Dr. Ghorieshi's Story - The Patient Side

What We’re About at Palo Alto Mind Body

First and foremost, we want you to know we truly care about what you're going through.

I’m Dr. Rameen Ghorieshi, and I understand how much trust it takes to share your health journey with someone you’ve just met. That’s why my team and I are committed to really getting to know you—your story, your place in your world, your symptoms, and how they affect every aspect of your life. We don’t just treat diagnoses. We care for you.

The Other Side of Medicine: The Patient Side           

The foundation of this practice is deeply personal. I grew up in Atlanta and hoped to study biomedical engineering at Georgia Tech. I saw it as a way to help people who were suffering with life-altering diseases. But my plans for that program were premature, as Georgia Tech’s BME department was still three years away from launching. So I pivoted to studying Applied Biology. As I neared the completion of that degree, illness was dominating my health and time. I was accepted to Emory Medical School that year, but my plans were soon derailed by worsening symptoms. Diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, I faced multiple surgeries, lengthy hospital stays, and significant setbacks. In fact, I took my college graduation exams from a hospital bed. Then, after being discharged so I could participate in graduation, I landed right back in the hospital for four more weeks. Needing surgery and the subsequent prolonged recovery, I had to defer medical school for a year.

These experiences changed my view of healthcare—and of myself. They gave me a firsthand understanding of what it’s like to be on the other side of medicine, as a patient—not just the physical symptoms, but finding myself drained, frustrated, and at times, invisible. Even seemingly-trivial moments left an impression on me: the monotony of just sitting in bed with nothing to do…or fasting all day for a CT scan, only for it to be rescheduled late in the day and being told, “what’s the big deal—we’ll just do it tomorrow.” The indifference of the doctors who didn’t seem to notice or care, left me feeling ignored, unsupported, and defeated.

You Need to Be Seen and Heard

That time in my life taught me something crucial: patients need to feel seen. Every interaction matters. It’s not just about treatment plans or test results—it’s about empathy, connection, and patients truly knowing you’re there for them in their most vulnerable moments.

As I convalesced, I deferred medical school for a second year. Over that time, I slipped into what I now call a “rut of illness.” The identity I used to enjoy as someone who “can tackle anything” slipped into a sense of helplessness and resignation—stagnation had become my lot in life.

As that second year was nearing its end, I realized I would have to transform that self-defeating view myself. I had to dig down, past the pain and illness, and figure out how to get my feet under me again. I had to choose victory over loss, optimism over fatalism, health over illness. I had to choose to be healthy.

My Journey to Re-Enter Life Again

I finally comprehended that to get my life back required that I be proactive—to take action and get more involved in my healthcare and self-care. I also began setting personal goals to re-engage with life, one of which was deciding to train for the Peachtree Roadrace, the world’s largest 10K. I trained every evening for six weeks, running in the rain, and realizing how liberating it felt to be out there doing something. It was tough, but I was stretching myself again. I ran, and I finished. In six weeks, I went from being in bed all day to running alongside 50,000 other people to a goal. It didn’t matter to me that my race time was nothing to brag about. I was exuberant that I did it, and that I completed it. Of course, Crohn’s Disease didn’t go away—I still battle it every day—but for the first time in years, I was taking control again.

I started medical school two days later.

This is just one example of how I learned that the malady in our bodies can deeply affect our minds. And mental resilience can support physical health. Mental and physical health are so intertwined that the two can’t be separated. They must be addressed together.

My Education and Training

While at Emory, I earned both Doctorate of Medicine (MD) and Master of Public Health (MPH) degrees. This combination helped develop my understanding of caring for patients as individuals as well as caring for our community as a whole.

After medical school, I was fortunate enough to match into my first choice for psychiatry residency, Stanford Hospital and Clinics (now renamed to Stanford Health Care), where I focused my training largely in the areas of addiction medicine and psychotherapy. I was honored to be offered Stanford’s first-ever Addiction Medicine Fellowship position, but ultimately, I decided that I had already completed many of the same rotations, so I decided to go directly into private practice instead.

A Concierge Practice for Everyone

Alongside running a private practice, I joined Stanford's Adjunct Clinical Faculty to become the primary attending psychiatrist at the Cardinal Free Clinics, where we provided free care to anyone who needed it. This reinforced my conviction that everyone deserves effective mental health care, regardless of financial resources. I discovered along the way that the more time I spent with each patient, the more effective my care became. That led naturally to a concierge model of psychiatry that was personalized, comprehensive, and accessible for everyone.

My experiences as a patient, concierge psychiatrist, and free clinic physician have shaped how I practice and how we run our clinic: treating the whole person, going above and beyond for our patients, and making care affordable and accessible for all.

At Palo Alto Mind Body, our practice revolves around three core pillars:

1. Mind-Body Care: You’re not just a body with symptoms or a mind with thoughts, you’re a whole person. We look at every facet of who you are that may impact your wellness, because they’re inseparable in the healing process. We’ll seek to identify those habits and experiences that impact your physical and mental health, while helping you make choices that promote restoration, emotional and mental growth, and the wellness to enjoy a fulfilling life.
2. Community Care: We see healthcare as a universal right and value our role in caring for those around us. By accepting insurance and offering sliding-scale care and a comprehensive financial hardship program, our goal is to bring concierge-quality care within reach for all. Financial resources don’t define who someone is, and they certainly shouldn’t determine what kind of healthcare you can receive.
3. Interventional Psychiatry: We have dedicated our practice to researching, developing, and refining evidence-based interventional psychiatry treatments—such as IV ketamine and FDA-approved Spravato (esketamine)—as well as combining this advanced care with integrative approaches such as functional medicine to personalize your care to your specific medical needs. Our goal is to use every available resource to support your unique path to wellness. We discover that path with you collaboratively through in-depth, comprehensive evaluation and treatment during your appointments. You won’t find 10-minute med checks here.

We’re Here to Listen

Every step of my own journey from the other side of medicine as a patient, to training for my practice in psychiatry, to utilizing cutting-edge advanced treatments, has fueled my passion for helping others reclaim their lives. In our practice, we meet you where you are. We listen deeply, look at your whole picture, and walk with you through the healing treatment process, all the while offering you guidance and comfort along the way.

You deserve to be heard, supported, and treated as the whole person you are. That’s what we’re about at Palo Alto Mind Body.

We’re eager to get to know you. Call or text us to start your journey to health today: 650-681-2900.