Brought to you by the Depression Is Real Coalition, The Down & Up Show is dedicated to the reality of depression. Each week our hosts will talk with some of the world's top experts on depression, as well as people who have been impacted by this illness. The reality of depression is that it is a debilitating and potentially deadly medical condition that affects more than 15 million Americans every year. The other reality of depression is that there is hope.

Dr. Reef Karim

Reef Karim, a modern day Renaissance man, practices as a medical physician and psychiatrist while utilizing the media as a form of community outreach. As an academic physician with street smarts and a sense of humor, Dr. Reef has been working on developing a daytime syndicated talk show on sex, drugs and relationships in addition to working as a guest expert on a number of news programming and talk shows discussing topics ranging from disaster medicine to addiction to relationship conflict. He has been given the title of "a medical messenger in a pop culture world" and both adolescents and adults appreciate his innovative style. As a result of his medical and creative endeavors, Dr. Reef was voted one of People Magazine's Sexiest Men Alive.

Dr. Reef, as he is known, is a medical physician, attending psychiatrist, addiction specialist and relationship therapist at the prestigious UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute. In addition to his research and clinical endeavors in medicine, addiction psychiatry and forensics, he also is the host of the profiling reality show "House of Clues" on Court TV. He is hip enough to be a sex and relationship expert on VH1's "The Love Lounge" and MTV/KROQ's "Loveline" and is accomplished enough to be a medical expert on "The Today Show", CNN, CBS, FOX and many other news media. Additionally, Reef has been interviewed and quoted in many print media including: Cosmo, Details, the NY Post and the USA Today. As a key figure in the media, Dr. Reef Karim was recently named one of the most influential Indian Americans in television.

In addition to his expansive medical career, Dr. Reef is an outspoken advocate for mental health issues. He is actively involved in several community outreach programs for troubled adolescents, and he counsels teens at youth camps on topics including drug use, sex and teen pregnancy. Following the tsunami disaster of December 2004, Dr. Reef traveled to India to advise a group of physicians on post-traumatic stress disorder due to a natural disaster. Dr. Reef has also assisted the Pakistani consulate after the Pakistan earthquake and he worked with the red cross after 09/11 in disaster medicine. Currently, Dr. Reef works as a faculty member at the UCLA Psychiatric Institute and serves as a consultant for various upscale residential treatment centers in the Malibu and Laurel Canyon areas.

Dr. Reef also has a strong interest and background in film; as such, he was chosen to serve as technical medical advisor on a number of influential feature films including: "Thirteen", "Laurel Canyon" and "Lords of Dogtown" as well as the TV show "Alias." He also profiled the characters in the movie "The Bourne Identity" for the film's DVD release bonus material.

Born in England to Indian parents, he trained at top medical establishments like UCLA, the Mayo Clinic and Northwestern in addition to studying international medical practice in Africa and Eastern medicine in Turkey. From Native American reservations to urban rave clubs, Dr. Reef has observed how cultures interact with the psyche and health.