Donald H Stanford, MD

I am lucky in that while I was searching for the right therapist for me, I began seeing Dr. Stanford for my psychological medical needs.
Because of his excellence I am able to hang in there while I look for the right therapist for me.
He is so knowledgeable, so expert in his field and so easy to talk to, that I recommend him to anyone who wants to see the best in the field of psychiatry.
Much thanks to Dr. Stanford.

Unfortunately, I had a very negative experience with Dr. Stanford.
When I mentioned «negative self-​talk» to him (a very common term my therapist was using with me), he quickly snapped at me with «I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean.»
On two occasions when I expressed the severe side effects I had with medications he prescribed, I was surprised when he prescribed those same medications again at the end of our meeting. When I told him the ADD medication he prescribed left me jumpy, grumpy, and fighting with my loved ones, he blamed my loved ones (!!!) and prescribed the same medication again.
The final straw came when he told me I should «pick myself up by my bootstraps». I spent quite a bit of time feeling WORSE about myself because of things this doctor said to me.
I have found that there are other professionals out there who will use supportive methods to take good care of your health. It feels like they care. I believe that’s what we all deserve.

It truly does not get any better than what Dr. Stanford offers to his patients. The fact that he knows the various medications so well allows him to treat his patients with tremendous success.
I have been seeing Dr. Stanford for over 10 years and without him I would be such a mess. If you are fed up with being anxious, depressed he will find the medication that will work for you. I could not recommend a Dr. more highly than Dr. Stanford.
Julie B

He should know more than he does when treating alcoholics and addicts.

I have been looking for a psychiatrist after having gone through half a dozen of them in the last two decades. I chose Dr. Stanford because of the reviews here on Unilocal and wasn’t disppointed. It did take me a while to finally get an appointment but since I retired after becoming disabled in 2010 my schedule is pretty flexible. Dr. Stanford knows his pharmacopoeia and I don’t have to go through a whole lot of changes to get prescriptions filled with Dr.Stanford. He also quickly returns your phone calls and works with pharmacies even if they’re out of state. I went home to Ferguson, Missouri for the Thanksgiving holidays because Ferguson is where I grew up as a child. I ran out of a medication and Dr. Stanford quickly called in my prescription to a Walgreens here in St. Louis where I’m staying with my aunt. Unfortunately the Walgreens in Ferguson fell prey to rioters. Like a previous poster stated I dread the day when Dr. Stanford will retire because I’ll be up the creek without the proverbial paddle. Highly recommended Dr. Stanford as the go to guy if you’re looking for a good psych and have the proper health insurance.

I was desperate, on the verge of suicide, when I finally found a true healer. I had seen several psychiatrists who prescribe medications versus those who do talk therapy. These medicine prescribers were a terrible disappointment. Usually in a rush, not really interested in taking a complete history, and quick to make a snap diagnosis and push you out the door with a prescription in your hand. And you better not forget your checkbook.
Finally a talk therapist recommended Dr. Stanford. I had been burned so many times just going by one person’s recommendations that I decided to read every Unilocal review on him and read them with a discerning eye to be able to sort out phony reviews from «friends» of competitors, or those from really angry people who are crazy. Remember we are reviewing psychiatrists here, not hot dog stands. They are easy to spot, over the top, furious about silly things like the guy who was angry at his receptionist who he found rude or the woman who was furious because the secretary couldn’t stop what she was doing that moment to figure out how much money this woman spent (I guess because she didn’t know how to keep a balance in her checkbook). Of course one of the problems with reading reviews about a psychiatrist is you must realize up front that some of these reviewers are disturbed people, folks with serious emotional problems. What a strange collection of reviews. Most of the people who have seen him, and have seen him for extended periods, rave about him. Caring, compassionate, sees it as a calling, not a money making machine, bright, open, incredible skills, and I must say I would use all of those words to describe him. He brought me back from the pit of despair by realizing that I had been prescribed the worst possible medication for my condition which was probably most of the driving force behind my problems. He was so right. Within two months on the medication he prescribed I had gotten my life back. These positive reviews were incredibly helpful to me because there were so many and because they all seemed to come from the heart. Then I looked at the negative reviews. I’m sure a couple of them really were unable to relate for various reasons. Unfortunately they used their inability to make it the doctor’s fault used their problem to blame him. A couple of the negative reviews are obviously coming from people with the kind of problems medication most likely will not solve. Perhaps long term in patient care would have a shot. These are the ones full of rage, hateful, almost sounding as if their problems were created by one visit to Dr. Stanford. At first I didn’t understand why he only had 4 stars as the positive reviews were glowing, to a person, and each gave him the maximum number of stars. But those full of rage gave him one star which of course pull down his start average.
A couple of friends of mine own restaurants. Both places are excellent and also get top reviews, but then you have the tell tale ones, the guy who didn’t get his water fast enough or the bread tasted «funny» and so on, Especially in restaurant reviews competitors often get friends to post positive reviews for them but also slam the successful competition. It is sad that people go along with this, obviously people of no integrity. But at least the angry restaurant reviewers are most likely not crazy. Not so with the angry psychiatrist reviewers.
I am grateful to the reviewers who wrote thoughtful, intelligent reviews. You got me to see him and I am eternally grateful to you.

