I got recommended to dr sobel by my therapist and wow can I say I would never recommend this guy to even my worst enemy. His patients are clearly going to him for help because they are desperate for some help! Anyways I wish I would have researched and not taken my therapists recommendation but here we are. I even paid $420 out of pocket too see him! He is very condescending and rude, who does that to patients that are struggling with mental health! If you even dare ask any questions about medication he will belittle you and try to tell you you are dumb basically. I feel so much worse after seeing him and lost hope in "doctors" like him. This guy needs to retire before hurting any other patients. read more

After a couple appointments two things have become abundantly clear about Dr. Sobel and his practice. The first is that he is a very intelligent and knowledgeable psychopharmacologist and the second is that the social skills of both he and his secretary are extremely poor. He is a very conceded, insulting, and demeaning man to speak with and his secretary is dismissive, unmotivated, and downright rude. In conclusion if you're looking for a doctor who is personable and knowledgeable look elsewhere, but if you don't mind dealing with a bad attitude and are just looking for a very knowledgeable doctor look no further. Edit-And I didn't read a single review before writing this in order to be unbiased, but many others seem to feel the same way. read more

Not effective treatment. I spent 9 months working with this man, doing everything he told me to do, no caffeine, no alcohol, read this and that. He absolutely had his own agenda for treating me and never cared to consider my past diagnosis due to his apparent "God complex". He charges for every 10 min appointment that he requests multiple times a month. He jumped on me regarding my personal decisions (after he brought up) that do not affect him or my mental illness. I am currently working with another doctor that asked me 293637 more questions than he EVER did within the first 30 min of speaking together. Also, when I sent him an email, explaining that I wanted to discontinue treatments with him due to ineffectiveness, I NEVER got a reply; no "best of luck", nothing. He truly does not care expect for the money he collects by over charging his patients. ***Patient Be Warned***_ read more

I appreciate Dr. Sobel's help very much during my time of trauma. He was careful to make sure I was getting support via support groups and a therapist as well as prescribing appropriate medication for me. He was thorough and focused on my care. I believe he truly cares about his patients. read more

Stephen Sobel is a dangerous man with a prescription pad. My 22 year old son died Sept 5, 2016 of an opiate addiction that began with an Adderrall prescription from Sobel. He refused to believe that our son was abusing them, continuing to prescribe not only amphetamines, but up to 7 different psychotropic drugs in one month changing them every 2 weeks for OVER 2 YEARS. He had no clear diagnosis, just kept throwing meds into his system. We trusted this "doctor" that he was doing the right thing while having a son who was increasingly unable to articulate his frustration because of the chemistry that Sobel was practicing on our sons brain. Sobel is a prime example of how the opiate crisis begins in the doctors office. Do not go anywhere near this doctor. We havent decided yet what legal actions we will take, but he needs to lose his license. read more

I wish I would have written this 4 years ago when I experienced his narcissistic demeanor. He is an ass, to say the least. He is extremely unprofessional, calling my therapist at the time while I was in his office and putting her on speaker - she had no idea. He lied about payment, saw me for maybe 5 min to write a refill for a generic prescription and charged me $150. Really?! I waited for 20 min in a deserted office beyond our appt time. Biggest asshole I have encountered. Beware, do not waste your time, money or mental anguish on this JERK. He needs to be reported and I hope multiple ppl have filed grievances about him - I wish I had. Negative stars for sure. Why do we have to choose at least one? His behavior does not warrant that. read more

I am going to keep this review short and sweet and just touch on the highlights... pros: short waiting period, appointments are on time appointments last around 5 to 15 minutes at the most cons: Dr. Sobel's bedside manner is lacking to say the least. He is extremely rude, brusque, and short tempered. Has a major attitude problem and will not tolerate you asking questions about his diagnosis or even contemplate that he could be wrong in reaching his conclusion. Be careful when paying him, he has issues keeping track of your payments and wants cash for them. He also conveniently forgets that you already paid your bills and has tried to collect on co-payments that were already paid. Bottom line here, is that if you want to pay for a rude doctor to tell you what is wrong with you, you have found your place. Go elsewhere, there are too many doctors in San Diego that are good for you to give your business to this one. read more

