ON THE BLOG

At Achieve TMS East, we believe that our diversity and inclusion is what makes us stronger and better healthcare providers. Today, we join with the black community and all people of color in their fight for equality and justice. We stand with our clients, colleagues, and the community at large who have been impacted by racism,…

The brain is an integrated control center compiled of 86 billion neurons. When these neurons are out of sync with one another, this can result in an array of various symptoms, including depression. Mental Health needed a non-invasive and non-chemical solution. Achieve TMS is a clinic that integrates science in order to restore brain balance.…

A blog by Marjorie Pierce, LICSW and the Director of Operations for Achieve TMS East. She has her MBA with a concentration in Healthcare Administration from the Isenberg School at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She is also a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and received her Masters of Social Work from Boston University. She has…

“Antidepressant medications and psychotherapy are the first-line treatments for depression, which the CDC estimates one out of every six adults will have at some point in their lives. Those treatments, however, don’t always work for everyone. In some instances a treatment called deep transcranial magnetic stimulation, might be used as an alternative or in combination…

Relationships can be a serious boon when struggling with depression. Friends, family members, and loving partners can be essential to keeping you afloat when things get tough, and it’s their love and support that often keeps us going. However, it’s not always easy being involved with other people. When you’re in a relationship with someone,…

One would think that an illness that affects 17.3 million people and is closely correlated with suicidal ideation, drug use disorder, and drastic drops in productivity is taken very seriously. One would think that, given the impact depression has on our lives, it would be our collective responsibility to identify and treat it in friends,…

When transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) technology was first developed in 1985, its effectiveness and reach into the brain was limited. While it first began to explore the possibility of using magnetism in psychiatric medicine, as a pain-free and non-invasive way to physically affect the brain, much progress has been made since in terms of speed,…

When someone is diagnosed with major depressive disorder, they are struggling with a mental health issue that sets itself apart due to an abnormally protracted period of low mood. It’s important to make that distinction. We’re all allowed to be sad, and it’s important to fully express our emotions – be they positive or negative.…

Roughly 16 million American adults are estimated to have major depressive disorder, and far more are estimated to experience a form of depression at some point in their lifetime. It’s likely that you know someone who is depressed or are depressed yourself. And that is okay. While occasionally severe, and definitely very challenging, depression is…

The fear that you won’t be able to function while depressed is not unfounded. Loss of productivity is a common problem with depression, and some people struggle with a depressive disorder so severe that they are unable to seek and maintain steady work. While therapy and treatment are essential, there’s a whole host of factors…

An approximated 7.1 percent of American adults struggle with symptoms of depression, a mental health condition that can be physically and emotionally crippling. Yet over a third of people affected by this disorder don’t get any treatment whatsoever, and often don’t even seek it out. Many learn, over the years, to hide their thoughts and…

It’s quite tough to deal with depression. Regardless of when you first began feeling depressed, and regardless of how the depression developed to begin with, being depressed is universally difficult. Everything is harder – from performing adequately at work and dealing with the pressures and responsibilities of everyday living to getting up and out of…

Depression – It’s more than just being sad By, Jennifer Boisture, MD “I’m depressed.” Not surprisingly, as a psychiatrist, I hear this a lot from my patients. If I’m meeting a patient for the first time, almost invariably, I respond by asking, “What do you mean when you say ‘depressed’?” This partly because people so…

Pets and humans have spent several millennia together, and there’s plenty of evidence that we’ve domesticated animals long before we even began keeping a written history of the human race. Yet we tamed and bred animals for more than just hunting and livestock. Since time immemorial, we’ve considered plenty of animals as friends, partners, and…

First line treatment for depression involves talk therapy and antidepressant medication. Millions of Americans who struggle with depressive symptoms are prescribed antidepressant pills every year, and their effectiveness in part explains why they’re utilized so often in the treatment of depression. But antidepressants neither cure depression, nor do they affect everyone equally. Firstly, there is…

Transcranial magnetic stimulation is a treatment option for patients with major depressive disorder and other mental health conditions. While still less-known than other more conventional methods for treating depression, TMS has grown rapidly in the public eye, through the efforts of dozens of TMS clinics throughout the country and the work of many doctors and…

The first line treatment for major depressive disorder includes the use of antidepressants and talk therapy, typically making use of SSRIs and a form of behavioral therapy like CBT. However, there is a lot more that can be done to combat the symptoms of depression. Medication and proper treatment (through either medication, therapy, or TMS)…

