during my sessions with her because (1) I was deeply ignorant about myself, and (2), I felt like I was talking to myself every week--her feedback was scarce and not very enlightening. Ann Birk is good for you if you are older than thirty, consider yourself coolly intelligent, cerebral, analytical, and introspective. For instance, if you are a high-functioning depressive with a $100K+ per annum job who lives somewhere in west MoCo, she may be a good fit for you. However, if you are a frustrated artistic type, an idiosyncratic misfit, a person who feels thoroughly derailed or stuck in life, or anything similar, then you might want to look elsewhere. (I've got bipolar disorder, so I identify with many of the aforementioned descriptors.) Otherwise, you may feel like you're talking to a cold-blooded clinician. She is not a healer with nurturing qualities, but then she doesn't claim to be. She's best with people she identifies with and is not good with messier personalities.
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My only complaint would be her deciding not to continue having me as I went to rehab for alcoholism and she indicated that i had missed visits.(ALCOHOLICS LIE ABOUT THEIR DISEASE) I indicated she... More

My only complaint would be her deciding not to continue having me as I went to rehab for alcoholism and she indicated that i had missed visits.(ALCOHOLICS LIE ABOUT THEIR DISEASE) I indicated she does not work with DUAL DIAGNOSIS OR ADDICTION, BACKGROUND. SHe is great for figuring out an anti-depressant and depression. IF you have addiction with deprssion she can not help you! Be careful as she is not too openminded about true addiction nor has the knowledge.
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Dr. Ann Birk is the finest psychiatrist I personally have seen (I shopped around and met around 6 and have seen many in my life). She not only has a firm grasp of contemporary psychiatric knowledge... More

Dr. Ann Birk is the finest psychiatrist I personally have seen (I shopped around and met around 6 and have seen many in my life). She not only has a firm grasp of contemporary psychiatric knowledge but is very obviously a warm, caring and empathetic person. I always feel better after seeing her, simply because I have been understood and she has helped me understand myself. Her comments and questions are insightful. Her care is really excellent. Don't be influenced by the disgruntled reviews.......they are way off base in my experience. PROS: Brilliant doctor and very compassionate. CONS: She does not work pro bono.
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She is smart, professional, experienced. She sees the big picture very fast. The medicine she prescribed has been very helpful to me. I highly recommend her.

She is smart, professional, experienced. She sees the big picture very fast. The medicine she prescribed has been very helpful to me. I highly recommend her.
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I came across this site by accident, and am very glad I did. In contrast to the postings above, my experience with this physician has been excellent. I am a 50-year old professional female who... More

I came across this site by accident, and am very glad I did. In contrast to the postings above, my experience with this physician has been excellent. I am a 50-year old professional female who was referred to her by a male psychiatrist. Yes, there were medication adjustments and fine-tuning, but what we finally settled on has made all the difference in my life. So, too, has the feeling that I am a part of the healthcare decisions, something I absolutely do not feel with my OBGYN, ENT, ophthalmologist or Internist. I am sorry to hear of the experiences above, but wanted to offer my own. Birk is extremely professional, highly knowledgeable, and an empathetic listener who has treated my husband, others and me with great respect. As a patient in general, and a person with psychological needs in particular, I could not ask for more.
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I went to this woman when I moved to the area to discuss med. mgt and possibly coming off of meds I'd been on for several years. She began trying to push this one drug (Zymbalta) on me as if the... More

I went to this woman when I moved to the area to discuss med. mgt and possibly coming off of meds I'd been on for several years. She began trying to push this one drug (Zymbalta) on me as if the pharmaceutical company had just dropped off a bunch of samples to her. She had no real knowledge of drugs and began just pulling names of drugs out of the air that I might want to try. Really scarey. I went back a second time without having changed my prescription just to see if my second impression would be the same as my first. It was. I left and never went back. Dr's like this should not be allowed to prescribe meds. to anyone!
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This doctor is horrible. She doesn't answer all the questions I had about the medicine and is always stingy about the time allotted. The medicine she prescribed me was too high of a prescription and... More

This doctor is horrible. She doesn't answer all the questions I had about the medicine and is always stingy about the time allotted. The medicine she prescribed me was too high of a prescription and I ended up in the emergency room. She doesn't even have a receptionist so it is hard to schedule appointments. I got tired of her quickly and am now with a much better doctor.
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