Saad A Shakir, MD PC

Office told my daughter the fee was only $ 50 through her insurance. They failed to tell her we have a deductible. 4 visits later, bill for $ 1,200. When I brought this to their attention, they said that there was nothing they could do. Really?

I want to start off that a business dealing in mental health is probably going to receive some bad reviews as not everyone can be treated effectively for mental illness, especially those that may not be ‘fully compliant’ with the physicians/​psychiatrists/​psychologists recommendations.
That being said, I’m not a shill for this clinic and I was referred to Silicon Valley TMS by my Osteopathic Physician from Sutter Health (PAMF) after many bad experiences with VA mental health treatment programs. I have suffered from depression and its insidious collateral symptoms (chronic pain, procrastination, lack of mental/​physical energy, painful IBS symptoms, poor sleeping habits, and lack of mental acuity/​ability to concentrate for over 40 years. My condition would vary between chronic dysthymia with occasional dips into severe depression. As a military officer/​aviator I had to ‘soldier on’ and keep my mouth shut — or be grounded. Fortunately, I was recently treated by Silicon Valley TMS with their advanced ‘Brainsway’ rTMS machine that is capable of deep TMS to stimulate the brain more effectively than other TMS medical devices. I began to notice profound improvements after my first treatment and after 20 treatments, I was energized both mentally and physically — a truly transformational medical treatment in only 20 days, without any drugs in my case.
I can now understand and appreciate why Dr. Shakir is such a proponent for this treatment, given how it has transformed my life and ability to function normally without anti-​depressants and pain medications which only slightly masked depression symptoms and created other negative side effects.
I highly recommend Dr. Shakir and Silicon Valley TMS for those seeking to restore their mental and physical health. Your family members will love the new ‘you’ following TMS treatment, trust me — I’ve been there. TMS also effectively treats PTSD in a very short period of time, so refer a veteran and possibly save a life!

Worst Dr and staff I have EVER dealt with !!! I’m 23 years old, and at my mothers recommendation; I came from out of town and took 6 weeks off of work to stay in Silicon Valley and try TMS treatments for my severe OCD/​GAD. At first, both him and his business partner Dr. Hashemian seemed very nice and assured me that after 30 treatments (which aren’t covered by any insurance) I would be feeling better. Sadly, that did NOT happen for me and overall I had a terrible experience! I remember my first meeting with Dr. Shakir, I told him that I didn’t want to try any new medications. I have tried countless medications over three years (with numerous side affects– some life threatening) with my current Dr and didn’t want to sabotage the short time I had there. I was already on 2 psychiatric meds that were making my life manageable. He obviously didn’t hear me because he prescribed me three different medications over the course of a month
and I had bad side affects with all of them. On top of everything else the staff was extremely rude and kept rescheduling my appointments literally every 2 days. Anyways, I don’t want to make this
review too long; however I feel the need to write this hoping it will help somebody. I finished in April 2016. My quality of life has been significantly getting worse everyday since I finished «treatment». People close to me are now worried and have never been before. I came back home to my regular psychiatrist– who knows me and my history very well and it was the first time she has seen me cry and really cry like a child. She was afraid– I’ve always been well put together, composed, and polite in the 56 sessions I’ve had with her. Ultimately, she knew the fault was of the Drs and not mine. Clearly I’m not recommending this Dr Shakir or his practice.

I have now been a patient of Dr. Shakir’s for 5 plus years and I couldn’t be happier. His staff is wonderful. He is great to deal with, understanding my needs and working within my parameters.
The few times I had needs like being on a trip and not having enough meds, his staff took care of me immediately at the local CVS and life was good again.
If you have tried other Dr’s and had little luck in getting better, You need to go see Dr. Shakir.
Prior to becoming his patient, I would go to sleep at night wondering if I would wake up ever again. Then another day of laying in bed with misery. After I was with Dr. Shakir for a few years, most of my days are great except for when I over exert myself the day before. He made my life possible again.
Another cool thing about his services is the metabolism (not certain of the name) test to see what medications work well for me and which ones are so-​so and which ones are bad for me.
This made the choices of what prescriptions I should be on easier as I knew I was sensitive to many meds but not to this extent. That test alone was very important even when I broke my ribs and I told them the codeine did not work on me and the good people at Good Samaritan hospital gave me a prescription for Vicodin anyway… idiots! Generic Aleve works much better for me. I never got the Vicodin prescription from Good Samaritan hospital filled.
I’ll say it again: When you are sick and tired of being sick and tired, go to Dr. Shakir. Really, do yourself a favor and go to Dr. Shakir if you wish to get better again. You will be glad you did.

