Lama Muhammad, MD, is a psychiatrist whose practices focuses on the mind-body connection and its relationship to mental health disorders.
She also has expertise in mental illnesses related to autoimmune disorders, and in understanding the cultural dimensions of mental health.
Dr. Muhammad has been personally touched by a friend's mental illness and is an advocate for eliminating the stigma of psychiatric illness and serving the underserved.
With her patients, she works to show them that the mind is an organ, a part of and related to the whole body.
She believes a person cannot have a healthy body without a healthy mind and has developed a style of psychiatric interviews to improve her understanding of patients' suffering and hence her ability to treat them successfully.
Prior to joining UC San Diego Health in 2018, she was chief resident in psychiatry at University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, where she won the Diana Quinn award for service and compassion.
While in New Mexico, she worked closely with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) in Albuquerque and started a program for medical residents to expand mental health education and hence eliminate stigmas associated with mental illness.
Dr. Muhammad completed residency training in psychiatry and a fellowship in psychosomatic medicine/consultation liaison psychiatry at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine.
She finished dermatology residency at Damascus University School of Medicine in Syria.
She earned her medical degree from University of Tishreen Medical School in Syria.
Outside of work, Dr. Muhammad is an Arabic magic realism writer whose stories explore cultural dilemmas.
She has published five books.
