Depression tells you that nothing will help and that you should not bother. That part is the illness talking. Alice Tran, PMHNP-BC offers full hour evaluations and antidepressant management that does not stop at the first prescription, in person in Fairfax or by telehealth anywhere in Virginia.
Book an Appointment →Depression does not always look like crying. For many Virginia adults it looks like numbness, irritability, a short fuse with the people they love, or getting through the workday and then having nothing left. High functioning depression is real and easily missed: the deadlines are met, the emails go out, and nobody around you knows that the inside has gone flat. Major depressive disorder comes in episodes. Persistent depressive disorder is lower in intensity and longer in duration, sometimes so long that people mistake it for their personality. A seasonal pattern is common in the mid Atlantic winter.
The first appointment is a full 60 minutes, and a real depression evaluation does more than confirm that you feel low. It asks how long, what changed, how you sleep, how you eat, what you have already tried and at what dose, and whether alcohol or a substance is part of the picture. It screens deliberately for bipolar disorder, because a history of elevated, sped up, or unusually irritable periods changes the treatment completely and an antidepressant alone can destabilize someone who actually has bipolar depression. It also considers thyroid disease, anemia, vitamin deficiency, sleep apnea, grief, and burnout, which can all imitate depression. The PHQ-9 is used to track your trajectory, not to label you.
Antidepressants help most people with clinical depression, and the honest framing is that the first one is a starting point rather than a verdict. Most people notice something at two to four weeks and see the fuller effect by six to eight. If a medication does not work or the side effects are not livable, that is expected and it is information: the plan then moves to a dose change, a switch, or an added agent, chosen from your actual response and history. Supportive therapy and psychoeducation run through every visit, and Alice coordinates with your therapist when you have one. Care is in person at the Fairfax office in the Merrifield area, with free parking, or by secure telehealth anywhere in Virginia, in English or Tiếng Việt.
Episodes that flatten mood, sleep, energy, and interest. Treatable, and worth treating properly rather than partially.
Everything looks fine from the outside. The evaluation takes what is happening inside just as seriously.
One medication that did not work is not the end of the list. Dose, switch, and augmentation are all on the table.
These overlap constantly. Sorting out which is which is the difference between a plan and a guess.
Practical details for Virginia patients
Related: Depression overview · Free PHQ-9 depression screener · Depression treatment in Fairfax · Depression care across Northern Virginia · Bipolar disorder treatment · Anxiety · Rates and insurance · Full FAQ
New patients are typically scheduled within one to two weeks, and no referral is required. You can book directly online. Office hours are Monday through Thursday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern.
It is a full 60 minutes. Alice takes a complete history covering mood, sleep, appetite, energy, concentration, and function, asks what has already been tried and at what dose, screens for bipolar disorder and for medical contributors such as thyroid disease and sleep problems, and then builds a treatment plan with you rather than for you.
Most people notice some change at two to four weeks, with the fuller effect around six to eight weeks. Sleep and energy often improve before mood does. Follow up visits exist precisely to check that progress and adjust rather than to renew a prescription automatically.
No. It is common for the first medication to be a partial fit, and that result is useful information. Options include adjusting the dose, switching to a different agent, or adding a second medication. Choosing among them depends on your specific response, side effects, and history.
Because bipolar depression looks like depression at the visit but responds differently to treatment, and an antidepressant given alone can destabilize mood in someone who has it. Asking about past periods of unusually elevated, sped up, or irritable mood is a safety step, not a suggestion that you are being doubted.
Yes. Evaluation, medication management, and supportive follow up all work well over secure video. Alice is licensed in Virginia only, so you need to be physically in Virginia at the time of the visit. She treats adults 18 to 65.
Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, Medicare, and Medicaid are accepted. Self pay rates are $400 for the 60 minute initial visit and $200 for a 30 minute follow up.
Please do not wait for an appointment. Call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which is free, confidential, and available 24 hours a day. For an emergency call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room. This practice does not provide crisis or after hours coverage.
If you are in crisis right now, please do not wait for an appointment.
Call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Free, confidential, available 24/7.
For emergencies, call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.
Alice Tran Psychiatric Care does not operate 24/7 and does not provide crisis services. Emails, voicemails, text or portal messages are typically responded to within 24 to 72 business hours.
Depression care in Fairfax & by telehealth across Virginia. English & Tiếng Việt. No referral needed.
Book Now →Or call/text: (703) 791-9099