Could anyone tell me who is considered to be the best LLMD in California?
Are there any good LLMDs in or near Los Angeles?
Also, does anyone know if there are any LLMDs in Mexico (Tijuana)? Is it legal to buy abxs in TJ and bring them across the border?
Thanks for your help!
Posted by no2lyme (Member # 6978) on :
There are not many LLMD's in California but the best would have to be Dr. S in San Francisco (in my opinion).
Difficult to get in to see the good ones. But worth it when once you do.
I don't know about LLMD's in LA, I think there is one in San Diego. I know a lot of folks travel up here to see Dr. S.
Good luck.
Posted by tickedntx (Member # 5660) on :
To the best of my knowledge, Dr. S. is not seeing new patients, but my LLNP recently started practicing one week per month in his office. She is wonderful. I would highly recommend seeing her.
Email me if you want info.
[This message has been edited by tickedntx (edited 31 July 2005).]
Posted by surg (Member # 6937) on :
Dr S has a 800 person waiting list. There is another doc in his office and a nurse. Dr. A up in Santa Rosa was trained by Dr. S. There is Dr. H over in grass valley. The son of the Igenix lab director. Write to Sonoma County Lyme Support Group on Yahoo groups and get some help.
Posted by breathwork (Member # 567) on :
Dr.G is the other doc in SF....I was fortunate to be one of the last to get in to see Dr. S before he closed the practice to new patients. I definitely feel blessed.
I saw Dr. G for a year before switching to Dr. S. This was years ago. Dr. G was going on a part time sabatical and I was starting IV, so wanted a more accessable doctor. I think that Dr. G is a fine LLMD too.
I've met Dr. H and heard him lecture. He is a very kind man who knows this disease all too well. He had it as a teen, so knows what we are up against. He also happens to have very dreamy eyes, which is a plus if you have to see a doctor!
Posted by tabbytamer (Member # 3159) on :
Dr. H used to come down to Long Beach to see patients.
Yes, he is extremely kind. And knowledgeable. How often to you find those attributes together in one doc?
------------------ Tabby
Posted by felinitie (Member # 7403) on :
Thank you everyone for your replies and recommendations.
Surg, you wrote "The son of the Igenix lab director." Were you referring to Dr. H in Grass Valley?
It sounds like Dr. H would be the best choice, especially since I have an aunt and uncle who live in Grass Valley.
And the dreamy eyes, that's a big selling point!
Once again, many, many thanks!
Posted by Michelle M (Member # 7200) on :
This is considerably NORTHERN California for you, but I see Dr. J in Chico. I am thrilled with him and the whole staff in all ways. Lucky for me, only an hour and a half drive.
I am not certain but strongly suspect it is illegal to bring large quantities of ABX across the border. I'm sure our American drug manufacturers made certain of that.
Michelle
Posted by surg (Member # 6937) on :
Yes, Dr. H is the son of the Igenix director. I have heard he is very good looking. The only negative thing I have heard is one of Dr. S's patients saw him a long time ago when he first started and said he meant well but was inexperienced. That probably has changed.
Posted by felinitie (Member # 7403) on :
I had been considering Dr. J in Chico based on your glowing recommendation, Michelle, but the idea of driving so far from LA is daunting, so I thought I'd look closer to home first.
Grass Valley is actually quite far as well, but I could stay with my relatives there, which would be helpful.
I discovered in a list sent to me recently that there are a few doctors closer to home, in Malibu and Santa Monica, and one of them also does the Marshall Protocol I believe, which I am still considering.
But I have had such bad experiences with some of my Kaiser doctors that I have become very distrustful of doctors, and would really prefer to see a doctor that others have seen and can recommend.
A KIND doctor would be especially appreciated.
If anyone has seen, or heard anything about any of the doctors near LA, I would very much appreciate it if you could let me know.
And thank you again to all who have replied with recommendations and advice.
Posted by tjtighe (Member # 4057) on :
I have a friend who sees A Dr. Z near San Diego. I'm sure you could get her info from a Support group there. She is female.
tj
Posted by felinitie (Member # 7403) on :
Thank you tjtighe. I will check out Dr. Z in San Diego.
Posted by no2lyme (Member # 6978) on :
I failed to mention Dr. G in Los Altos, how could I forget, well Lyme probably. I have seen Dr. G for a long time. she is fantastic.
She is closed to new patients at the moment, but I think open to new patients in September.
I think there are waiting lists for most LLMD's but with persistence you never know.
Posted by 1tick3victims (Member # 7445) on :
I have seen dr. H and I liked his style/knowledge base very much. Very kind.
Posted by felinitie (Member # 7403) on :
Thanks for the suggestion, no2lyme.
Hmmmm, some very good suggestions. which to choose? will probably depend on availablility.
Does anyone know anything about Dr. S. H in Ocean Beach?
Posted by DeniseS (Member # 7276) on :
Dr H practices in Grass Valley, Palo Alto, Long Beach and Malibu.
