LEWISVILLE — One in four women are depressed at some point in their lives. According to the National Institutes of Mental Health, it's the number-one disability among women.
In general, married women are more depressed than single ones, and it's common to see depression among moms staying home full-time with young kids.
So how do you get help when medicines don't work?
There is a new option that now has FDA approval — TMS, or transcranial magnetic stimulation.
Kelly Seybert said TMS is her only way out after therapy and medicine failed to help with her depression.
"I don't even know what it means to be fully happy any more," she said. "I've been so sad and depressed I can't even imagine what it feels like to be normal and feel normal again."
Seybert is just 22 years old. A failed relationship sent her into a downward spiral.
"It took a big blow to my self-esteem and my self-worth, and coming back from that was almost impossible," she said.
Seybert started drinking to forget her problems, and shortly after was diagnosed with clinical depression.
"I was on nine medications for depression," she said. "When you are on that many medications, you're not yourself anymore."
That's where Dr. Louis Costello comes in. The board certified outpatient psychiatrist was the first to bring TMS to Texas.
The FDA approved this magnet therapy only for people like Seybert, where medications haven't worked.
"It's a powerful MRI strength magnet that basically helps activate an area of the brain," Dr. Costello explained.
By re-stimulating an inactive part of the brain 30 times for six consecutive weeks, the physician says 42 percent of his patients have recovered from depression.
Studies show those numbers are on target with independent research from UT Southwestern Medical Center all the way to the Mayo Clinic.
"My prayers have been answered," Seybert said. "I'm going to get this treatment, and I'm so excited to hopefully feel 100 percent me again."
But Dr. Costello is quick to remind her that TMS doesn't work for everyone. It's not a cure. And it doesn't replace medicine or therapy. It is designed to work with those treatments.
"Magnetic therapy and electro-stimulation therapy has been around for years, but it's never been in this form," Dr. Costello explained.
Now with recognition from the American Psychiatric Association, TMS is gaining attention.
For Kelly Seybert, this therapy means hope. "Everybody deserves to be happy... everybody," she said. "When you go out and see other people having the time of their life and enjoying life, and you can't? It hurts. It hurts a lot."
But she hopes that with the help of TMS, that pain will soon be a part of her past.
Side effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy include scalp discomfort and the risk of seizures. The full treatments can cost $10,000 and insurance covers it only on a case-by-case basis.
E-mail sslater@wfaa.com