Wow. Wish I would have read these reviews before going to see Dr. Sobel. He is as described: money hungry, putting profits ahead of his patients' well being, and arrogant/rude to the point of being a joke. He always rushed me out the door after 10-15 minutes tops even though I was paying for an hour of his time. He wouldn't accept a credit card, would only accept cash. I have decided that I am going to (1) report this doctor to the medical board for unethical practices (2) sue him in small claims court charging me for an appointment that was never booked and (3) report him to my insurance company and any other insurance company that is willing to listen with the intention of getting them to stop using him as a provider. read more

Sadly, I feel compelled to leave this review. I searched for a psychiatrist with a focus on adult adhd who was covered by my insurance and from his website Dr. Sobel seemed to fit the bill. Indeed, I was diagnosed with ADHD and prescribed a starter dose of medication. I went for a follow up this week to evaluate the effectiveness of the medication. In order to be diligent and get an accurate analysis, I took notes over the course of 5 days noting symptomatic changes and observations. Dr. Balked at my 2 pages of notes, told me it was compulsive and forbade me from taking any more notes in our session. I explained it helps with my forgetfulness and keeps me engaged, but he dismissed me and stated I would remember what is important and it stops me from paying attention. Please note - I have found careful note taking to be an extremely effective tool for keeping engaged in important conversations, and remembering important points. Nonetheless, I was forbidden from note taking in the meeting even as he explained about an anxiety drug he wanted to prescribe me. In finding out how the meds were working, I started to let him know how dramatic the effect was on the first day - he cut me off saying "that is the placebo effect." Well no, it wasn't, but there it is. I mentioned another significant symptom change I had observed and he said "that's your imagination". No. It is not. In the span of 20 minutes, there were plenty of similar examples and after the meeting I was left shaking. Please note again, I work in a highly demanding field and have plenty of experience working with difficult people and difficult situations - I have pretty thick skin. I left this meeting questioning myself as I couldn't believe a professional in a field dealing with people's mental health could be so rude and dismissive. But there you have it. I cancelled my follow-up and will be working with someone else in the future. Initially I brushed off his brusque demeanor (as I said, I am used to working with a variety of personalities). If he's good at what he does, his personality doesn't matter. However, I am very concerned about his dismissal of my reported symptoms, disinterest in even hearing how the medication had worked, and shock that I would be diligent enough to keep a kind of symptom journal (generally recommended when taking new meds - especially if they can affect mood and mental health). If you have no questions and are happy to just go with whatever the doc says, then fine. If you intend to form a dialogue or partnership in your own treatment, this is not the Dr. for you. I can't speak to the matter of payment. I asked for an invoice and he said he'd give me a statement every few months if I really want it. As far as I understand, my appointments will be billed out to insurance and we'll cover whatever we need to. It's a shame. I was really hopeful about this guy. I guess I should have read the yelp reviews first. Generally people only post reviews when very happy or very dissatisfied. I think it says something when the 1star reviews vastly outnumber the positive o read more

It's a big deal for me to put my real name on a review for a psychiatrist, since there's a lot of stigma in this country for mental healthcare. But after reading the other reviews and having several sessions with Dr. Sobel, I can say that the harshness and negativity directed his way are from people who are, at best, taken aback by his rigid and extremely intense demeanor, and, at worst, people who want a psychiatrist to hold their hand and pat their head and tell them that "yeah, that's rough, not sure what we'll do, but keep coming back and giving me money." The latter are, in my personal opinion, people who are not actually interested in recovery or who are so wounded by their mental condition, actual help is practically painful. Dr. Sobel is brusque, particular, exacting, and focused. This intensity is something you will rarely see, personally or professionally. It takes some getting used to, like black coffee or cold showers. If you want a drawn out, indefinite, sob-session, there are many other psychiatrists who you should see instead. If you are willing to work hard, sacrifice, and really try to get better, I can't think of a better doctor than him. He genuinely wants his patients to get better; and if you genuinely want to get better, swallow your pride, listen to what he says, and answer his questions. It's not easy. Getting better isn't easy. read more

