About Dr. Joyce

Hi there. I’m a board-certified psychiatrist and psychotherapist based out of San Diego, California. I genuinely enjoy working with clients, hearing unique life stories, and finding ways to help each person as an individual. 

I can prescribe medication, provide psychotherapy, or both. However, I specialize in providing psychotherapy in combination with prescribed medication (as needed). I have experience working with a wide variety of psychiatric concerns. There are also a few areas in which I have a special focus or additional training. Among these are:

• Adolescent mental health and challenges that commonly occur during this life stage

• College students and issues unique to the college experience

• Women’s reproductive mental health, including:

• pregnancy planning

• pregnancy

• postpartum mental health

• New parents (of all backgrounds and genders) and the challenges one may experience during this profound transitional time

In addition to these specific circumstances, I work with clients of nearly all ages (adolescence through late adulthood) seeking help with:

• Depression

• Anxiety

• ADHD

• OCD

• Interpersonal difficulties and relationship strain

• General life transitions

The type of therapy I specialize in is called psychodynamic or psychoanalytic psychotherapy. I also offer a similar, though more intensive treatment called psychoanalysis. Both of these therapies aim to help you find more meaning in your life, improve the quality of your relationships, satisfaction in life, and furthers your ability to self-reflect and understand your own mind. Research demonstrates that people who have had this type of therapy not only improve, but continue to get better even after the therapy has ended. I take an approach that is sensitive to your unique needs, and will go at a pace that is most helpful for you.

Services

*For virtual appointments, I use a secure telemedicine platform used by medical providers called Spruce Health. With the use of telemedicine, I am able to see clients anywhere in the state of California. For more information, please call me directly at the number below.

• When meeting for the first time, I typically schedule two 45-minute appointments a week apart, as a two-part initial consultation. This allows time for you to share your story and primary concerns so that we can identify the best approach to helping you.

• Subsequent appointments for psychotherapy (which include any necessary medication adjustments) are 45-minutes in duration, with a frequency of at least one session per week. Meeting at least once weekly in psychotherapy on a consistent basis is essential to making meaningful progress in treatment, and is truly to your benefit.

• Follow-up appointments for medication-management only (without psychotherapy) are 25-minutes, and generally occur on a monthly basis after the initial consultation.

• If you are seeking only to have your medication managed and are not interested in psychotherapy (medication-management only), all appointments are conducted virtually, via telemedicine (not in-person).

• If you intend to start regular psychotherapy as part of your treatment, in-person appointments are an option.

I do not accept insurance directly, but am happy to provide documentation for you to submit to your insurance company to request reimbursement.

*Please note that if you are uninsured or self-pay (medically insured, but will not file a claim with your insurance plan/ coverage), when scheduling an appointment, and throughout your care with Dr. Joyce, you have the right to receive a good faith estimate of expected charges.