Transcranial magnetic stimulation is a treatment method for depression developed to help patients who do not respond to first line treatment. Rough estimates suggest that up to a third of people with depressive symptoms remain symptomatic despite the use of pharmacological treatment and therapy. This is a serious problem. As the leading cause of disability…

An estimated 16.1 million adults in the US struggle with depression, while an estimated 322 million people across the world have depressive symptoms. As a mental health disorder, depression comes in many different forms and with different levels of severity. Severe depressive symptoms include self-harm and suicidal ideation, as well as suicide attempts. Mild symptoms…

In modern day psychiatry, there is a treatment method for depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder that relies on magnets. One might say it’s a brave new world, yet transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) machines are based on research and experimentation decades old. Yet instead of using electricity, TMS machines use magnetic waves to subtly affect certain brain…

When a person is depressed, they experience a set of symptoms that affect the way they think, feel, and act. These symptoms are subtle at first, manifesting simply as a low and negative mood. Yet they set themselves apart from normal bouts of sadness by lasting much, much longer. That small change – turning an…

BrainsWay’s deep transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) device was approved for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) by the FDA in August 2018, opening the door for a new form of treatment to be both officially approved by the country’s regulatory body on medication and therapy, and in time, the country’s biggest insurance providers. Deep transcranial…

When the average person thinks of depression, it’s likely that they’re thinking of sudden bursts of sadness, thoughts of worthlessness, a lack of interest in old hobbies, and in severe cases, serious thoughts of suicide. But there is more to depression than just thought, as the disorder affects many on such a level that the…

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) involves the use of magnetic waves, employing them in the treatment of various mental health conditions, including migraines, Tourette’s, OCD, and major depressive disorder. However, TMS therapy is an alternative treatment rather than a first line treatment for these conditions, owing to the comparative lack of data regarding TMSs full potential…

Deep transcranial magnetic stimulation (dTMS) was first cleared for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) by the FDA in 2018, when Brainsway’s deep TMS machines brought promising data to the table about TMS’s role in the treatment of other mental disorders. Previously cleared by the FDA for the treatment of major depressive disorder in 2008,…

Depression is a consuming illness, causing grief for people across the country – not just patients, but affected families and friends as well. More than just a mindset, depression can become a debilitating condition. However, there are ways to tackle depression, through various therapies, medications, and alternative treatments. But there’s more to managing a depression…

Most mental health disorders are not quite like they’re depicted in television, and they’re nowhere near as obvious as the many physical disorders that can render a person equally debilitated. Conditions like anxiety and depression come with many different symptoms and faces, and they’re subtle. One day your husband, wife, friend, or relative might be…

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy was first introduced in 1985 and was based on principles established over a century prior by the Faraday experiment, when Michael Faraday discovered electricity could generate a magnetic field in 1881. While the effects of an external electric current on the brain have been extensively researched in the past –…

If you have been recently diagnosed with depression it is easy to think that this might feel like the end of any real hope for a happy and normal life. Yet contrary to that thought, a diagnosis of depression does not exclude you from joy, happiness, and success. It does, however, mean that you will…

In the treatment of major depressive disorder, medication is often considered the first line of offense. While there are different ways to address depressive symptoms, antidepressant medication affects most depressed patients and can lead to good results, especially in conjunction with other therapies. However, medication isn’t always the best answer for depression, even when it’s…

There is more to dealing with depression than the sadness. Depression is a disorder that promotes isolation, one that often drives people to further despair by preventing them from getting the help they need. When a person is depressed, their thoughts change. More than just sorrow or negativity, depression affects your thought process and changes…

“I’m sure I’ll feel better once the warm weather comes.”  As a psychiatrist, I hear this a lot from my patients who struggle with depression during the winter.  And, often, they’re right.  Anyone who lives here know winters in New England can be cold, dark and long! The warm days of summer not only bring…

Depression is not ostentatious – it’s a silent killer, and many who struggle with it do so silently, and often not through fault of their own. One look at the information available on the stigmatization of depression and the ill-conceived perception of procrastination and concentration problems as matters of ‘laziness’ and ‘willpower’ should tell you…

Major depressive disorder is a condition that affects roughly 6.7 percent of American adults, with an estimated 16.2 million individuals who annually experience an episode of depressive symptoms. Yet despite its widespread nature, depression is often not completely understood by the public, and treatment remains a mystery to many. While we’re urged to help others…

There is a famous idiom which rings true not only in philosophy, but even in science: life is a journey, not a destination. Happiness is only achievable insofar that we always have something to strive for. In other words, a person can only be happy in strife, rather than contentment, but to achieve that happiness…