This doctor may or may not be right for all patients. He overall failed to help this patient big time while help was easily available. I think this reflect lacks of his capability to accurately to dignose condition of some patients. Again, I want to emphasize that help was readily available through a combination of medication and talk therapy. It doesn't matter that the doctor has decades long experience. That may acctually limiting his qualifications. Cons: - Too conservative and inflexible. He would try one medication after another but having same or similar mechanisms, so not suprising that the patient continued to suffer. He would ask the same questions every time. He also works with just one therapist and refuse to recommend any other, even though she may not be not right for the patient. Even such obervation: his office furnuture for visitors is secured to the floor, so it can't be re-arranged. - Arrogant. Would not really listen to patient or let the patient speak for more than a couple of minutes. He thinks he knows better. And time is money (se next) - Greedy. His office overcharged the patient (not understanding the insurance details) and then was really unwilling to refund the money on request. It seems that he want to retain patients as long as possible even though he would say he saw thousands of patients. He would spend just about 10 min per patient. That's not enough. Also this: his routine questions in the beginniing of each visit included "How would like to pay for the visit?" I think this question should be left to his staff, but the doctor wanted to have personal control of finances. - Lacks empathy. That's quite typical, but this is not right. Pros: - He leaves an impression of clear and logical decisions. (That's good, if the decsions are right). - He won't promise you the patient will definetely recover, but may discuss chances of success. - He is usually available in emergency and inform the patient when he will be away. - He would personally come to waited patients and invite the next one. He will sound polite. I listed main cons and pros. 2 out of 5 is generous. I would rate this doctor 1.5, and I would not recommend him to every patient. read more

I saw Stephen for many years and tolerated many of his annoying tendencies. He is a self absorbed narcissist. He refuses to fill out insurance forms and makes simple tasks more difficult they need to be. He is nothing more than a glorified drug dealer. You are rushed out of your appointment so he can get to the next one. In the 10 years I saw him, I have one appointment that was longer than 15 minutes. What out me over the edge is that he use personal information against me and caused a very hostile environment. So much I needed to remove myself in the middle of an appointment because I refused to take his harassment anymore. This caused me to not get the medication I need. He does not care that I will be without my medications and the impact of his actions. I will definitely be reporting him to the medical board and my attorney. He is a bully and only sees things his way. If you challenge him, he becomes unprofessional and causes a hostile environment. I am suppose to feel safe that I can confide in him not to have him insult me and use my personal information that I confided in him against me. I will do whatever I can to ensure nobody else has to go through the same experience I did. There are plenty of people out there that can help. He is not one of them. Stay as far away from this guy as you can and I strongly encourage anyone that has dealt with this monster to file a complaint with the state. He won't be stopped unless we act together. https://www.breeze.ca.gov/datamart/mainMenu.do;jsessionid=guPEpzvBJmgalWrVNDbcE9GK5fGeWW3yxd1p_CJe.dca-fp-98-o-26 read more

This guy was a TOTAL JERK to me, and I never even met him. I received a list of Psychiatrists through my insurance company and called a couple in my area to try and set up an appointment. I left a voicemail at his office and requested a call back if he was accepting new patients - this is obviously before I read reviews about him. Before Dr. Sobel could call me back, I received a call back from another office and was able to set up an appointment for the following week due to a cancellation. A couple hours later Dr. Sobel calls me back and immediately starts asking questions about the psychiatric issues/problems I'm facing, the treatments I've had in the past, etc. Once I finish answering his questions he starts trying to book me for an appointment, and I figure it wouldn't hurt to get a 2nd opinion if he can see me soon enough. Dr. Sobel mentioned to me that he has an office in San Diego and one in Carlsbad. I only live 5 minutes from Carlsbad, so I tried to setup an appointment at his Carlsbad office but he indicated that he wouldn't have an available appointment for three weeks. At this point I told him I couldn't wait that long and I already had a different appointment set up for the following week. Then he exclaims, "Thank you for wasting our time, you could have told me at the beginning of our call... good luck with your treatment." He then hung up on me.... only 1 minute and 52 seconds into the call. Unbelievable... that's all I have to say. I have never been treated so rude by a doctor, or anyone in the healthcare field for that matter. This guy is a complete jerk and a total narcissist; I strongly advise you look elsewhere. read more