I should start by saying that Dr. Stanford was pretty friendly and seemed competent.
However, he had (has?) one of the rudest receptionists I’ve ever met. (I think from the picture, it’s Millicent.) Every interaction with her was unpleasant. Here is one example: I called to get the amount I’d paid the previous year for tax deduction purposes and she sighed like this was the most unreasonable request she’d ever heard and told me that she’d have to look through an entire year’s worth of records, which it didn’t sound she would consider doing. They don’t take credit cards, I don’t have a check record of it, and she said if I paid cash, they would have given me a receipt. I told her I thought they were required to provide this information for patients. Then she handed the phone to Dr. Stanford, who sounded irritated. At least he said he’d write me a receipt with a guess as to how many times I visited, but jeez. I didn’t even want to go into the building again, it was embarrassing. She also violated HIPPA last time I’d talked to her, asking if I was (insert someone else’s entire name here). When I told my psychiatrist, he just shrugged it off. She’s been rude to me from the outset the 4 or 5 times I’ve interacted with her. Anyway, who doesn’t keep records of how much money they receive and from whom in some way that’s easily accessible?
He also gave me crap before for not having more appointments with him for medication management, but I couldn’t reach anyone the couple times I tried to make an appointment later that year. They just don’t seem very organized and really need to hire a new person for the front desk.
Anyways, I have a different psychiatrist now and I’m not going back. Dr. Stanford was nice and gave me some useful information about my medication that no one else had in the past, but it wasn’t worth the unpleasantness of the visits.

Very bright, accessible, kind, and smart about pharmacopoeia. Doesn’t foist on you his own neuroses like most psychiatrists do. And, he takes insurance instead of charging 600/​hr, fee for service, while answering phone calls and sifting through flying sheets of disorganized patient folders (last psychiatrist).
He is very old school, doesn’t watch the clock, and, clearly, considers medicine a calling. He’s a good guy.

I think he fired me as a patient. He’s no longer taking my phone calls. That’s bad cause he’s good. ;(

I wouldn’t even rate this doctor if I could. I called over 2 weeks ago, gave them my information, and set everything up with my insurance. Have they given me an appointment? No. I was told I would hear back the next day. Nothing. I called 2 days later. They said the doctor had my information and would get back to me. Nothing. I called again. Nothing. This is by far the worst experience. I need my prescriptions looked at. If someone called that’s unstable and had this experience who knows what would happen. I was told that they were accepting new patients and I would get in as soon as possible. Absolutely horrible. I called another office and they were able to get me in. I will never come here. If you need help and need to get in to see someone, don’t even call.

I’ve been a patient of Dr. Stanford for more than a decade. I went through five other psychs before I found this guy. My only fear is that he might retire.
Dr. Stanford is STRICTLY a psychopharmacologist. He doesn’t want to hear about your troubled childhood. There are plenty of other psychs to go to for therapy.
A good candidate for Dr. Stanford’s services is an ADHD or bipolar (or similar) sufferer who responds well to meds. That would be me. When my med balance is right, I am simply FREE from bipolar symptoms.
Dr. Stanford has an encyclopedic knowledge of psych meds and many years of assessing their suitability for various conditions.
If your condition responds positively to meds, Dr. Stanford will work with you to achieve the optimal balance for normalizing your condition. It might take a few months but BECAUSE HE CARES you will get there.
Good luck!

DO NOT EVER GO HERE!!! They charge you a hundred dollars if u won’t show up when ur sick. Only cares about money. Donald Stanford doesn’t even care about u. Mike on the other hand yells at patients over the phone. Seriously the worst place ever. When I was there it was horrible. I had to see him for fifteen minutes once and still I had to pay the full price.