I've seen him, Dr. S and Dr. G. I don't see Dr. H anymore because I had to narrow it down. He is very kind, very intuitive, very open to alternatives. Frankly, I just decided to go with the big name and Dr. G who was very accessible in crises. They're all great docs!
Cheers
Posted by tabbytamer (Member # 3159) on :
quote:Originally posted by tjtighe: I have a friend who sees A Dr. Z near San Diego. I'm sure you could get her info from a Support group there. She is female.
tj
Who is Dr. Z near San Diego??? Could someone please email me with more info?
Thank you so much Denise for letting me know Dr. H's other areas of practice.
Malibu is not far from where I live so that would be perfect! There would also be a bit of poetic justice in seeing a lyme doctor in Malibu, since that is where I got it to begin with!
Posted by Lynn Lymemom (Member # 19) on :
LLNP - stands for what - lyme literate natural path???? Just surprised b/c Dr. S. seems so traditional medicine - not all the out there natural stuff??? Or is she just renting space from him and not "with" him? Just wondering????
Posted by Lynn Lymemom (Member # 19) on :
We waited 5 months on a wait list to see Dr. S. which was a ***very*** hard wait (as my dtr was getting worse and worse under two past LLMDs care), but soooo worth it!
He's still closed to new patients last I heard, too.
Is Dr. Y still in practice in San Diego??? Heard quite a while ago she possibly wasn't practicing (bankrupt????) (or just closed to Lyme patient?????)
Posted by CaliforniaLyme (Member # 7136) on :
There is also Dr. O in Exeter who has been consulting with Dr. B in NY for 15 years now*)! He is great*)! Locally in SC County we have Dr. T in Watsonville, Dr. R in Santa CRuz, Dr. F, Dr. B, Nurse Practitioner CQ, Dr.P in Prunedale, Dr. C in San Jose and a couple of others who see a few here and there... But who's the best>?! Dr. S in SF is the bestest*)!*)!*)! He saved my life. Dr. Y is the best in SOurthern CA and Dr. O is the best in the middle*)!
Posted by tabbytamer (Member # 3159) on :
I heard the same about Dr. Y no longer practicing due to ? I don't know.
We need an LLMD down here in SD. And one that takes insurance as payment in full for the visits.
Dr. Y's office told me (in 2002)I would have to pay $$$ plus have my insurance billed (Medicare & Medi Cal). Plus make mandatory $50 monthly contributions to the clinic whether I was seen that month or not.
That didn't settle with me as her web site implied they treated anyone regardless of their financial situation.
If I had the $$$, no problem. I understood the clinic really needed financial help.
But they wouldn't make an appt. for me until I sent in the $$$. Somehow, I finally got an appt. without the $$$ up front. It was several months ahead of time hoping to have the $$$ in time for the appt.
Then, something happened to the clinic and my appt. was cancelled. I heard Dr. Y is excellent from other Lyme patients but just her staff was extremely difficult to deal with.
If she was still practicing, and would take my insurance as complete payment, I wouldn't hesitate to see her. At least for a consult. Her office is like a 15 minute drive from my home.
My primary doc is trying to help with Lyme since 2003 but I don't think he is treating it agressively enough. Also won't treat for co infections without positive labs.
Dr. H is who started my treatment as he was seeing patients in San Diego in 2002. But then relocated. He is great. And money was not an issue with him at all. His fees were extremely reasonable for an LLMD. He insisted that the important thing was to get started on treatment.
I don't have a car working that would get me to Long Beach. Nor the $ for visits. Otherwise I would still be seeing him. And probably be seeing improvement by now.
Sorry for ranting. Would you like an invite to my pity party?
Anyway, Dr. H is great. "Kind" is an understatement.
------------------ Tabby
Posted by ICEiam (Member # 7519) on :
YUP,YUP,YUP, kind is definately an understatement where Dr. H is concerned. He is not only a very devoted LLMD he is such a nice man. Nice doesn't do him justice either.
I can't say enough about this kind and gentle man. He is truly concerned about my daughter's health and wellbeing. Just hearing his voice on the phone makes her feel better.
Sometimes it is hard to get through to him on his office phones...........I guess you should just keep trying. Like I have read on here that some other LLMD's also have this problem.
I agree with all the raves about Dr. H. Actually, he is AWESOME! He is very intuitive and you can almost "feel" him seeing what is wrong with you just by looking. Can't explain it but those who have gone to him will probably know what I mean.
CaliforniaLyme -- are you sure that Dr. O in Exeter still treats Lyme? When I called his office a couple of months ago they said he no longer did. I wish he did as it's only about 20 minutes away from where I live.
I now see an LLNP who consults with Dr. H. She's in Visalia which is a 40 minute drive for me (but better than the 3 hour drive to Malibu).
Posted by Ann in CA (Member # 97) on :
Although I now see Dr. S in SF, his practice was closed when I finally was diagosed, so I first (after 6 or 7 other doctors) went to Dr. Y near San Diego for several years-2000-2003. I had to fly from Northern Califorina, so it was inconvenient, but she is a wonderful person (who also has lyme) who took no salary and was running a general non profit clinic with many volunteers in the office, so that may have been part of the problem. They did start charging a lyme clinic monthly charge, because the financial situation was so precarious I believe, but I think she still saw patients who could not afford to pay.