If I could do zero stars, I would. Dr. Sobel is the most arrogant, insensitive and condescending mental health professional I have come across, and I am using the word professional very loosely here. If basic manners were required skills for a psychiatrist, Dr. Sobel would have not made it through his first semester of medical school. I went to see him years ago at a very vulnerable time in my life and he did more harm than good. I have recently been reflecting on that time in my life and realize how much he exacerbated the pain I was experiencing. It's no wonder that when you search "WORST PSYCHIATRISTS IN SAN DIEGO", his name is the first to come up. If your looking for a psychiatrist, don't walk, RUN away from this guy. read more

Sobel was the employers doctor in a work related stress leave. Although my own therapist was fully licensed,respected,and competent,Sobels report always reflects the EMPLOYER side. Plain and simple PAID PIG for BIG CORPORATIONS. How does he still have a license ? As we would say in Jersey, "This guy is a piece of +*#* read more

I have been with Dr Sobel since 2014 and I can't thank him enough. He is honest and straight to the point. I am not sure what all the other reviews are about but he cares about you and what is going on. I hope that I will be able to find a Dr. who is as honest and caring as Dr. Sobel. I would definitely recommend him. read more

I left a message for Dr. Sobel and he asked if I was suicidal for starters and what my symptons were. I told him I felt depressed, anxious and said that I had legal issues that were contributing to stress. At first he said he would not be available for three weeks and then said he would not see me because he thought I wanted to present evidence in court. He made assumptions, refused to listen and provide treatment but to find a psychiatrist through my healthcare provide. What a useless jerk. The message on his answering machine is ridiculously long. I was told that many of his clients played for the San Diego Chargers, so maybe that explains his stinky crappitude towards those he thinks are not elites. It's time Dr. Sobel looked in the mirror. read more

I am a Marriage and Family Therapist Associate and former client of Dr. Sobel. I've left 3 Yelp reviews in my life and I felt this one was imperative. I worked with Dr. Sobel for 5 years to treat my anxiety and was shocked when he suddenly abandoned me as a client. During my last appointment in December of 2018, Dr. Sobel showed me a billing statement that noted I had an outstanding balance that I was unaware of. When I questioned him about it and told him I had another billing statement (and personal checks) that showed I did not have a balance, he was defensive and adamant about me making a payment that day. He also had several missed appointment charges on my statement. I am very diligent about dates and appointments and did not recall missing any sessions. He assured me that if I was able to send him the copies of the checks and the balance statement I received in the mail, then he would reimburse me for the checks he MADE me write on the day of my appointment. After my session, I went home and checked both my statements and checks and confirmed that I was up to date on my payments. I called him that afternoon, left a voicemail stating what I had confirmed. I called him 3 additional times and in each of my messages, mentioned there were discrepancies between the billing statement I received in the mail at the end of 2018 and the billing statement that he gave me at my last appointment. My message was never returned. This was the first time he or Cindy never returned my messages, and ironically the first time I had ever questioned him about a billing matter. If Dr. Sobel had different information regarding my payment history, or thought it best to terminate services with me, he has a legal and ethical obligation to do so. His lack of follow up is both shocking and hurtful, and makes me question his integrity to his practice. I take my medication on a daily basis and it is the cornerstone of my treatment for my anxiety. Dr. Sobel intentionally did not follow up with me via phone, he also placed me in a precarious situation. I did not have any back up care and therefore no way to refill my prescription. I feel very fortunate that my therapist was able to find a good referral for me on such short notice. I hope other clients do not have to go through the same situation, as the nature of his legal and ethical obligations involve timely and honest communication to ensure clients receive the life-saving medication that he prescribes. Being a clinician myself, I have a duty to report his negligence to the Board of Behavioral Sciences and plan on doing so in hopes to help other potential clients. read more

I had a similar experience with this stale money hungry doctor. I am looking for a new one asap.

