Melina Wald's Online Review Report Card

Dr. Wald has impacted my life in an extremely positive way. I would recommend her to anyone seeking care. She is smart, intuitive and thoughtful. I feel heard and understood without judgement. She has helped me more than I can put into this review.

My non-binary 17 yr old kid was in therapy with Dr Wald. We had a very good experience. My kid required a high level of care and Dr Wald went out of her way to see her two or even three times a week and talk with her by phone out side of regular hours when necessary.

TW: mentions of SH/anxiety/depression/suicide. I do not say this lightly, but Dr. Sevlever saved my life. I met with her as a teen who genuinely no longer wanted to be alive. I was participating in SH behaviors and on the verge of doing something impulsive. I begged my mom to find a therapist for me and I was eventually matched with Dr. Sevlever. She was kind, patient, and understanding. She helped me recognize the triggers of my anxiety and their underlying causes. She listened to each of my problems, and I mean genuinely listened. She never judged me, and she helped me make one of the most difficult decisions of me life. We worked together for about 3 years, and I credit her for my success as an adult today. I would recommend her to anyone. She has a true heart of gold, and she is so intelligent, both mentally and emotionally.

I worked with Melina in therapy twice a week for a year. While I imagine she is helpful for many others, I can only speak to my own experience: She misdiagnosed, mis-treated, and relentlessly gaslighted me. She required me to be in an incredible amount of additional mental health care. All of this left me with even more trauma than I'd started with. She insisted she wanted to work with me and that we were a good team; we were not. I only wish that she had been able to recognize this and could have helped connect me with a clinician who was capable of helping with the types of issues with which I struggle. I liked her and know that she meant well, but she did some real damage.

Excellent

I have to honestly say, that I completely disagree with the negative review above. Perhaps that person had Dr Wald on a really off day for her or something? All I can say, is I think Dr. Wald is incredibly, understanding, compassionate, and most of all - helpful. She has helped me see important things in new ways and from a more genuine and positive perspective. I also believe Dr Wald to be one of the wisest clinicians I have met and she compliments that with great advice that truly comes from the heart. Thank you!

Does not know any trans or gender non conforming clinicians in her field. Looks at tgnc people with pity. Does not have close ties to tgnc community. Beware: yuppie with a savior complex who does not have intimate knowledge of or close ties to the community she’s treating. Will give patients an ultimatum of going into inpatient or never working with her again—this is traumatizing for people with relational trauma, and compounds medical trauma common to people in tgnc communities. Unqualified to lead a gender identity program at Columbia. Falls in line with the wider institutional politics, who fail to meet tgnc patients’ needs and then punish us by treating us as cash cows for Columbia hospitals at the expense of our wallets and wellbeing. Disconcerting that columbia’s Gender identity program and Dr. S’ expertise only talks about child and adolescent psych, yet she and the program continue to treat adults. Don’t go here, don’t send you kid here.