Danbury Woman Shines Light On Non-Invasive Treatment For Depression
Sandra Diamond Fox, Danbury Daily Voice | September 21, 2016
Copyright© 2016 Danbury Daily Voice
DANBURY, Conn. — Danbury resident Martha Rhodes knows firsthand how difficult it is to beat depression.
And now Rhodes is bringing awareness to a non-invasive treatment for depression called Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, or TMS, that worked for her when medications did not.
TMS is a type of therapy that uses magnetic pulses to stimulate nerve centers in the brain that regulate mood. It has relieved Rhodes’ depression symptoms — medication free — for over six years.
In her recently published memoir, “3,000 Pulses Later,” Rhodes describes her challenges with undiagnosed and untreated, drug-resistant depression and her success with TMS.
The book tells the story of how, after 25 years as a top New York City advertising executive, Rhodes took an overdose of Xanax and alcohol in an unsuccessful suicide attempt to escape her feelings of depression.
It chronicles her struggle to find an alternative to the antidepressants she had been taking for years that not only failed to relieve her symptoms, but also left her feeling sick from their many side effects.