Major depressive disorder creeps up on people, leaving them feeling tired, unmotivated, sad, and irritable. At first, these are all the symptoms of a spectacularly bad mood, and the nature of the disorder itself means that most people don’t even realize they may be depressed until quite some time has passed. And even then, the…

An estimated 6.7 percent of the American population over the age of 18 has struggled with with major depressive disorder, also known as clinical depression, in the past year. While 6.7 percent might not seem like an overwhelming number, that’s roughly one in 15 adults. That makes it quite likely that you know a friend,…

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a complex and destructive mental condition centered around repeated and unavoidable encounters with anxiety-inducing obsessions, followed by the need to soothe these anxieties through specific compulsions. OCD can range from mild to severe, with debilitating symptoms potentially leaving a person disabled and incapable of functioning alone. Obsessions can range from specific fears…

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive treatment approved for major depressive disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder, particularly in patients who do not respond to first line treatment methods (pharmacology and therapy). If a patient does not experience relief from their depression symptoms despite trying several different medications, they may be diagnosed with ‘treatment-resistant depression’. TMS…

The urge to procrastinate is very powerful while depressed. For one reason or another, depression is known to sap a person’s will and leave them struggling to complete even the most basic tasks, not out of some sense of perceived laziness, but out of a sheer lack of motivation. Finding the will to do anything…

Seeking help when struggling with mental health problems can be an overwhelming challenge. Unclear rules and miscommunication surrounding insurance coverage can exacerbate the issue, unfortunately. It’s important to find out what your insurance does and does not cover, so you can feel confident in approaching a medical professional about your health, and so you can…

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been steadily growing in popularity, ever since becoming a viable and approved option for treatment-resistant depression and OCD according to the FDA. However, there is still a lack of understanding among the general population on how TMS functions, what exactly makes it “non-invasive”, and how it features the benefits of…

It is currently estimated that about 2.3 percent of the American adult population struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder. However, despite that figure, many still seem to misunderstand what the disease entails, and how it develops. OCD is more than an obsession for neatness, or the cause for a very quirky personality. Whereas a focus on neatness…

It takes a lot to drive a person to the edge of suicide, but you are not alone. In times of great distress, after periods of suffering, or as a result of unaddressed illnesses, suicide becomes a viable option in the eyes of many. But it’s never necessary. And it’s never inevitable. Suicidal thoughts can…

Mood disorders have affected an estimated 9.7 percent of US adults in the past year, with most individuals receiving a diagnosis of major depressive disorder. However, while MDD is the most common diagnosis, mood disorders (or depressive disorders) come in a variety of shapes and sizes. While they often entail depressive symptoms, mood disorders are…

We’re taught and incentivized to deal with our own issues and problems, and an important part of learning to become an adult is taking personal responsibility for one’s actions and emotions, learning to control our impulses, think things through before making crucial decisions, and dealing with the repercussions that occur when mistakes are made. Responsibility…

Mood disorders, or depressive disorders, plague at least 6.7 percent of the US adult population, and many more individuals who don’t come forward about their depressive symptoms. Chief among them are the people who struggle with “high-functioning depression”, or milder forms of depression often diagnosed as dysthymia, or persistent depression. These cases can often be…

Depression can affect people at all ages, including infants, and currently plagues roughly 16.2 million adults in the United States (roughly 6.7 percent of the adult population). However, certain ages don’t only experience depressive episodes and symptoms of certain mood disorders more often, but they may also exhibit different symptoms from older or younger groups.…

More than a set system of symptoms, depression is a complex illness that can be debilitating and difficult to live with. Cases of depression range from a marked decrease in mood and an inability to feel pleasure or enjoyment, to crippling depressive thoughts that leave individuals unmotivated, making it difficult or even impossible to function…

Even though we have collectively made great progress in better understanding and bringing awareness to the mental health issues that millions of Americans struggle with daily, we are far from creating a welcoming and compassionate society for most people struggling with mental disorders. The stigma that many have fought against for decades still exists, and…

The impact that a person’s diet can have on their health is tremendous. Knowing what to eat and how much can not only trim the waistline and improve a person’s physical appearance (through healthier hair, skin, and eyes), but it changes the body from within as well, improving circulation, mood, cognition, vision, and more. While…

When most people think about depression, it’s likely that they are only imagining a single diagnosis. But it’s often much more complicated than that. Not only is every case of depression individually unique, but there are different types of depression that require different treatments and a wholly different approach due to certain considerations and differences…

