TMS (MeRT) Therapy for OCD in Valencia & Calabasas, CA
New Personalized, Drug-Free Treatment for OCD
You may hear people use OCD as a trendy term for extreme organizational tendencies. However, OCD is a serious mental illness that can take control of your life, affecting you and your loved ones.
The FDA has cleared Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) for people with OCD habits who have been unsuccessful with other treatments. And the team at BrainStim Centers in Valencia and Calabasas, California, offers two types of highly customized TMS to help manage these tendencies.
What is OCD?
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is defined as a common chronic and long-lasting disorder in which a person has uncontrollable, reoccurring thoughts (obsessions) and/or behaviors (compulsions) that he/she feels the urge to repeat over and over.
While anyone may experience these repetitive compulsions, OCD is characterized by negatively affecting your life and is diagnosed by a doctor. If you have undergone treatment for OCD unsuccessfully, you may be a good candidate for TMS.
What are the common symptoms of OCD?
Obsessions typically follow a theme. Some of the most common include:
- Fear of germs
- Fear of being harmed
- Need to keep things symmetrical
- Need to put items or do things in a specific order
Your compulsions tend to follow the theme of your obsessions. You may repeatedly wash your hands to eliminate germs, frequently reorganize items on a shelf (even though they’re already in perfect order), or constantly check to be sure the door is locked.
How is OCD treated?
OCD symptoms often improve with medications or psychotherapy. And for some, therapy alone is just as effective as medication. For others, however, there may be a need for both. Therapists often use a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy called Exposure and Response Prevention in which you learn to reduce compulsive behaviors. However, therapy and medication don’t always help. When your symptoms persist despite treatment, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) may be the right treatment for you.
A New Approach
MeRT for Treatment of OCD
Here’s what you should know about OCD: Patients suffering from this condition have specific markers that we can see in EEG studies. In essence, these are imbalances in brainwave activity. Therefore, with MeRT, we will work to identify the imbalances and strengthen healthy brainwave activity to reduce the symptoms of OCD in the patient.
MeRT stands for Magnetic Resonance Therapy, a highly individualized form of TMS or Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. In simpler terms, we use magnetic fields to gently stimulate specific areas of the brain that are not communicating or connecting as they should in order to balance brain function. Moreover, this treatment is all guided by very detailed imaging and diagnostics.
MeRT is completely non-invasive, painless, and uses no drugs or medications.
You don’t have to decide right away
Take the easy Steps to Determine if MeRT is the Right Treatment
Initial Testing and Analysis
Then, if you are interested in taking the next step, we can set up an appointment for an EEG (a simple, non-invasive brain scan) and a second appointment for a consultation with our clinician.
Once the EEG and other testing have been done and before your consultation, neurosurgeon Dr. Mark Liker, our Medical Director, will thoroughly review your test results and determine if you may benefit from MeRT and the exact treatment plan for the best possible results.
Once we have analyzed the test results, you will have a one-on-one consultation with our clinician to discuss the results and details of the treatment plan. You can either attend this appointment in person or, if you wish, you can attend virtually.
During this time, you will discuss your symptoms and the treatment protocols with you. You can also ask further questions so that together, you can determine if you are a candidate for treatment.
Assessment Period
If you and the clinician both determine that MeRT may be the right treatment, the next step is an Assessment Period. This entails a short period of treatment, followed by a new EEG, to see if you are responding to the treatment.
We assess this based on the new EEG results, as well as symptom improvements. If there is a positive response to treatment during the assessment period, you will have likely noticed some improvements. At that point, we can schedule the rest of the treatment.
So, as you can see, there are many steps involved in ensuring that you receive the treatment that will benefit you.
If you and the doctor both determine that MeRT may be the right treatment, then the next step is an Assessment Period. This entails a short period of treatment, followed by a new EEG to see if you are responding to the treatment.
We assess this based on the new EEG results, as well as symptom improvements. If there is a positive response to treatment during the assessment period, you will have likely noticed some improvements. At that point, we can schedule the rest of the treatment.
So, as you can see, there are many steps involved in ensuring that you receive only treatment that will benefit you.
You may also be interested in the many RESEARCH STUDIES about MeRT and TMS.
It doesn’t cost anything to talk to us…
Would you like a consultation with our New Patient Coordinator?
Our New Patient Coordinator is here for you, and we understand what you may be going through. To that end, we want to help, and it costs nothing to call us and talk about what is happening.
During your call, the New Patient Coordinator will listen to you and answer your questions. She will also explain our process and protocols, as well as costs, possible insurance benefits, and any other details you want to know.
There are no obligations and she will take all the time you need in order to determine whether you should take the next steps.
Call Our New Patient Coordinator to Learn More Or fill in the form below, and she will contact you.
Call Our New Patient Coordinator to Learn More Or fill in the form below, and she will contact you.
Nexstim is another option to treat OCD
While relaxing in the Nexstim chair, we will place a tracker on your forehead. This tracker then engages with the Nexstim Smartfocus system and your MRI to pinpoint the exact location to stimulate. We will rest the TMS coil on your head for the duration of the treatment.
TMS has been shown to reduce compulsions and obsessions in people with OCD. Repeated TMS treatments decrease the brain activity associated with these compulsions and disorders while regulating the release of neurotransmitters. As a result, patients see an improvement in mood and a reduction in anxiety.
Each session time varies. However, the first session typically takes 60 minutes to load the MRI and conduct brain navigation. Then, we will save the data on the computer for future reference. Thus, subsequent visits typically take 30 minutes from start to finish. Since TMS does not negatively impact your abilities, you can leave as soon as the session is over, going back to your daily routine.
*** TMS Treatments for OCD are designed to help decrease the symptoms associated with this disorder. Individual results may vary.
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Our New Patient Coordinator is happy to talk with you, explain the our treatment protocols and fees and answer any questions you may have.
