TMS Therapy Program Tampa

BoardPrep’s TMS Therapy Program

Are you struggling with a mental illness, such as depression or anxiety? These mental health concerns are becoming more common in today’s society. Millions of American adults and nearly 2 million children ages 3 to 17 struggle with depression every year. Additionally, over 30 million adults struggle with anxiety. Clearly, these mental illnesses are on the rise.

More people today are becoming aware of the mental illness issue. However, while the rise in awareness has been significant, many people still fail to address their problems with professional help. In general, the delay between the onset of a mental illness and the time the person gets treatment is 11 years. According to NAMI, less than 50% of both men and women who had a mental illness in 2018 got treatment.

Part of the reason people may be reluctant to get treatment is that they have tried to get treatment before, and that treatment has failed. For patients who have anxiety or depression, TMS therapy may help. Some medical specialists recommend this treatment when other depression or anxiety treatments have not helped.

TMS therapy is a relatively new procedure. It involves a small device, which the specialist will place against your scalp. This device emits pulses of magnetic fields, which stimulate nerve cells in the brain.

At BoardPrep’s mental health treatment center in Tampa, FL, we offer a unique, innovative, and evidence-based therapy for our clients. With our South Tampa TMS therapy program, you can safely overcome depression and begin leading a better, more exciting lifestyle.

What Happens During A TMS Therapy Session

Transcranial magnetic stimulation is one of the latest and greatest techniques in mental health treatment. During each session, which lasts about an hour, a doctor uses the device outside of the body. This device treats severe depression. Specifically, this noninvasive procedure uses magnetic pulses to stimulate under-active areas of the brain.

When you come in for your TMS therapy session, you’ll go into the treatment room, and sit in a reclining chair. Your doctor will give you earplugs to wear during the procedure.

Then, your doctor will attach a metal coil to your prefrontal cortex. This part of the brain stimulates emotion. Then, he or she will switch the device on and off a few times to create pulses that stimulate your brain. You will feel a tapping that lasts a few seconds. The machine will deliver pulses every 20 seconds, which are accompanied by the tapping sound, to produce a desired response. During your first appointment, the doctor will test your motor threshold. In other words, he or she will increase the magnetic energy until your fingertips or hands twitch. This twitching indicates that the doctor has reached the right dose for you. However, this dose may change, depending on the side effects and your symptoms.

Once the doctor has found your motor threshold, he or she will repeat the process of turning the machine on and off. Each session will last around an hour. Also, you can relax during our TMS therapy program by reading a book or watching TV during the stimulation. Once you have completed the procedure, you can leave. Most patients can drive to and from treatments. You can also return home or go back to work once the treatment is complete.

Possible Side Effects

In some ways, TMS therapy is preferable to other treatments. It is not associated with the well-known side-effects of traditional antidepressant medicines, such as weight gain, stomach upset, or dry mouth. Also, TMS is a noninvasive procedure. That means that you won’t have to be under anesthesia. It is as simple as putting on headphones and losing yourself in a good book or movie while a small device sits on your head.

However, as with every medical treatment, there are side effects. The most common side effects are headaches. You may also feel tingling, twitching, or spasms around your face. Other people have experienced lightheadedness. You may feel temporary pain in the treated area. Fortunately, however, these symptoms will all go away within a few hours, leaving you to enjoy the benefits of TMS therapy.

If you are predisposed to seizures or bipolar disorder, tell your doctor. They may not recommend TMS therapy due to a heightened risk for seizures or mania as a result of treatment. However, these are rare in people not predisposed to seizures and bipolar disorder.

Dual Diagnosis BoardPrep Recovery Center^®

Are you struggling with mental illness or an addiction? Possibly both at the same time? If so, you aren’t alone. In 2018 alone, over 3 million Americans struggled with both a mental illness and addiction. Fortunately for Tampa, FL residents, BoardPrep Recovery Center^® offers effective dual diagnosis treatment along with our South Tampa TMS therapy program.

An addiction can lead to the development of mental illness, while mental illness can lead to an addiction as a way of coping or self-medicating. Dual diagnosis treats both simultaneously to ensure that you get treatment for both issues before you return to your daily life.

It is imperative that you get treatment for both mental illness and addiction simultaneously. If you don’t, there is a severe risk of relapse of the treated disorder, because addiction and mental illnesses tend to feed off of each other.

• Alcohol addiction
• Heroin addiction
• Cocaine addiction
• Meth addiction

During dual diagnoses care, we’ll address both your addiction and mental illness.

What Programs Does BoardPrep Offer?

At BoardPrep, we know that no two people are the same. For this reason, we offer a variety of program options designed around your needs. In addition to our TMS therapy program, we provide further modalities for our clients, such as:

• Partial hospitalization program: This is an excellent option for people who do not need intensive rehabilitation. You stay at the rehab facility during the day, receiving treatment and therapy. At night you’ll go home. You can see your family and sleep in your family. In short, you have the best of an inpatient rehab program and the best of an outpatient program, all at the same time.
• Young adult rehab program: For many years, teen drug and alcohol use has been a concern for parents and guardians. If your son or daughter has a substance abuse problem, a young adult rehab program can help them into recovery while we help them continue in their academic growth.
• Individual and group therapy: Both of these options are essential for the continuation of recovery. During individual therapy, you will talk to a counselor one on one to work through problems and build coping mechanisms. At a group therapy session, you will share your experiences, learn how to socialize once more, and build healthy relationships.
• Cognitive-behavior therapy: Psychologists have developed this program to help you understand and process your emotions. You can then work on managing your reactions so that you have healthier behavior.