Dr. David Lehman, MD

Dr. David Lehman completed residency at UCSD. He was on faculty at UCSD from 2006 to 2025. During that period he worked at the La Jolla Veterans Affairs Hospital. Since 2025 he has joined the faculty at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and is on staff at Navy Balboa Medical Center. Dr. Lehman is a Distinguished Fellow of the APA and has won numerous teaching awards. He has been twice named as San Diego Magazines Top Doctors in Psychiatry. He is also a member of the American Society for Clinical Hypnosis.Psychic suffering can be profoundly devastating, often defying simple explanations or single paths toward healing. Wise psychiatrists understand the need for humility and openness to multiple perspectives, recognizing that there are many roads to enlightenment. Approaches to assessment, diagnosis, and treatment may vary, yet at its core, psychiatry remains a deeply human endeavor—two people in a room working together to heal the wounds of a conflicted and mysterious …life, and to nurture growth even in the harshest soil.My approach to patient care is eclectic and holistic, emphasizing the value of biological, psychotherapeutic, and imaginative methods over rigid diagnostic labels. I am deeply influenced by the work of Milton Erickson, whose creative and flexible use of language and communication helped individuals break free from constricted ways of living. At times, the careful use of medication or somatic treatments can be transformative. Ultimately, as a psychiatrist, I strive to embody the same adaptability and openness I hope to cultivate in my patients.