Major Depression Recurrent Severe Treatment With TMS
Major Depression Recurrent Severe Treatment With TMS
Being trapped in a cycle of depression, with recurring depressive episodes rendering its victims helpless to this serious mental health disorder, can be totally debilitating. No sooner do you feel hopeful that maybe, just maybe this time you have overcome the major depression and can reclaim your life that a new bout of it strikes you back down.
Major depression—recurrent, severe, and crippling—impacts up to 16 million Americans each year with one or more depressive episodes, according to statistics provided by the National Institute of Mental Health.
What is Recurrent Depression?
Nothing is so disheartening than repeated bouts of depression that negatively impact your quality of life. A major depressive episode may last 2 weeks or two years, and continue to haunt you will recurring episodes. Depression is considered recurrent if the symptoms present themselves after a period of remission. The severity of the depressive episodes can vary from mild depression (dysthymia) to severe depression. This blog will focus on recurrent severe depressive episodes and how to treat the condition.
Treatment For Major Depression Recurrent Severe
When the symptoms of depression begin to take a toll on daily life, and last for more than two weeks, it is time to see a doctor to be evaluated. A physical exam and comprehensive blood panel can rule out any medical reason behind the symptoms. If no health condition is underlying the symptoms, then a referral is made for a psychiatrist.
The psychiatrist will do a thorough assessment of the presenting symptoms and use the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria to determine if major depression is the culprit. The diagnostic criteria include nine symptoms, of which two or more must be present most of the time for over two weeks. These symptoms include:
- Feeling depressed most of the day
- Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed
- Change in eating habits resulting in weight loss or gain
- Sleep disturbance
- Agitated or sluggish movements
- Extreme fatigue
- Feelings of worthlessness, guilt, shame, or hopelessness
- Difficulty concentrating
- Obsessing about death or suicide
After a diagnosis is made, the doctor will prescribe an antidepressant, often along with psychotherapy. Antidepressants can take 6-8 weeks to be effective, but may be ineffective in up to 50% of the patients. A doctor may trial 3 or 4 different antidepressants in an effort to find one that is successful in alleviating the depression symptoms. If the patient is not able to tolerate the adverse effects of the antidepressants, or the medication has had no positive effect, the patient is diagnosed with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder.
TMS Treatment for Recurring Major Depression
For patients who continue to struggle with recurring depression, there is hope. Transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS, is a neuromodulation technology that has been demonstrating excellent therapeutic results in treatment-resistant patients. TMS uses magnetic pulses to send electrical currents into the mood center of the brain, stimulating the dormant brain neurons that are so common in depressed patients.
TMS Therapy is safe and effective, and there is no anesthesia needed for the treatments. Patients sit comfortably while fully alert during the 40 minute treatment sessions. In most cases, the initial TMS treatment schedule is for 4-6 weeks, but patients begin recognizing improvements in their symptoms after two weeks. For relapsing major depression recurrent severe cases, periodic TMS maintenance treatments can help prevent repeated episodes.
Anew Era TMS & Psychiatry Top TMS Treatment Provider for Depression
Anew Era TMS & Psychiatry is a behavioral health provider that specializes in TMS therapy for treating major depression recurrent severe and relapsing. Located in Orange County, California, Anew Era TMS & Psychiatry features an expert team of psychiatrists, psychologists, and TMS technicians who can provide counseling services, antidepressants, and TMS therapy for patients who are seeking help for recurring depression. For more information about how TMS therapy can help you, please contact Anew Era TMS & Psychiatry today at (888) 503-1549.
