Brain-based therapy offering some patients relief from depression

SALT LAKE CITY — For Kimberly Shock, the mental struggle came after knee surgery. "I'm an athlete, and so it was really, really hard," she said. She tried medication but said it felt too "numbing." She then discovered a treatment called transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a non-invasive therapy that uses magnetic pulses to stimulate nerve cells in the brain. The FDA approved TMS for depression in 2008, but many patients are still unfamiliar with it. Within two sessions, Shock noticed results. "I think more people are starting to realize that you do not have to do the default, which is try too many medications," said Mah Mekolle, a psychiatric nurse practitioner with Serenity Mental Health Centers. Mekolle said that while medication works for some people, others don't respond as well, which is why treatments like TMS can offer another option. "We can direct these magnetic frequencies to specific parts of the brain involved in mood regulation, and we can repair or rewire the connections in that area," she explained. Some patients confuse TMS with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), or “shock therapy,” but experts say TMS does not require anesthesia and is not the same treatment. Patients typically come in for short sessions several times a week and wear a helmet-like device during treatment. "People do about 30 to 36 sessions in a TMS round, so it might take them about six to eight weeks to complete the therapy," Mekolle said. Shock said treatment has helped her move forward both physically and mentally. "I've advanced in my career, I've advanced in my health and fitness, my family relationships, and even my relationship with myself, which is the most important," she said. "It's okay if you're not in a good spot — let's get you the tools to be where you want to be." Because depression affects everyone differently, experts say it's important to work with a provider to find the treatment that works best for you — whether that's medication, counseling or therapies like TMS.  

Related: These simple activities can treat depression as effectively as therapy, study says

Related topics