Dr. Caroline Wolfe Cribari, MD

Warning!!! Stay away from this doctor if you truly want help. This doctor is completely terrible. I have seen many psychiatrists throughout the years and never have I had such an awful experience as I did with her. She is completely arrogant, unethical and full of herself. During my intake with her she mentioned several times what an amazing doctor she thinks she is. It was like she was trying to prove something or convince herself that she is great. She gave me a premature diagnosis after talking to me just once. It was a diagnosis that is completely inaccurate, doesn't fit any of my symptoms and that no other doctor or therapist has ever even suggested I might have. She went on to say, again, how wonderful she thinks she is and told me all the places she's studied and how she has a lot of connections and was sure she could find something for me. She and I scheduled to talk the next day so she could give me resources for help that she said she could get from all of her "amazing"… connections. She and I talked the next day for her to give me resources after talking to her connections and all she told me were resources that I already knew about or have tried and that anyone who knows how to google information can find. I got so sick and tired of her arrogance and lack of professionalism and empathy that I exited the zoom call we were on. She left me a voicemail just asking me to call her back and I didn't because frankly I was tired of hearing about how great she thinks she is. About 15 minutes later the police showed up at my door and said she called them to 5150 me. I was patted down by the police, they searched my apartment and then put me in handcuffs, put me in the police car and took me to the hospital. In my session with her I did not say anything to her indicating that I was a danger to myself or others and I believe that her actions were not based on her being worried for my safety, but because she was offended that she got hung up on. At the very least, if she was truly worried, she could have at the very least left me a voicemail telling me that if I didn't call her back by a certain time then she would be calling the police. After I was taken to the hospital I told them the situation and they said it was completely ridiculous that she would call the cops on me and the hospital staff apologized for what I went through and immediately let me go home. I told my team of medical professionals about what happened and they all agreed that she acted inappropriately. Any place that would allow such a doctor to work there leads me to believe that they are shady, desperate and willing to hire the lowest of the low. To make things worse, once I told my therapist what happened she called the place Dr. Cabriri works at and they reached out to me defending her actions, which just further confirms the lack of professionalism of this organization. My advice would be to never seek out services from her unless you want to hear this doctor go on and on about how great she thinks she is and risk her calling the cops on you if you do or say anything that would trigger her own insecurities about herself. She is someone who obviously has a lot of mental health issues of her own and I hope for her sake and the sake of her patients she seeks help as soon as possible. The only reason I even tried to receive services from her is because she takes my insurance. I just found another psychiatrist who I think is great and actually listens, who is smart and who I believe can actually help me. I would suggest staying far far away from Dr. Cribari. My experience with her was traumatizing and just made things worse for me. There is help out there, you just have to be really careful in order to avoid going through what I went through.

She abandoned me in the middle of a medication change and didn’t provide me with a replacement. She said that it was a “mutual agreement between us that this dynamic wasn’t a fit” and left me to contact the office for a different provider when she is supposed to do so. Unprofessional

she is brilliant.

Can’t say enough about Dr Caroline Cribari. Feel truly blessed to have her on my side. Amazingly knowledgeable and fixed more of my issues in a week than my last dr did in 2 years. Listen to her and get well ??

Terrible experience. I think she was high, she talked 100 miles an hour and even spoke about her former drug problems as she went on and on about herself. It was the strangest visit with a doctor I've ever been on. If I were to learn she was actually a patient impersonating a psychiatrist I would of believed it. I'm surprised she's allowed to practice medicine. Her diagnosis was random and not based on communication or my medical history. I complained to the office and saw another doctor.

It gives me hope that there are people like Dr. Cribari in this world. To me, I wouldn't choose not to have met her, despite the long waits and occasional cancellations. I did feel let down a few times when I really needed her help. I got through it on my own though... However, I feel that I have an amazing connection with her. She really gave me hope, comfort, and understanding when I most needed it. I feel very blessed.

Dr. Cribari was an amazing physician for me who corrected my course from devastating depression to newfound stability. It pains me to say that I cannot recommend her in good faith. Her charisma and warm aura allows you to forget about the 1 hour wait times, the last minute cancellations and schedule shifts (30 min postpone turns into 90 min very quickly with her). She truly seems to have no sense for time because when she is with a patient, she is extremely focused in the moment. I remember going longer than expected in an appointment with her (after starting quite late), and hearing the call of the person waiting to start their apartment. And the guilt knowing that she would probably not conclude our appointment for an additional 30-45 minutes, and that that person would just be waiting there, told after each subsequent call that "I'll be with you in a minute". Then you would get charged for the extra hour even if you did not intend on staying that long, with no warning on her… part. Maybe it was my job to keep track of the duration of our appointments, but I feel it is the responsibility of the doctor to set those boundaries when they come. The thing about Dr. Cribari is she really does care about you. But her unreliability and inconsistency can do terrible things for someone whose mental health is in bad shape. People with brain illness need consistency and she seems at times incapable of providing it. You can't count on her to submit necessary paperwork on time without constant reminders. I remember with previous psychiatrists, they would do it in a timely manner after being asked once, and then relay it to me shortly after that it has been completed. Not so with her. Sometimes she is a caring listener, but other times she monopolizes the conversation and you are billed for 2 hours when you only wanted 1 and you didn't even get to talk about your real concerns but the conversation gets derailed. She gives hugs at the beginning and end of each session which might make some people uncomfortable. I know I could have done a lot better on communicating these issues with her, and I know she would have been receptive. But I felt too uncomfortable to do so and stayed in the status quo. Transitioning to a new doctor after her unexpected departure (with very short notice) from her current practice has been a nightmare to say the least. I was already on the verge of leaving after finding therapy - the stress and feeling like I was not "driving" the sessions - to be ineffective. I witness the masked horror in others in the psychiatric field when I describe the hour long waits, the frequent changes in schedule, the not keeping promises on tasks she says she will do, and the fact that she abandoned her practice only giving her current patients 2 weeks or so notice at best. This was especially devastating for those in TMS, as it is difficult to find another provider for that treatment within a tight timeframe. It's painful because you forge a connection with her and you forgive her each time for her lateness and inconsistency when you see her because she radiates empathy and warmth. But in the end it feels like you are caught in a helpless cycle, where you can't depend on the person you need to be the most stable. My next psychiatrist is going to be organized, punctual, reliable, and more emotionally stable because I do not know if she can in good faith practice as an ethical provider at this point. It is tragic and pains me to say all of this because when it was good, it was the best therapy I had ever had. But when it's bad, it's worse than no mental health treatment at all, because you go crazy worrying whether you will have therapy when you are scheduled to have it, you wonder if you should just start to show up an hour late as a regular practice, and stress that she will not do the things she says she will. She has still not transferred my medical records to my new doctor, which I urgently require. As far as I can tell, she has been MIA for weeks. I think that someone who needs psychiatric assistance will be better served by a more stable situation. The highs with her are incomparable, but the lows ultimately make it not worth it.

She is awesome doctor, very caring and lovely. She is helping me a lot.