DO NOT GO TO HIM!! First off i was seen 25 minutes after my scheduled time. There was no receptionist to help with any questions about paperwork as a first time patient. Seriously listen to all the negative reviews!! All he did was try to push drugs on me. I've been seeing different behavioral health professionals on and off for ten years as I've moved. After only about fifteen minutes he said yup i know your whole situation and i'll write a prescription. That was absurd to me, being i hadn't really said much of anything besides yes or no answers. When i asked if there was any other treatment available he became very irate. I said i preferred to go to a physiologist again first to make sure and get a second opionion. He blatantly said "go ahead and go to the talk your lips off specialists" "either way you'll be back here begging for a prescription" as he walked out of the room. That alone showed me the disrespect he had for the mental health field. read more

He has a lot of knowledge, but no bedside manner. No refills , had to see him every two weeks. Couldn't remember I had no copay after each appointment. Told me if I relapsed, he wouldn't see me. So it was either lie about a single relapse to someone u shouldn't lie to, or leave. I left. No meds anymore , and ended up in the hospital for depression. I did fine for six months . But a little more compassion on his end would have gone a long way. I don't blame him, but he could have helped. read more

At the start of our first (and only) session, the very first thing this guy said to me was, "You didn't give me your credit card number in case you default on a payment" I said I was paying my check, and if we continued in a therapeutic relationship, I would give him a cc number. He said, "Well, I guess I'll have to trust that you won't bounce a check on me." It was so insulting that I thought he was being sarcastic. He wasn't; he was completely serious. It was clear that his entire focus in life was protecting his interests and his money. What a scumbag, a disgusting, distrustful and an ugly human being. The AMA and Psych Board should review his mental status before he continues to operate his practice. read more

The old adage is true of, "more doctors are involved in a lawsuit by their patients for their disposition, personal behavior and rudeness, than medical malpractice". With this being said, I would rate Dr. Stephen Sobel with a report card of "low C to D" for his listening ability and compassion. I felt he conducted my appointment as a coed "speed dating" event in SD. It went from the meet and greet, keep my mouth shut until spoken too, hand the secretary the money and getting out the door. I was dealing with sadness/depression and needed some help. I didn't anticipate an impeding heart attack at this time. It was followed up with the five artery bypass in November 2015. The surgery also came with sixteen months of side benefits of high toxicity from two prescribed heart medicines lot of co-pays, loss of job, health insurance and a depleted bank account. I am still recovering physically from toxic levels of Metropol Tartrate 25mg. and Atorvastatin 40mg (not from Dr. Sobel). Once I started vocalizing my concerns to Dr. Sobel during my eight to ten minutes in the spotlight, I was squashed like a bug of my thoughts in mid sentence. Definitely not a warm and fuzzy guy. I agee with other Yelp reviews of his narcissism and greater than thou feeling. I recently needed and expected cooperation from Dr. Sobel to have his secretary to make copies and return my personal information to DSS. He was to be paid a reasonable fee. This did not happen after several letters to his office. I assume it wasn't in the budget for his secretary to accomplish it. I wish that I did advance research on Dr. Sobel. Want be going back.. "Buyer beware". Mike L. read more

I am a current patient & will summarize him and his office "liaison". Subsequent to this post, I will be his EX patient and he will be (to me) some selfish, rude, and narcissistic ass I had to see for psych meds once upon a time: CIGNA Rx Home Delivery has faxed him 3 times since 15MAY2015 and finally after 10 BUSINESS DAYS OF NO RESPONSE -- WHILE I AM OUT OF MEDS FOR TOMORROW -- my order was cancelled. I just got back into town after being in IL for a week to find this out. Sound like someone you want "caring" for u?? 1) My calls have NEVER been answered 2) My messages have NEVER been returned - not even those I mark URGENT after his voice mail system conveniently cuts me off after 5 words 3) Cindy (?) would not accept, from me, that he does not get to charge me a $40 copay (vs $20) for a "specialist"...FOR THREE MONTHS. About 5 attempts to reach her on that--never responded til my month-later in-person appt: UNACCEPTABLE. We are not discussing linens. 4) My 1st appt was XMas Eve; no receptionist that day to pay. 5) My 2nd appt was NY Eve; no receptionist that day to pay, with my 3rd appt sched (by him) for 2 wks out. 6) A week later I get a "statement" of $$ due (at Specialist billing rate!) that was more of assumption that I purpose hadn't paid for those 2 sessions (1) and (2) that's it's my responsibility blah blah blah BS and (3) if not paid within x days, they were sending me to collections. RUDE AS f! HORRIBLE HORRIBLE -- HE DOESNT CARE AND HIS OFFICE MANAGER CARES EVEN LESS. If u were referred by an MFT--tell MFT to try again. read more

