Lawson R. Wulsin, MD

Dr. Wulsin is a professor of Psychiatry and Family Medicine at the University of Cincinnati, where he has taught for the past 35 years in his subspecialty areas of psychosomatic medicine and primary care psychiatry. His writings explore the lifelong dance between the mind and body, and the power of human attachments in everyday life and healing.

He has written and taught extensively about depression in the context of medical illness, with particular emphasis on heart disease. He is the author of Treating the Aching Heart: A Guide to Depression, Stress, and Heart Disease (2007). He is currently working on a book about stress, resilience, and illness. Among his scientific publications are 12 articles related to psychiatric aspects of heart disease, including three reviews: “The Mortality of Depression: A Systematic Review” (1999); “Do Depressive Symptoms Increase the Risk for the Onset of Coronary Disease? A Systematic Quantitative Review” (2003); and “Is Depression a Major Risk Factor for Coronary Disease?” (2004).  

In addition to publishing scientific articles, he has published two short stories as well as a non-fiction piece and an opinion piece. From 2006-2007, he published a weekly column, “Mind Matters,” in The Cincinnati Enquirer. He has participated in TV, radio, and journalism interviews with local and national newscasters, concerning depression, panic disorder, and depression’s links to heart disease.  In 2005-2006, he regularly contributed 10-minute interviews on regional topics related to mental health to the weekend radio program Cincinnati Edition, on NPR affiliate WVXU.

In 1995, he founded the University of Cincinnati/Christ Hospital Family Medicine and Psychiatry residency program, which trains graduates to practice both family medicine and psychiatry. He sees patients in primary care and psychiatric clinics who have combined medical and psychiatric disorders. In addition to his regular teaching duties, he has made presentations at national and international meetings on depression and heart disease and role of the stress response system in the development of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. 

He is an active member of the American Psychosomatic Society, the Association for Medicine and Psychiatry, the Academy of Consultation Liaison Psychiatry, and the American Psychiatric Association. He has served on the editorial boards for four leading journals in the area of psychosomatic medicine, and he has served as a peer reviewer for leading academic journals, including the Journal of the American Medical Association, Archives of General Psychiatry, Archives of Internal Medicine, and American Journal of Psychiatry. 

He is the father of four sons and is married to Victoria Wells Wulsin, MD, DrPH, a physician epidemiologist and professor of family medicine at the University of Cincinnati; she specializes in international public health and the prevention of HIV/AIDS.