A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who specializes in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. Becoming a psychiatrist requires a four year undergraduate degree, four years of medical school, and four years of general psychiatry residency. It is possible to fast track into a two year child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship after completing three years of psychiatry residency.

A child and adolescent psychiatrist is a physician that specializes in the diagnosis and the treatment of disorders of thinking, feeling and/or behavior affecting children, adolescents, and their families. Becoming a child and adolescent psychiatrist requires an additional two years of fellowship training after general psychiatry residency training. In child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship training, the trainee acquires a thorough knowledge of normal child and family development, psychopathology, and treatment. Special importance is given to disorders that appear in childhood, such as pervasive developmental disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, mood disorders, depressive and anxiety disorders, drug dependency and delinquency (conduct disorder).

Please follow the link to schedule a free introductory phone call with Dr. Reynolds. https://sunspherepsych.intakeq.com/booking

Can I just call the office and schedule that way instead?

You are welcome to call the office and speak with Dr. Reynolds or leave her a voicemail. At this time Sunsphere Psychiatry is a solo private practice with no other office staff. Scheduling an introductory phone call at an agreed upon time helps use your time efficiently and cuts down on back and forth unanswered phone calls.

After your introductory phone call, you will be sent a link with the intake paperwork (practice policies, privacy policies, release of information forms) which must be completed before the initial appointment. You are also asked to complete medical information forms with details about your or your child’s medical history, psychiatric history, and family history. Please bring current prescription medications and supplements to the appointment. Please upload in advance or bring any relevant medical records or school records that would be helpful during the initial evaluation.

Follow up appointment frequency will depend on clinical complexity and acuity.

Patients with stable psychiatric conditions that require ongoing evaluation and medication refills will be seen at least once every 3 months. After medication adjustments or an acute change in symptoms, patients should expect to schedule a follow up visit within 1-4 weeks.

Patients engaged in psychotherapy with Dr. Reynolds will be seen weekly or biweekly.

Yes, many patients see a therapist outside Sunsphere Psychiatry. Dr. Reynolds enjoys collaborating with therapists to provide optimal mental health care to her patients.

Some patients may elect to have both medication management and psychotherapy treatment with Dr. Reynolds.

Yes, after completing an initial psychiatric consultation, patients already taking psychiatric medications can decide to become an established patient at Sunsphere Psychiatry. At that time, Dr. Reynolds would become the physician managing your or your child’s psychiatric medications. We will coordinate notifying your PCP that you have become an established patient at Sunsphere Psychiatry. It is important to have only one physician/PA/NP managing your psychiatric medications at a time.

No, Dr. Reynolds is not a primary care physician. If you do not have a PCP, Dr. Reynolds will insist that you establish care with one. Many psychiatric symptoms are caused by non-psychiatric medical conditions, and it is critical to take care of routine health maintenance and general medical evaluation with your PCP.

Deprescribing is the planned and supervised process of reducing or stopping medication for which existing or potential harms outweigh existing or potential benefits. (1)

Dr. Reynolds is committed to making sure her patients are on the fewest number of medications at the lowest effective dose to manage their psychiatric condition. Before starting a new medication, Dr. Reynolds will discuss the length of time that the patient should anticipate taking the medication based on the existing evidence for the treatment of the particular psychiatric diagnosis. Some psychiatric diagnoses may require treatment with medication for only a short time while patients are engaged in psychotherapy; some psychiatric diagnoses may require treatment with medication for life but with titrations in doses or changes in specific medications in response to the illness trajectory or their life circumstances. She will explain the potential process of what deprescribing could look like and how it is necessary to distinguish medication withdrawal symptoms from return of symptoms of the underlying disorder the medication was meant to treat. Psychiatric medication management is a highly individualized process with many evidence based principles to follow as well as specific nuances to consider in each individual patient.

Dr. Reynolds is interested in accepting new patients into her practice that are already taking psychiatric medications but have struggled to discontinue the medicines despite them no longer being clinically indicated. A small number of patients may be particularly sensitive to medication discontinuation effects and could benefit from a prolonged taper schedule.

1. The Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines: Antidepressants, Benzodiazepines, Gabapentinoids, and Z-drugs, First Edition. Mark Horowitz and David Taylor. 2024. John Wily & Sons Ltd.