I have been seeing Dr. Shakir for almost 3 years. Prior to seeing him, I had seen several other Psychiatrists throughout the years. I was diagnosed with depression and bipolar disorder about 10 years ago. I started with a psychiatrist who put me on several medications. My last psychiatrist literally had me on 11 pills a day. My depression continued to get worse and I was out of control. I finally started seeing Dr. Shakir from a recommendation of someone. He evaluated me and took me off of most medications. After only a couple of visits, he re-​diagnosed me with having only depression not bipolar disorder. He also brought me down to only 1 medication. Not only that, he does thorough blood work every 3 months and found that my vitamin D level was VERY low. He was able to help get that to where it needs to be as well.
I have never had a psychiatrist that has cared so much and has worked so hard for me. He genuinely cares for his patients. His bed side manner I find I great. He takes time to ask how I am doing and really listens. He also answers all of my husbands questions and is happy to do so. I love this doctor. He has saved me.
He only takes one type of insurance now. (not mine) He is expensive, but totally worth it. You can’t put a price on your health.

UNBELIEVABLY BAD SERVICE. I am a client for 17+ years. Time after time I’ve had problems with prescription service. THIS time I was to have an agreed upon 90-​day supply submitted to my auto-​fill service. Nope. Not done. Ran out. Not the first time this has occurred. Answering service says «no contacting the doctor on prescription issues». Really? Answering service says «call back on Monday» (it’s Saturday). Really? Answering service says «there’s no supervisor available». Really? Answering service transfers me to another person who is NOT a supervisor but «acting as a supervisor at this time». Really? Answering service says «we can only contact „the nurse“ on this». Really? What choice do I have? 17. Years. A. Client. We’ll see if I get a call back (doubt it). Where can I get a prescription? My prescription provider is CLOSED tomorrow. Pissed off? YOU. BET.
Got a call back from an unknown «nurse». Not on website as staff. Great.
This person doesn’t understand that my alternate pharmacy is CLOSED now and also tomorrow. CLOSED. No, you can NOT contact them.
Now they’re off «trying to help me» and may call back tonight or tomorrow morning. Really?
I’m not holding my breath…
No call back received. Spoke to two more «supervisors» on staff at the answering service who refused to call anyone else because of the «doctor’s protocol».
Four staff saying the SAME thing. One «nurse» call but no action or follow-​up.
Spoke to the doctor’s office on Monday and STILL no understanding about what happened. They called in a 90-​day prescription through my mail service but that’s NOT what I needed! So another 30-​day supply was to be called in to a local pharmacy.
Now we’ll see what, if anything, the doctor will do to repair this grand failure.

Dr. Shakir and his staff are wonderful. Met with his staff first to go over questions and they were thorough and friendly and really took their time. I then met with Dr. Shakir and he spent over 30 minutes with me and he was so friendly and really listened and asked more thorough questions. Best part though was that he did not quickly just write me a prescription and send me on my way. He offered alternatives and a follow up plan. Really thankful I was able to meet with he and his staff and look forward to being their patient. Would definitely recommend.

Please do NOT go see Dr. Shakir. He is not compassionate, but only looking at the clock and making you feel he is only interested in the money. Some of his staff is ok but some really incompetent. He thinks all mighty of himself and his knowledge and prefers to show that rather than care about his patients.
Before my first visit they called me 3 times to verify that I understood I will have to pay the full amount for the appointment (as he was not recognized by my insurance). When I came in I was asked to pay BEFORE I even met with him, which I have never experienced with any doctor before. I then waited an hour and a half as «an emergency happened» and when I finally came in and talked with him, time ran out quickly without him having a real proper organized intake, and I felt no compassion from him whatsoever. Yet, I gave him a «second chance» as I was so desperate, and made another appointment.
To my second appointment a different staff member «checked» me before seeing the doctor, and this guy had no clue about psychiatry nor my chart, let alone my medications, which was quite aggravating as he asked me really silly and improper questions.
The conversation with Dr. Shakir after that was just the same as the first one– all scattered, him trying to show me that he has such vast knowledge, but really not saying anything valuable to my own private situation, and not even letting me finish my sentences without cutting me off.
After that I never came back. I come from the medical field with many years of experience working with doctors and medical staff, and I can tell good doctors from bad ones. Dr. Saad Shakir is definitely one of the WORST doctors I have ever met, let alone greedy and cocky.
I hope you read this review in time to prevent you from making an appointment with him…
Best wishes.
I.

