About Dr. Hunziker

I am a University of Washington-trained board-certified psychiatrist with a background that spans psychiatry, obstetrics and gynecology, and complex medical care. My approach is shaped by years of working at the intersection of mental health, women's health, and the broader medical system, where I repeatedly saw the same problem: patients being treated in pieces rather than as whole people.

Before specializing in psychiatry, I completed two years of Obstetrics and Gynecology residency training, where I developed a deep understanding of and appreciation for women's health and the profound ways physical and mental health influence one another. During that time, I found myself consistently drawn toward patients struggling with mental health challenges. Whether they were navigating pregnancy, trauma, severe mental illness, or life-changing transitions, I saw how often their emotional suffering went unaddressed and how significantly it affected their overall quality of life.

Ultimately, though I truly loved OB-GYN, I chose the path I felt would allow me the greatest long-term impact with my patients.

After completing my psychiatry residency, I spent five years practicing consultation-liaison psychiatry in a busy acute care hospital setting, including four years as Chair of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health. In that role, I cared for medically complex patients whose psychiatric symptoms could not be separated from the rest of their health. Every day required looking beyond a single diagnosis and understanding how the brain, body, medical conditions, life circumstances, relationships, and environment all interacted.

Those experiences reinforced a belief that continues to guide my practice today: mental health does not exist in isolation.

The brain is part of the body, not separate from it.

Over the years, I became known for working with complex cases, particularly situations where patients had seen multiple providers, received multiple diagnoses, and still did not feel better. I genuinely enjoy solving difficult clinical puzzles. I love identifying connections that may have been overlooked, understanding the bigger picture, and helping patients find solutions that restore both functioning and quality of life.

My passion for reproductive psychiatry developed naturally from my training in both OB-GYN and psychiatry. Throughout my career, I repeatedly encountered women who were struggling with fertility evaluation and infertility treatment, pregnancy loss, pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, or menopause and could not find providers who understood the full picture of what they were experiencing. Too often, they were dismissed. They were told that their symptoms were "normal."

Many were suffering physically, emotionally, and cognitively while trying to maintain families, careers, and relationships, and trying not to lose themselves in the process. What made this issue especially personal is that even as a physician with excellent access to healthcare, I experienced it myself. When I found the care I needed, it was life-changing.

Together, these experiences have profoundly shaped how I practice medicine.

They reinforced the importance of listening carefully, remaining curious, and never dismissing a patient's lived experience simply because it does not fit neatly into a textbook or a single specialty.

Today, my practice focuses heavily on women navigating major reproductive transitions, including family planning, perinatal psychiatry, fertility evaluation and infertility treatment, pregnancy loss, perimenopause, and menopause. I have particular expertise in bipolar disorder in the context of pregnancy planning and pregnancy itself — many medications used to treat bipolar disorder are teratogenic or require careful monitoring, so treatment often needs to be assessed before conception, not after, a complexity that benefits from specialized reproductive psychiatry training.

Education is a core part of my work. I am passionate about helping patients understand what is happening in their minds and bodies so they can make informed decisions and advocate for themselves with confidence. My goal is not simply to help patients feel better in the moment — I want them to leave our work together with a deeper understanding of themselves, greater confidence in their health, and the tools they need to continue thriving long after treatment ends.

Patients often tell me that working with me feels different because I take the time to understand the entire picture. I combine directness with compassion, curiosity with practicality, and scientific rigor with genuine human connection. I believe difficult conversations can be both honest and supportive, and that patients deserve providers who will take their concerns seriously while helping them move toward meaningful change.

Outside of medicine, relationships are at the center of my life. My home is often the gathering place for family and friends, and I find tremendous joy in bringing people together. I love traveling, experiencing different cultures, exploring new places, and sharing those experiences with the people I care about most. Whether it's a new city, a quiet beach, or a conversation with someone whose perspective differs from my own, curiosity continues to be one of the driving forces in my life.

I am endlessly fascinated by people, their stories, their resilience, and their ability to heal.

When I'm not working with patients, I serve on the board of a nonprofit organization supporting vulnerable young people, and engage in legislative advocacy on behalf of both vulnerable young people and those affected by mental health conditions. Improving systems that affect people's lives is a key part of who I am both professionally and personally.

At the heart of everything I do is a simple belief: every person deserves to feel heard, valued, understood, and supported in building a life that feels meaningful to them.

It is a privilege to do that work alongside my patients every day.