Dr. Paul Gerald Cotton, MD

First before I delve into how upsetting and ridiculous this appointment was for me I'd like to make a shout out to the kind man who Took my height, weight, and blood pressure before I was seen by Doctor Cotton. He was friendly and personable and should probably be paid more (?) and could probably do Dr. Cotton's job better than he does. Dr. Cotton was confused, absent-minded, and unable or unwilling to pay attention to what I was saying during my initial intake appoint today. I recently became affiliated with the Howard Center and I am eligible to see their Psych doctor who happens to be Doctor Cotton. As I recently moved to the Burlington area I am in need of someone to prescribe my medications. I thought Doctor Cotton would be a good fit because of what I had heard about him. (it was good) He would ask me a question and then randomly stop me in the middle of my answer to ask another because he didn't seem to like my response. He did not treat me as a person, I felt his behavior… was rude and condescending. I did not feel welcome at all and instead felt very anxious dealing with him. He kept putting himself down kind of which was concerning for someone who's looking for someone they can trust to take care of their mental health medication needs. He said at least three times "Although you ARE eligible for my services SOMETIMES people choose NOT to see me and seek care ELSEWHERE." And it made me think like "I guess he doesn't want any new patients, huh?" I don't want a doctor that tells me right off the bat he basically doesn't want to help me. Which was the vibe that I got. He was doing such a bad job comprehending what I meant by things and it was very frustrating. I explained that I needed help trying new medications for my chronic depression and would like to begin working towards that as soon as possible. He countered very defensively by saying "that nothing in medicine happens quickly" to which I replied that I was just stating the urgency of the help my condition needs. He did not apologize for jumping to that conclusion. As soon as POSSIBLE not "HEY YOU DO THIS UNREASONABLE THING RIGHT NOW" It was so hard to converse with him. Because i was not feeling listened to I tried testing him and I said "Do you think Shy is a feeling or a descriptor of anxiety?" In my opinion a good doctor would love to discuss that with me. I love thinking about things like that, it's fun for me. He said "you should talk to a counselor about that." HOW DOES THAT CORRELATE? It was so random and stupid I nearly burst out laughing. Anyway, I really don't like the guy. He was very egotistical and condescending. The guy at the beginning who did height and weight stuff was awesome though, give him a raise.

When dr cotton was much younger he was my onpatient doctor never has anyone before or since tried so hard to make me better. He knew I would be going to hospitals for many more years so he taught me hospital survival skills which I still use today. If he isn't a good doctor now , there was a time when he was the best

Perpetually late. Doesnt look at me; focuses on computer. Always unprepared

I didn't find a lot of help for my problems. His diagnosis and methodology did not seem to be very focused. He never asked, "Why did you decide to make an appointment? Why are you seeking psychological help?" I didn't feel like my problems were acknowledged and they did not get better.

dr. cotton is an intelligent, excellent guy, did not push drugs on me, i had to convince him to write me ascript, very good shrink, trust me i had a lot :)