Benefits of VA TMS vs Veterans using other treatments in USA

Benefits of VA TMS vs Veterans using other treatments

Benefits of VA TMS vs Veterans using other treatments in USA. Over the last several years, the number of veterans diagnosed and treated for depression and PTSD has drastically increased due to the Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans seeking help.

While mental health needs reach far beyond the military, the problem is especially severe among war veterans. Veterans who recently returned home from combat are at higher risk of suffering from PTSD than those in the general population. Studies have shown that those who suffer from PTSD will later suffer from other mental illness, such as depression and anxiety. 

 

Options for Treatment of Mental Illness in Veterans

 USA treatments for VA are usually initiated at a Veteran Affairs clinic or hospitals. The VA offers mental health services for depression, grief, anxiety, and other needs. These services are divided up as follows:

  • Short-term, inpatient care – Veterans with severe or life-threatening mental illness
  • Outpatient care- Those with serious mental illness who have a lot of trouble functioning in daily life
  • Regular outpatient care- Includes care over the phone
  • Rehabilitation treatment and residential (live-in) programs-Veterans with mental health problems and other needs (like those related to homelessness, job training, and education) who would benefit from getting treatment or living in a structured setting for a period of time
  • Primary care- Those with common mental and behavioral problems
  • Supported work settings to help Veterans successfully join the workforce and live healthy in the community

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Depression Treatments

 When it comes to individual treatments, it will depend on the individual veteran. In some cases, a primary care physician will prescribe medication to help relieve symptoms of depression. They may also refer the veteran to see a mental health professional for psychotherapy.

where treatments usually include:

 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression (CBT-D)

CBT-D is also known as “talk therapy.” It works to change people’s attitudes and behavior by focusing on the person’s cognitive processes and how these methods cause a person to behave as a way of dealing with emotional problems. The goal of CBT-D is to improve the symptoms of depression by developing balanced and helpful thoughts about yourself, others, and the future and helping you spend more time engaging in pleasurable or productive activities. 

 

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Depression (ACT-D)

Using mindfulness and acceptance-based strategies and behavior change, ACT-D is a psychotherapy that helps people overcome emotional pain and worry. This therapy encourages them to take positive actions that align with their values. ACT-D helps people understand, commit to, and realize what matters most to them in life.

 

Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)

IPT is a treatment that focuses on the relationships that may cause or result from depression, helping people understand the connection between their depression and current relationship problems. IPT also builds social skills that help people deal with their problems, helping improve how people feel and their quality of life.

Benefits of VA TMS vs Veterans using other treatments in USA

Benefits of VA TMS vs Veterans using other treatments in USA

PTSD Treatment

When a vet is suffering from PTSD, trauma- focused approaches are used for treatments . “Trauma-focused” concentrates on the memory of the traumatic event.

 

There are three different psychotherapies that are most effective through the VA:

  • Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)- Teaches vet to recognize how their traumatic events have influenced their thinking. It also teaches them to evaluate and change their thoughts. 
  • Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy –Teaches veterans to confront the memories, feelings, and situations that they have been avoiding since the trauma. 
  • Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)- Veterans pay attention to a back-and-forth movement or sound while calling to mind the upsetting memory until changes occur in the way they encounter that memory.

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Antidepressants

People with PTSD appear to have different amounts of certain chemicals in the brain. SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and SNRIs (serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors) are types of antidepressant medication that are believed to treat PTSD bringing balance back to the chemicals in the brain. 

 

VA TMS Therapy Treatment

VA TMS is a treatment method for depression and other debilitating psychological disorders. It works to rebalance brain chemicals without reliance on medication.

 

TMS has been around since 1985, but only in more recent years has it become a more common way to approach treatment-resistant depression. Veterans who have seen little to no success with psychotherapy and antidepressants are seeing the benefits of TMS for their depression, and even PTSD and anxiety. 

 

 By directly stimulating areas of the brain associated with mood regulation, TMS affects chemical activity. To activate specific parts of the brain, providers use a coil of wires that pass electrical energy to create a powerful magnetic field. During a treatment session, the coil device is placed on the head, and the energy from this magnetic field is transferred into a patient’s brain. Magnetic energy passes quickly through skin and skull, activating the brain painlessly and without surgery or sedation.

Watch Vets and depression: Returning from war to fight new battle on YouTube

 

Getting Treatment

Before beginning any treatment for depression, you should talk with your therapist, doctor, or other mental health treatment provider. Each patient is different, and what works for one may not work for another.

 

BrainStimTMS therapy uses our state-of-the-art technology including all three FDA cleared treatment protocols, including 3, 19, and 37-minute treatment sessions. 75% of our patients see a significant decrease in symptoms after receiving treatment, and 45% reach remission.

 

If you are interested in finding out more about veterans and depression please visit our website. You can also visit our FAQs about BrainStim page. Thank you for reading our post Benefits of VA TMS vs Veterans using other treatments in USA.