The clinician-led team of mental health providers at Family Care Center is making significant strides in treating severe depression without medication. By using a cutting-edge approach called transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), their treatment is producing results that surpass the industry benchmark for severe depression by over 65%.

This means that the approach is not only effective, but it also performs significantly better than other existing methods, making it a breakthrough in the field of mental health.

How Does TMS Work?

TMS involves the use of a specialized device that generates magnetic pulses. These pulses are carefully directed to specific areas of the brain, typically the prefrontal cortex, which is associated with mood regulation and is often implicated in depression.

The magnetic pulses generated by the TMS device stimulate nerve cells (neurons) in the brain. This stimulation is thought to increase neuronal activity and promote the release of neurotransmitters like serotonin, which play a crucial role in mood regulation. By modulating neuronal activity, TMS aims to restore balance, helping to alleviate depressive symptoms over time.

How Effective is TMS for Treating Depression?

Since 2016, Family Care Center has been at the forefront of TMS treatment, consistently achieving outstanding results by combining proven methods with FDA-approved protocols.

To measure the effectiveness of TMS in treating depression, Family Care Center uses a standardized tool called the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). This questionnaire scores depression levels on a scale from 1 to 27, with higher scores indicating more severe depression and lower scores indicating less depression.

The company’s recent internal study produced impressive outcomes for patients who completed a full course of TMS treatment. A remarkable 42% of these individuals achieved a final PHQ-9 score of less than 10, signifying mild or non-clinical symptoms. Moreover, 82% of patients experienced at least a 5-point drop in their PHQ-9 scores, resulting in an average PHQ-9 score decrease to 11.1.

These ongoing findings highlight the strong positive impact of TMS in depression treatment at Family Care Center. “We’re encouraged by these promising results and are committed to conducting larger-scale studies that will contribute to the evolving field of TMS research,” said Family Care Center Founder and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Charles Weber, DO, Psychiatrist, LTC(R).

Advantages of Using TMS to Treat Depression

TMS is non-invasive and can provide treatment alternatives for major depressive disorder, anxiety, OCD and more. It was initially approved by the FDA in 2008 and is covered by many major insurance providers in specific cases.

It has many benefits and advantages including:

• It’s complimentary to medication and talk therapy
• It’s non-invasive, so no anesthesia is needed
• There are no systemic side effects
• No downtime from work or social activities is required
• TMS is covered by most major insurance

Learn More About TMS from Family Care Center

Interested in seeing if TMS treatment is right for you? Take the first step today and reach out to Family Care Center to begin your journey toward healing. They have clinics in Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Round Rock and (newly opened) Central Austin at 3705 Medical Parkway, Ste 410.

Chamber members are also always welcome to join Family Care Center’s new clinic ribbon cuttings, where you have the opportunity to meet the staff – including TMS technicians – and see what a TMS treatment room looks like. The next ribbon cutting will be held at the Cedar Park clinic on November 14 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST. Click here to register.