Dr. Ross Levin, PhD

Saw Dr. Levin for sleep issues some years back. Why am I writing this review now? I finally saw another sleep doctor. And while I still don't sleep well, seeing a compassionate and professional doctor reminded me of how bad my experience with Dr. Levin was. When I saw him, I was in my early 40s. I'm male. Like many NYers I have some anxiety and depression and have seen therapists on and off through the years for it. When I mentioned this at our initial meeting, he began immediately disparaging talk therapy, saying it was often totally ineffective, and that Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Insomnia (CBTI) had way better supportive data. I thought it was an odd generalization for a first meeting, but the kicker (and what made me totally lose faith in him) was when I didn't make progress with CBTI and my anxiety got worse during the tough, sleep-restriction phase of the therapy, he said maybe I needed talk therapy after all! He also raised his voice at me a few times if I politely asked… questions about parts of the CBTI process, saying I was "putting up a wall." It was as if he took it personally. Bizarre behavior. Another bonus: he tends to snack (yogurt, nuts, whatever) during sessions. I'm paying literally hundreds of dollars a session and it really felt disrespectful. To be fair, he would ask if I minded before he started eating, but should a doctor put the onus on the patient to say "No, I don't want you to eat during our session"? I don't like leaving anonymous reviews but I've turned over our sessions a lot over the years (often in the middle of the night when awake) and only after I saw a professional, empathetic doctor did I realize maybe the problem with my sessions with Dr. Levin was him. I still don't sleep but I don't dread speaking to the doctor like I did with Dr. Levin. Avoid.

I went to him when I was in the midst of many health issues. I have strange metabolic reactions for drugs, and trying to get off a drug which was interfering with me neurologically. I had sleep issues, so saw him. He asked me several times about my masturbation habits as part of his sleep hygiene routine. That weirded me out, but I trusted him. I've been to other sleep doctors since them, and they were concerned about hearing that. Don't go to this weirdo.