One thing that is not stressed often enough is the importance of maintaining a healthy state of mind regardless of a person’s current mental health. Too many people wait until things get “bad” before considering how they might be able to improve their daily routine to get out of a rut, or even address something…

Is it depression? Or is it something else? While only a doctor can give a definitive answer, it helps to understand what depression is and isn’t – especially when you feel like you’re currently struggling with what might be a depression. Struggle is a part of the human experience, universal in the sense that every…

Although it is an invisible beast, depression can deeply affect the people who love and care for those who have been diagnosed with the condition. When your loved one is fighting depression, they often spend entire days feeling worthless. That pain radiates out and leaves many friends and family members desperate to help find a…

A recent press release through NPR has stated that the Food and Drug Administration will approve esketamine as a treatment option for depression, through a nasal spray. Esketamine is chemically related to ketamine (as an enantiomer), a similar drug known best as an anesthetic and a party drug. Both ketamine and esketamine are known as…

In many cases, depression is something a person is likely to be struggling with for years to come. Depression can come and go, with severe episodes, or it can be a persistent yet more moderate low mood. While depression has many forms, it is almost always chronic and recurring. Helping a person achieve immediate and…

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a very broad disorder often affiliated with anxiety disorders, and an unfortunately common one. Roughly 1 in 40 adults struggle with a form of OCD. As devastating as OCD might be sometimes, it is a condition that many Americans live with daily through the support of their loved ones and professional help.…

The concepts of self-help and open conversations surrounding mental illness have massively grown in popularity in recent years. Among a boom in online communication tools, anonymous conversations, and a genuine interest in how modern-day Western society is affecting the mental health of those living within it, there has much exploration into the mind in the…

Depression is a debilitating condition. It can take many different forms, but they all share the same ruleset: no matter how hard someone tries, just ‘cheering up’ is never an option. If you’re living with someone with depression, helping them can feel like an impossible challenge. It might feel like, no matter what you do,…

If a case of depression does not go into remission by itself within a month, research indicates that, without treatment, it goes on for at least another six months (or longer) in three out of four cases. For many, depression can come and go for years and decades, and become a lifetime struggle. Leaving it…

High-functioning depression is a form of depression that occurs in the combination of certain personalities as well as symptoms. While major depressive disorder, the most common form of depression, is known to be debilitating and often causes a decline in workplace attendance and performance as well as legitimate disability, depression is more of a sliding…

One of the characteristics of depression is a struggle with staying motivated to do anything. Many people with depression struggle with tasks that others take for granted, including matters of personal hygiene and daily chores. Procrastination becomes harder to overcome, and inner thoughts of apathy echo alongside phrases like ‘what’s the point?’ Depression quickly turns…

The short answer is yes. In all likelihood, your drinking – no matter or big or small it might be – is making your depression worse. In the best-case scenario, it does nothing for you in the long-term and is likely to alienate you from utilizing effective forms of treatment. In the worst-case scenario, it’s…

When someone is diagnosed with major depressive disorder, there’s usually a 60 percent chance that their condition developed due to environmental factors, and a 40 percent chance that they developed due to genetic factors. People with direct relatives (parents/siblings) with depression are three times as likely to also struggle with depression than the rest of…

Suicide can be a very frightening topic to broach, and it’s not something anyone wants to discuss lightly. This is why it’s generally very important to take someone seriously when they begin to discuss suicide. Even jokes about suicide, if made frequently and specifically in reference to your friend wanting to attempt suicide, can be…

Anxiety and depression, unfortunately, often go hand in hand. Comorbidity between these two disorders is incredibly high, with as much as half of patients with depression also presenting with symptoms of anxiety. Furthermore, patients who struggle with both anxiety and depression tend to have a less optimistic prognosis as those with either disorder, and don’t…

Seasonal depression, or seasonal affective disorder, is marked by decreased mood and feelings of sadness specifically around certain periods of the year. It’s most common during winter time in temperate climates, when the available daylight per day is at its shortest, and nights last much longer. In many people, this causes a shift in the…

Taking your own life is not a split-second decision. While we’ve heard frequently that someone can appear cheerful one morning and then go on to take their own life later that same day, the process of deciding to commit suicide is one that takes weeks, months, or years. People contemplate how to do it, and…

We’ve grown slightly more comfortable in regard to discussing certain matters of pain and discomfort with those around us. When we’re sick, we let others know. When we’re hurt, we explain how it happened. Admitting something is wrong isn’t a sign of weakness anymore – at least, in some cases. But when the pain isn’t…