While I was a patient of Dr. Shakir, I found him to be attentive and knowledgeable. He was a bit too focused on his own accomplishments in research studies. The office was set up to be quite efficient. Vital signs were taken on every visit– very important when taking psychotropic medications. (Since then, I have found good psychiatrists who merely ask about weight and ignore blood pressure.) My primary frustration was that Dr. Shakir put me on medication that obviously did not work at all and that had a lot of serious side effects. Despite continuing, serious mental health issues, all he did was to add more medications to the one that wasn’t working. When I was on five different medications, it was obvious to me that I was little more than an experiment. Other experts in the field have explained to me that everyone reacts differently to different medications– something I already knew. But no one has suggested that 5 medications are acceptable nor that one should keep taking a medication that isn’t working. I left the practice primarily because his treatment plans consistently did not help.

My experience with Dr Shakir was similar to the previous reviewer. After a suicide attempt I was hospitalized and then treated at an outpatient clinic. Through some family connection Dr Shakir and his TMS crew were recommended, even though I was seeing a psychiatrist near where I live. I was still in a terrible place and had been depressed to varying degrees since high school. I tend to get talked into things easily when I am not feeling well, as I suspect many people are. Here was a quick fix, that didn’t require more medicines. I was talked into… granted I was the one who initiated the treatments. But I had an odd feeling about Dr Shakir from his waiting room plastered with accolades «from pay for a plaque» quack institutions. Then their were the treatments, the constant questions from the staff asking me «do you feel better?» And on top of the whole scheme is Dr Shakir who takes no insurance, and has the genuineness of a false prophet. He likes to preen and groom himself in front of others… he shows inane graphs and obscure patient examples… curiously I only saw a handful of other patients despite being their for a few months. I am not sure if he is a total quack, because he seems to believe what he is saying, but than again it is easy to talk a depressed person into anything. He also advocates you see one of his therapists, therefore he can be kept abreast of your ongoing therapy. While at the same time he seems to not care much to remember details of his patients. TMS it self, (Transcranial Magnetic Something or other) is either too experimental or a total waste of time and money. Having talked now with other Physicians, I was probably never a good candidate, but I also had the money to burn and the enough desperation. Dr. Shakir himself advocated a multi pronged approach to treatment, including medication, counseling, and so forth… but then how does anyone know what if anything works. I guess it doesn’t matter as long as you feel healthier. But depression management is a marathon, not a sprint. That is the problem with TMS, it doesn’t have an expiration date, like most therapies of the mind… their isn’t a blood test or X-​ray to confirm the results only little surveys that speak fluently only in generalities. Who knows maybe if my insurance covered it I would still be blissfully medicating still. But now I am thousands of dollars in debt to my parents (no interest I am told), that money could have spent on a new well for a village or prosthetics for mine victim or free women caught in the sex trade. The final push to relieve Dr Shakir of his duties, came when I failed to continue scheduling appointments (they are daily for TMS at $ 500 a pop… through the friend who recommended me I was a awarded a 20% discount… woo-​hoo). Finally after some calls back and forth I agreed to see him again, because I was still depressed and desperate. He asked me why I stopped communicating with his office… I said that is essentially how I function when I am depressed, I shut down and isolate. This is very common, which makes treatment, no matter what kind, difficult. Dr Shakir said it was fine to stop, but that (He) «is my lifeline.» What an arrogant thing to say… overcoming any mental or physical issue is about empowering the patient. He knocked me down. Luckily this all happened over a matter of months… not years. Overall… see a psychiatrist that listens to you, it is rare to find them… but if you do then that is a good start to building trust. I realize now, that never trusted Dr. Shakir nor his friendly, but creepy staff.

I was Dr. Shakir’s patient for a couple of years. His reception and nursing staff are fine (the stars are mostly for them) but I did not have a pleasant experience with Dr. Shakir himself. He is not about his patients, just himself. His only real interest was talking about his accomplishments, his research work (the only time I felt like I had his full attention was whenever the topic of women’s sexuality came up and that wasn’t the reason I was seeing him), pushing a plethora of medications on me with not enough regard for side effects (I felt like a guinea pig for drugs that were just approved by the FDA), and stroking his own ego by making the patient feel small.
He made no effort to remember my on-​going concerns even though I was a regular patient. The entire time I saw him, he talked to me in condescending tones. When I moved 70 miles away and finally made the decision to change doctors, he wouldn’t give me any references for doctors in my new neighborhood or release my medical history with him to me (this may be common practice for psychiatrists, I don’t know).
Dr. Shakir also told me that I continue to see him, would be a fool not to, and that the distance to his office was not an excuse because he had patients who fly in from New Jersey to see him. What?! That has nothing to do with me. IF he were a truly caring and compassionate doctor, I *might* be willing to drive 70 miles through bay area traffic to see him, which is a huge hardship for me due to my chronic fatigue, but since he’s obviously only into himself, no way!
I do have to say though that parking was never a problem and his offices are easy to get to off the freeway. Dr. Shakir is a smart, well-​educated man. He just needs to focus more on helping his patients, not furthering his own agenda.