Magnets offer hope for major depression; study underway with youth
Maureen McFadden, WNDU 16 | September 21, 2016
Copyright© 2016 wndu.com
If you suffered from major depression, or know someone who does, you know how debilitating it can be. If can lead to feelings of hopelessness, isolation and even suicide.
Sadly, fewer than 1 in 3 adults who screen positive for depression get the help they need, leaving millions in pain. But big things are happening to treat depression that takes us beyond talk therapy and anti-depressants.
Beacon Medical Group in South Bend is one of ten sites nationwide now testing transcranial magnetic stimulation on adolescents between the ages of 12 and 21. TMS is already FDA-approved for people 21 and older.
Hillary Doerries of South Bend recently finished TMS therapy at Beacon. She has suffered from depression since she was a teen. “I can remember being a teenager and just remember having days where I felt so sad and would cry for no reason all day long,” Hillary recalls.
There was a family history Hillary didn’t know about, so she wasn’t sure what was wrong until she went to college and met her future husband. “His parents happen to be psychologists, so he said, ‘Hillary, do you think you’re depressed?’ and I sad, hmm, yeah.”
While Hillary can laugh about it today, two years ago she was in a very dark place. She ended up hospitalized.