Hello - I'm looking for recommendations for the following Richmond Kaiser pyschiatrists for treatment of long-term chronic depression: Fuensanta Botello, Christopher Eaton and Anne Marie Menahemy. Thank you very much. anon

Re: Therapist/psych for alternative meds

If by any chance you have Kaiser, I work with an excellent psychiatrist there who is very knowledgeable about alternative treatments as well as conventional ones. He is Rafael Gray, 415-833-3181.

I take medication, which I am comfortable with and has saved my life, and I also take some supplements that he has recommended which do have benefits for me. I asked him once if he ever used only alternative treatments, and he said he has with patients who were completely anti-medication. He is a non-nonsense guy who can come across as abrupt, but from 2 years of working with him I know that he is not only very knowledgeable, but also very compassionate. He returns my calls the same day (or the next day that he is in his office), and he even answers his own phone!

During long years of battling depression, I tried many alternative treatments, including homeopathy but not biofeedback, and none of them helped me. So eventually I got over my fears of medication, went through many trials, and finally found a combo of drugs that works for me.

I like to encourage people to stay open-minded all around- to alternative as well as conventional treatments, but to not give up on conventional treatments. It can take a lot of persistence to hang in there with drug trials and side effects, and you must work with someone who you trust and can communicate well with. I have a friend who has been experiencing terrible depression for the last 2 years as he has bounced from one alternative therapy to another. It pains me to watch him. I have much understanding and empathy from my own experience, and I know how hard it can be to trust and be rational when depression has you in its grip.