One of the harder things to fight back against in depression is the overwhelming apathy, the feeling that nothing matters. It’s a hard feeling to fight back against, because when you don’t particularly care about anything, it’s hard to muster the enthusiasm or the motivation to do so anyway. Sometimes, these feelings overstay their welcome…

When most people think depression treatment, they think therapy and pills. In most cases, these two options represent the first line of offense in the fight against depression. And in many cases, they can be enough to help someone alleviate the symptoms of their depression, and live better lives. But therapy and antidepressants don’t always…

Many forms of depression are managed through a variety of different techniques. It’s usually not enough to rely on medication when you’re consistently on the receiving end of stressful situations, demeaning comments, and abusive behavior. It’s not enough to go to therapy when you’re struggling to digest and internalize any of what you’re reading or…

As severe as it can be at times, depression is not always easy to spot. Some people manage to go through a great amount of effort to hide their depression, to the point that some who might not know them so well would be surprised to find out that someone “so happy” could be struggling…

Depression is a difficult topic to broach, even among family and friends. Regardless of what your experiences might be with depression, talking to someone else about their depression is not easy. You may be worried about saying the wrong thing, about egging them on, misinterpreting their words, or just not knowing what to say, and…

Even if the majority of us don’t set New Year’s Resolutions or expect not to reach them, goal-setting is essential in life. Whether you’re working towards a new career milestone, want to raise your children, are fighting depression, or doing all of the above, goals matter. Without goals, we aren’t necessarily aimless, but it’s easy…

It can be exhausting to fight depression. But the mistake most make is that they try to do it alone. Depression is an illness that affects individuals, but it’s in no shape or form a single person’s responsibility to get better all on their own. Would anyone blame you for going to the doctor if…

Depression affects a record-breaking 16.2 million US adults, and as many have suggested, depression isn’t only on the rise, but has rather recently become a topic we’ve been engrossed with, revealing that more and more Americans are reporting feelings of depression, starting a much-needed unveiling of a previously taboo topic. While it is one of…

Roughly four percent of the US population has contemplated suicide in 2015, and suicide rates have been increasing significantly in recent years. Perhaps, now more than ever, it’s important to know what to do to get help for suicidal thinking – and it’s important to learn to address that it’s more common than ever. We…

Depression is an insidious disease, and it’s very possible for someone to struggle with depression and not show it. One of the reasons mental health issues are so heavily stigmatized is because they’re less apparent. People who have never struggled with mental health issues might take the complaints and struggles of depressed people out of…

Depression is a lonely disorder, even when the person struggling with depression ostensibly isn’t alone. It’s difficult to accurately and faithfully describe what it is like to be depressed, especially because it’s likely that everyone experiences it differently. But a common factor is that no matter what logic and reality might dictate, the pure sadness…

We’re well on our way to eradicating measles, polio, the Guinea worm, mumps, rubella, and river blindness. Despite being one of the deadliest viruses in human history, antiviral medication and treatment for AIDS has evolved to the point that someone who is diagnosed HIV positive in 2018 and seeks treatment is more likely to die…

You might feel sad. Really sad, in fact. Lately, you might feel like you’ve only been feeling sad, and the days go by without much changing, other than the fact that you seem ever slightly more tired with each passing day, and you’re not sure what’s going on with you. Chances are you’ve heard of…

It’s common knowledge that when you’re depressed, you get prescribed antidepressants. Some lament that too many psychiatrists get trigger-happy with the prescription pad, describing them when they might not work or be necessary. Regardless of where you stand on that topic, the data shows that despite a scare regarding suicidality and SSRIs, today’s antidepressants are…

Depression is a terrible disease, but few people see that. When people think of diseases, they think of blood, or pain. They see gore, the slow progression of a healthy body into obvious visual sickness. Like many other mental health disorders, depression is hard to notice. There are no obvious wounds, no blood until it’s…

Antidepressants are somewhat of a mystery to many people, and it’s difficult for some to process whether they’re a good thing or a bad thing, with conflicting messages on both sides. Headlines and government bodies are writing reports that prescription drugs are addictive and can cause deaths, and antidepressants contain black box warning that a…

Suicide is a complex medical and social problem and takes a staggering toll on US public health claiming the lives of over 45,000 people annually.  The problem is gradually worsening. Suicide rates went up more than 30% in half of the US since 1999. Any intervention attempting to reduce the risk of suicide should be…