Arrogant. His arrogance almost got me killed. Would give him zero stars if I could. In spite of my suspicions that my diagnosis was incorrect, which I voiced, he increased my medication to the point that it was more than current FDA guidelines allow. When I was admitted to the hospital with suicidal ideations, the first question doctors asked was why I was taking the dosage of medication he prescribed. I had told him repeatedly that the medication wasn't working. I called him the morning I honestly thought I might kill myself, and he told me to drive to the nearest ER. That was in February 2017. I haven't heard from him since. read more

(Before I get into my opinions on Dr. Sobel, I will say this, you must take into account when reading reviews that negative opinions are going to be given much more frequently than positive views, because the people who have positive things to say don't feel the same need to write about them thus take all overly positive or overly negative reviews with a grain of salt.) I've been seeing Dr. Sobel for more than a year and I know that he cares for his patients and is very knowledgeable in his field from my own experience. He's no nonsense and straight to the point, listening to my thoughts and ideas about my treatment and working with me to find the right medication for my depression, anxiety and Attention Deficit disorder. I show him respect and give him my trust and I've been sticking with the treatment even though I've had to try many different medications. He doesn't give up, and he's ready to help you if you're ready to be helped. The processes of being treated pharmaceutically for mental illness requires patience and determination, if you're humble and ready I believe with Dr. Sobel's help, you will find results, and no longer be held back as much as you used to by your metal conditions. Give Dr. Sobel a shot, I hope you'll have the success I have, and I wish any who read this the best in regards to living the life you want to live, you deserve it. Thank you for reading my review. :) read more

There should be an option to have negative stars for this psychiatrist and his negative attitude! What doctor who is supposed to help you with behavior has attitude the 1st five minutes and throws your insurance card at you, because his assistant screwed up not telling me ahead of time that I have a $172 deductible to pay now!! Not worth it read more

Wow. I have NEVER been treated so rude by a doctor in my entire life! I was in search of a new psychiatrist because mine just retired. I got a list of doctors in my area and Dr Sobel's was on the top of the list so I left a message with him telling him my situation. I just received a call from him telling me that he cannot help me because he does not take any patients from the previous doctor I had been seeing and when I asked him why he said they have different ways of practicing medicine and HUNG UP ON ME . The one sided conversation was 39 seconds. He had no interest in finding out my needs or my situation. What a JERK!! I will gladly take my fully insured self somewhere else! read more

Dr. Sobel will stick by you through anything but refusal to try. When he listens to me I can tell he is sincerely trying to help me. To me this speaks to an incredible level of empathy. He is a raging feminist too! Briskness aside he is an amazing doctor and he will help you if you want him to. read more

My life was a mess. Depression, anxiety, and more. Dr. Sobel talked me through my issues and got to my root problem. From there he got me on the right medication. He also helped me find a therapist. My life is 100% improved with the help and care of Dr. Sobel. If you want to get babied, Dr. Sobel is not the doctor for you. If you want someone who will be open, honest, and direct you will never find a better doctor. read more

I am so glad to read these reviews here and elsewhere online. I thought maybe it was just me. I found Dr. Sobel to be extremely arrogant and unwilling to listen. I was referred to him by another doctor and saw him regularly for about 6 months. Each time I consulted with him, he basically answered all of his questions of me without even giving me a chance to say anything in my 10 minute allotted time. When I did get a chance to speak, he often disagreed with what I said I was feeling. Once, I went on vacation and forgot my medication. When I told him this at our next visit, he said that a lot of patients intentionally "forget" their meds. I told him that I didn't do it on purpose, and his response was, "Yes, you did. You might not realize it, but you did. Don't worry-- lots of people do it." What?? He also literally patted himself on the back once when he was right about something. Seriously reached around and patted himself on the back and even declared that he was doing so. I missed one appointment, completely by accident, and swiftly received a hefty bill. Dropped my $150 check in the mail and dusted my hands. Best money ever spent for an easy breakup. read more

