Suffering from Depression? Grab a Magnet!

My depression symptoms first started in early high school. I wasnt exactly sure why or how it even began. One day it went from being a sublte nudge in my brain, to the undeniable elephant in the room. Depression made itself comfy and effortlessly crept into every facet of my health. It was familiar, dragging on through the nights, and leaving me extremely fatigued.

Contrary to the expected bouts of sadness that every person experiences, this type of heaviness was overbearing. Depression can be debilitating, annoying, and wreck havoc on phsyical health.

Going into college, I knew that depression was showing itself to be more than just "empty". It wasnt a cool trend or a monolith of sadness. I couldnt take it off and hang it back up in the clost either. It was much more complex than how it liked to appear for the public eye.

For mentally ill folks, these are some of the options we have: SSRI's/medications, therapy, relaxtion techniques, diet changes, exercise, journaling, etc.

Coping mechanisms can be a great addition to keep mental illness at bay, but its benefits aren't the same for everyone. Sometimes, taking antidepressants can produce unwanted side effects. Participating in other activities as a consistent effort can help...but what happens if its only putting a band aid on intense feelings?

If antidepressants arent working for myself or for others, what can?

Magnets!

Can magnets stimulate brain cells better than medicinal treatment?

Personally, I am not sure. But it definitely grabbed my attention.

Doing my usual googling on depression advancements in science, I stumbled on an article from Scientific American that was titled "Fighting Depression with Magnets" (Zarei 2017).

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) can be a potential lifeline for those who aren't feeling better while relying on medication or therapy alone. This method uses magnets to stimulate brain cells in a noninvasive way, and can change the quality of life for severely depressed patients.

Magnetic stimulation increases response rate to positive health changes, in combination with therapy, for the treatment of depression. Due to the crippling and devasting affects that depression brings to populations around the world, seeing these magnets in action brought me immense hope!

Not only is this the coolest way to use magnetism, it seems like it isnt well known for the mental health community as a viable treatment option. No surgery is needed for TMS, which means it can be cost-effective for patients looking at cheaper solutions.

"With transcranial magnetic stimulation, a small electromagnetic coil is placed against a patient’s head at a precise location. For patients with depression, this location is the left frontal cortex of the brain that has historically been shown to be less active in people with depression"

-Kasra Zarei, Scientific American

By stimulating the activity levels in the left cortex, this changes the way the brain responds and its excitability. Although the effects won't last forever, they were said to be maintained for at least 9 months out the year.

Even with the unknowns about how TMS will be managed in treatment and advertisement in the health field, I have kept this piece of information lodged in my brain. If it tweaks any leftover flaws and turns into a customizable experience and, it may gain even more traction.

“There is also interest in learning about other activities such as psychotherapy, brain training, or exercise that might be synergistically paired with TMS therapy to get the maximal therapeutic effect.”

-Linda Carpenter, Brown University

Who wouldve thought that TMS would be a potential option, instead of invasive surgery or more medication? With so many folks looking for relief, magnets seem to be the helping hand we need in the medical field.

Until I am able to do further research on what works best for my own depression, this was by far my favorite fact that was orginally unknown to me.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to dream of flower fields and magnets.