I’m not sure why my experience is so different from other patients, but unfortunately I can’t share their enthusiasm. I found Dr Standford through his glowing reviews on Unilocal and to his credit, I would say he is an effective psychiatrist though his bed-​side manner isn’t the best I’ve experienced.
Practically every time I visited his office, with exception of my first visit, he apologized for not remember who I was. The first couple of times I thought nothing of it, but after the 4^th visit I have to admit getting a bit annoyed. Then last week I called to make an appointment and left a voice mail which has gone unanswered.
Maybe my case was a fluke but having a doctor who remembers their patients and returns voice mail doesn’t seem like too much to ask, so I am now looking for another doctor.

I usually don’t write reviews unless I feel others might benefit in some way. I read Dr. Stanford’s reviews before I became his patient and since the reviews were all glowing, I didn’t feel the need to add anything else since my review would have been glowing as well.
Yet, upon reading Jay G.‘s most current review, I thought I should comment because I had the exact opposite experience. I was having a rather urgent medication issue that needed attention asap. I left a detailed message on Dr. Stanford’s voicemail and he called me back within ten minutes, spent twenty minutes on the phone with me and resolved the issue promptly.
Since I’ve been seeing him I’ve called him on numerous occasions and I’ve always received a call back in a very timely fashion. In cases where I just needed to schedule an appointment, the return call may have come the next morning. But when it’s been urgent, Dr. Stanford has never dropped the ball on me.
The glowing reviews for him express just how I feel — he actually listens, really listens and this makes all the difference when dealing with pharmacology and mood disorders.
I’m sticking with him.

Doctor or no doctor, it’s refreshing to find an authentic and caring human being. Dr. Stanford seems to be one of those individuals who went into psychiatry because he wanted to help people. who were hurting –but he didn’t change– he stayed that way! That plus his medications knowledge base makes for a dynamite healer! Go see him… you’ll be so glad you did. Loretta

I am in the world of Psychiatry, many doctors are fair to okay, I cant say enough about Dr. Stanford, s, devotion, his real concern and willingness to keep trying with my difficult symptomology.
He make witty humor, and includes you in your treatment and knows how to combine medications, life and is straight up with you, but then smiles
and you leave with hope, He is a patient advocate and has class.

Dr. Stanford is very experienced and knowledgeable. He has helped me find the right combination of medication to control my depression and anxiety. He is honest and straightforward with a refreshing sense of humor. I highly recommend this doctor.

Dr. Stanford transcends therapy as I have experienced it in the past by listening with more focus on the patient rather than the problem. He’s also helped me eliminate bad eating habits that really had me swinging from mood to mood to mood. I highly recommend Dr. Stanford to anyone frustrated by seemingly endless, pointless sessions that seem to go no where. He is knowledgable on current rx issues and will work with you to find a suitable /​agreeable approach where meds are concerned. He has also helped straighten out certain family relationship issues I (we) were experiencing.

Dr. Stanford has been amazing in helping me with my depression and anxiety where no one else has even come close.
I have been struggling with depression and anxiety to the point where it has cost me countless jobs and two marriages over the course of the last 10 years. I have seen more than 6 doctors to help me with my condition and none of them even came close to helping me. In this time I have tried more than a dozen medications with little to no results.
Within a few months, Dr. Stanford found the perfect mix of medications that has empowered to me to not only survive my volatile and stressful career but to thrive.
I recommend him HIGHLY!

Dr. Stanford is a genius at balancing medications. I went to him in major
depression/​anxiety crisis in December, and his minimalist approach to medication combined with an exquisite intuition and thorough Yale training, allowed us to come up with a combination of small doses of drugs that have given me back my life. The MD/​GP I had relied on previously for medications, had been prescribing about 10 times the dose I actually needed, and I wound up having seizures. It’s important to see someone with Dr. Stanford’s psychiatric training and long experience in «reading» side-​effects and calibrating the correct dosage for each person. General Practitioners rarely have the correct training or insight for such fine tuning.
Dr. Stanford also sees patients for talk therapy, and though my insurance will not cover it, I wouldn’t hesitate to see him for traditional talk therapy. His office staff can be a bit frustrating in terms of messages and scheduling, but don’t let that dissuade you from seeing this gifted practitioner.