I have never done a review on Yelp, or any other site, for that matter, but I feel that I have to, in order to save others the time and money from visiting this arrogant doctor. I went to see Dr. Sobel with my teenage son on the recommendation of his coach. He has previously been diagnosed with ADD years ago, but is highly functioning. He gets 'B's in school, is an excellent athlete, and does not act out in other ways. We use a combination of nutrition, supplements, and behavioral therapy, and he receives extra time on tests etc. He was having trouble with registering multiple plays while in motion. My son's coach had heard of Dr. Sobel's affiliation with the Chargers, and thought that he might have some input or behavioral therapies that could help him with focus as it pertains to sports. We told the doctor about his previous diagnosis, and he proceeded to question my son extensively (albeit, quickly) about general focus questions and drug and alcohol use. He then announced that he has ADD (No kidding!! Wow! Pretty sure that we mentioned that in the first two minutes of our conversation!!), and COULD NOT get his Rx pad out quick enough. (That will be $275 please.) I told him that we had hoped for some other skill sets that he might employ to assist him in executing more complicated plays, and that we had considered the medication route years ago with the original doctor (who, by the way, informed us of ALL of our options), and had decided against it. He said that there were 'no options but drugs' (his opinion, fine, but I know that to be untrue), and that we obviously enjoy watching our son struggle. This is when he went SO completely out of line, that I was in disbelief! He began speaking directly to my son and told him that he was almost 18. Soon he could make this decision without his cruel, overbearing parents. He could get the meds in college, and that he will NEVER be successful in life unless he takes them. UNREAL!! I asked him about his work with the Chargers, and if he uniformly medicated those players, or did he help them in other ways. He stated that there were 'no other ways' and, yes, he prescribed medication other than Adderol, so that it does not show up in drug tests. Dr. Sobel is so ferociously confrontational and one-sided that he loses all credibility. I can't imagine that he has ANY regular patients that enjoy seeing him ~ Sissy has GOT to be a relative, or needing psychotherapy more than we know. read more

The worst experience I have ever had. Concerned about making money more than the welfare of his patients. Was in tears when I left his office on my second visit. Will never go back. He was absolutely horrible. All his degrees mean nothing if he can not connect with his patients. He was rude, demeaning and had no empathy whatsoever. I would not recommend him to my worst enemy. read more

I have been seeing Dr. Sobel for several years now. I have found him to be caring and most patient. His secretary Ms. Cindy - they do not come any better read more

My session with Dr. Sobel started off OK. He remarked affably that we were born just a few days apart. An attempt to establish rapport. But he turned nasty after he started asking about my drinking habits. How many times a week do you drink?, he asked. I hardly ever. I told him that, I said zero times a week, on average. That perplexed and annoyed him. He tried, how many times a month? Again, the answer: zero times a month on average. Once or twice a year, and some years none. His face soured. What a biased, disrespectful psychiatrist. Both my parents were heavy drinkers, and none of us siblings ever followed their example. Ahh, zero stars isn't allowed. read more

Dr Sobel will soon be my former doctor for all the same complaints as those before me. My Dr. retired and I needed to find a new one and sadly, selected this character. I have been taking the same meds for 20 years and they do their job but he will only give me a 30 day supply at a time and won't refill unless I see him EVERY month! when I called to get a refill this month, he informed me that the pharmacy needs to get it to him by the end of the day because he was leaving town and no one will be monitoring his patients needs while he is gone. He is only willing to renew for enough days until I see him again. Okay... so did I mention that these are meds to control bi-polar? I will be running out 3 days before I see him. Everyone stay off the road and don't look me directly in the eyes. Seriously, what a horrible way to treat people that are in his care. I HAVE to see him next week to get the next month's supply but have already set up an appointment with a different doctor for after that. read more