Please note that Dr. Sterling increased his fees last year on February 1, 2011. This increase in fees did not affect office visit rates charged for services to clients who were registered with Dr. Sterling prior to February 1, 2011. All clients registered with Dr. Sterling prior to February 1, 2011, were "grandfathered" for a year, with no increase in their office visit fees until February 1, 2012.

All fees for all clients will increase to the February 1, 2011, fee schedule as noted below.

With respect to new evaluations, second opinions, and diagnostic evaluations, Dr. Sterling recommends a 100-minute first evaluation appointment. This allows him and his client to get to a point in the evaluation process at which Dr. Sterling has obtained enough information to offer valid professional opinions about a client's core issues and probable diagnosis, if any. Dr. Sterling can also usually offer some recommendations and discuss potential treatment strategies during that first 100-minute evaluation appointment.

It is not required that you choose a 100-minute first appointment. If you are simply transferring from another provider situation or have recently moved or are anticipating moving and are very happy with your current treatment strategies, it is possible for Dr. Sterling to provide your follow-up care without doing a comprehensive "re-evaluation."

• Office Visit Fees (Individual, Couple or Family) --
  • Diagnostic Evaluation and Consultation (100 minutes): $380.00
    
  • Psychotherapy (50 minutes): $190.00
    
  • Psychotherapy (25 minutes): $100.00
    
  • Medication Evaluation and Consultation (50 minutes): $190.00
    
  • Medication Management, Follow-up (25 minutes): $100.00
    
  • Consultations lasting longer than 50 minutes will be prorated accordingly ($3.80 per minute).

Dr. Sterling has established a new Web site about adult attention deficit disorder. You may think the diagnosis is a "fad," but it is not. Despite all the advertising, which could be interpreted as "pushing" a product, adult attention deficit disorder has historically been underdiagnosed. The reason? Professionals, for some time, did not have enough evidence to make a conclusion about whether children grew out of their symptoms or not. Now, we know they may grow out of some of their symptoms but still struggle with, among other things, concentration, follow-through, impulsiveness, poor judgment, irritability, and low frustration tolerance. Please visit AdultADDFacts.com to get more information.

Dr. Sterling recently created a new Web site, AllAboutDepression.net. This new site is an outgrowth of several articles that Dr. Sterling has written about depression over the past five years. In addition to his most recent articles "Depression Kills" and "How Does Depression Kill?," you will find links to many other resources for understanding mild to severe depression.

The Hippocampus and Neurobiology of Depression Web page has been updated and now contains a PowerPoint presentation (as an Adobe Acrobat document) entitled "How Stress Produces Major Depressive Disorder." It covers the three most important things we currently know about stress and depression. Moderate to severe depression is not a lack of will power or a sign of a character defect. However, there are ways to help recognize what your vulnerability to severe depression might be and there are ways to help prevent moderate to severe depression.

Our Mental Wellness Web site contains articles, information, and resources for understanding the factors in mental wellness -- self-appreciation, resilience, affiliation, negotiation, curiosity, exercise and leisure activities.

Dr. Sterling recently updated and upgraded most of the DearShrink.com pages. Some sites have been eliminated for now while they are being upgraded and improved. DateGuru.com, MateGuru.com, and ErosGuru.com are under construction. We apologize for any inconvenience. We hope you enjoy the new look and updated information and links. Please feel free to e-mail us with comments, suggestions and feedback about errors and broken links.

Dr. Sterling's Mind Matters column ended in 2008. Mind Matters was a monthly column written for the Seattle seniors magazine, Northwest Prime Time. It received a 2003 second-place award for a senior issues column from the National Mature Market Publishers Association.

Dr. Sterling has established a new Web site about "ageism" and how our mindset matters as we age. Please visit AgePride.org to get more information.

Our AllAboutGrief.org Web site contains articles, information, and links to resources for understanding bereavement, the grieving process, and "complicated" grief.

Our AllAboutPsychotherapy.org Web site contains articles, information, and links to resources for understanding more about psychotherapy -- it's not just "talking."

Please go to our All About Forgiveness Web page to view links to information, articles, organizations and individuals dedicated to helping us understand the power and the psychological principles of the process of interpersonal forgiveness.

Please visit SeniorMentalHealth.org to view its new look and updated content. SeniorMentalHealth.org is dedicated to providing comprehensive senior mental health information and resources for many growing older concerns and issues.

New Aging Brain Web Site.

Our AgingBrain.org Web site contains articles, information, and resources for understanding more about the phases that the brain goes through during a lifetime. There are many structural changes that take place in our brains, and they don't all occur during our later years.

Please visit our All About Freud (and Others) page to view some advice about Freudian Sends: E-Mail Gone Wrong and new links to information about the term "Freudian Slip." Read about the words "shrink" and "client" at What About the Word "Shrink"? page.

Please go to our Donations Page to learn how you can make donations to help support the mission of Dr. Sterling to provide useful and professional mental health information.

Dr. Sterling has chosen to allow visitors to DearShrink.com to make donations to support this Web site rather than soliciting advertisers and sponsors. Dr. Sterling desires to provide unbiased information and answers to your questions. He has received positive feedback from users who appreciate that there is no advertising present on the DearShrink.com site, except for the advertising of Dr. Sterling's services. Thank you for your kind consideration for donations to support the maintenance and the mission of DearShrink.com.

Please go to our Funding Notices to get more information on funding and advertising at DearShrink.com.

-- Best wishes, Dr. Sterling