Last I heard, the office was in danger of closing due to financial problems, and she also may have been hassled (second hand info) about "overtreating." She is one of the most caring individuals I have ever met, and after meeting with docs who gave me that patronizing "So you think you have lyme disease" look, {even with a positive test}, it felt like a miracle when she recognized every single symptom I brought up. While I was seeing her, Dr. S. H. also joined the practice for awhile so I saw him as well. Both are the best people and top LLMDs.
I had been on Dr. S's waiting list for some time when I had shoulder pain so bad I could not get to my app't in So Cal, and as luck would have it, the anti-war demonstrations in SF in March 03 must have caused lots of people to cancel their appointments with Dr. S, so I was offered a "next day" appointment and have seen him ever since.
So if you are on a waiting list, don't give up! And call back once every few months just to check in for openings. Dr. S's two staff members are just the greatest, They are very busy, but always willing to help.
As far as who is best.....Dr. S has the most experience and probably the most influence, and is pretty courageous about telling it like it is to the media, (he also got my insurance company to approve a brain spect scan they had denied initially) and is closest to my home, but I am so grateful to all three of the real LLMD's I have seen that I'd hesitate to declare one "best."
Ann
[This message has been edited by Ann in CA (edited 07 August 2005).]
Posted by felinitie (Member # 7403) on :
Thank you everyone for all your input.
You have provided me with all the info I need to make a really good choice.
Again, many thanks!
Posted by Smokey (Member # 1169) on :
Hi, I've been seeing Dr.S for four years now, I don't know what I would do without him.
Even though he has a huge waiting list, Keep calling and if you can get here to SF in a days notice let then know that. Ask them to call you if they have a cancellation.
You have to leave a message because they don't answer their phones, but they will get back to you, you just have to be persistant but not agressive. They are all very nice and are very very busy.
Best Wishes with your decision.
Cindy
------------------
Posted by MariaA (Member # 9128) on :
This isn't in Southern California, but since others are likely to read this thread, I want to give an enthusiastic recommendation for Dr A's/Dr G's/Dr B's office in santa rosa- they're all supposed to be very good from what I've heard, and there's a naturapath in that office as well.
There's an Sonoma County-wide Lyme email list that a bunch of the patients from this clinic are on (it's not specifically a list for the clinic, just a Lyme list for the county), and everyone seems to say good things there about their experiences at this clinic.
This office handles Lyme with either conventional or alternative therapies (or both), deals with detoxification, and specialises in chronic illnesses in general (MCS, chronic fatigue, mercury/metals intoxication, etc).
I was very happy with the freedom to choose the approach to my treatment that Dr B gave me. My doctor feels like a real partner in my healing, not an overseer of it. He's also been invalueable for helping me navigate the conflicting information from the Internet, both for conventional and alternative therapies.
Appointments are very easy to come by on short notice and the cost is about half of what Dr S's office charges.
They also do phone consults, if desired, once your treatment is working, so after my initial appointment I really havent had to go up there other than for occasional bloodwork, and I do a phone appointment about once a month if I need more information about something. For this reason I think people who travel from out of town for treatment would be well served there.
They're very good at accommodating special needs, too, things like multiple chemical sensitivity and immune issues.
examples: If someone comes in with the flu, they'll ask you to wear a surgical mask so as to protect immune-compromised patients who are in the building.
There's a huge sign on the door asking people not to come in wearing scents of any kind.
I was in there on the worst stormy day of the year in late december, and the IV nurse went out in the driving rain to do a procedure on someone who couldn't easily get out of their car due to their Lyme disability.
[ 01. February 2007, 06:07 PM: Message edited by: MariaA ]
Posted by psano (Member # 7785) on :
LLNP = Lyme Literate Nurse Practitioner.
I see the same one as tickedinTx, except I see her in SF at the office of Dr. S. When I figured out what I had, I just wanted to be treated ASAP. I didn't think I'd survive even a couple more months if I didn't start getting some abx. I'm glad I did.
Dr. S's practice was closed at the time, but he's just in the room next door, and she calls him whenever she has a question about anything.
Posted by Robin123 (Member # 9197) on :
I feel so sad reading all this. I think all sick Lymies need to be seen and treated. And not all of us have the money for it.
I wish the public health dept would step up to the job of offering diagnosis and treatment for this public health plague! And I know they won't as of now, because of the politics.
So, I think more doctors need to get trained, to handle this incredible and increasing load of patients. And some of them are going to need to take insurance, so we can access them. I believe CALDA sends interested doctors for training.
Posted by Rianna (Member # 11038) on :
I fly from London UK to see Dr 'H' in Torrance California - He is fantastic.
Rianna
Posted by CaliforniaLyme (Member # 7136) on :
I didn't know that about Dr. O!!!!!!!!! TOO BAD!!! He was a good one!!!!!!!!!!!
Yup, I have heard only good things re Doc H and very good things re the LLNP*)!*)!!
We are lucky here in California*)!*)!
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