TMS therapy is well tolerated and has been proven to be safe in clinical trials. The most commonly reported side effects related to treatment were scalp pain or discomfort during treatment sessions. These side effects were generally mild to moderate and occurred less frequently after the first week of treatment.

Our services are covered by most commercial health insurance plans in addition to Medicare and Tricare. Please have your health insurance information with you when you call to schedule an initial evaluation. Our staff will then check your benefits.

For medication management, your initial evaluation will take 30 minutes in most instances. If your provider believes that you will benefit from medication he will write a prescription during the first visit. Follow-up visits are typically one month later and for 15 minutes.

Psychotherapists are trained counselors who treat persons with emotional symptoms with counseling or psychotherapy. A psychologist has a doctoral degree in psychology. A psychiatrist has a doctor of medicine degree and specializes in psychiatry following medical training. A psychiatrist is the only psychotherapist who can prescribe medication. A psychopharmacologist is a psychiatrist who specialized in the use of medications to treat emotional symptoms. Psychopharmacology is simply the study of how medications affect the mind and thinking processes.

“Mentally ill” is a term usually reserved for those with severe emotional disturbances such as schizophrenia. Many individuals consult with psychiatrists for medication and therapy for transient symptoms such as stress, depression and anxiety. Most individuals in treatment with a psychiatrist are able to function normally in their everyday life and in society.

No, not every patient is a candidate for medication. Dr. Hubbard or Rizwan Khan, PAC will conduct an evaluation and diagnose your symptoms. For some patients medication alone is warranted to alleviate their symptoms. If your condition warrants psychotherapy alone or another form of treatment, you may not need medication. However, some patients benefit from a combination of psychotherapy and medication. Some patients who have experienced inadequate relief from medication or significant side effects from medication may want to consider TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation), a noninvasive, highly researched treatment for depression with no significant side effects. TMS is covered by most insurance plans including Medicare and Tricare

Most patients continue to take their medication while undergoing TMS treatment under the supervision of their doctor or psychiatrist. When you are finished with TMS treatment, your doctor will assess your progress and you may be able to reduce your medication slowly. Some patients ultimately discontinue their antidepressant medication after TMS under the care of their doctor. Others continue their medication with a significant decrease or remission in depressive symptoms that they did not experience with their medication before TMS. It is dangerous to stop antidepressant medication suddenly.

Dr. Ann Wycoff, our licensed psychologist, will see you for a Complementary TMS Consultation to explain what TMS is, how it works, what the research shows, and what the procedure entails. She’ll also assess your symptoms, your medication history and your expectations to help you understand if you are a good candidate for TMS. Twelve years of research (including Yale, Harvard, The Mayo Clinic etc.) show that 50-65% of patients experience a significant reduction in depressive symptoms with TMS. Based on our statistics, we are currently seeing a 71% rate of remission in depressive symptoms for patients treated in our office. This statistic is subject to change as we are constantly measuring our patients’ progress. The effects last at least one year for the majority of patients. If you and Dr. Wycoff determine that you are a good candidate for TMS we will schedule a 30 minute appointment with Dr. Hubbard to assess you, as only a physician can write the prescription for TMS.

All information provided to a member of our team is confidential and can only be released with your written consent. The only exceptions to this are in the areas of child abuse, elder abuse, or threats of homicide.

We are available by telephone at (619) 795-3009 on weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. If it is necessary for you to leave a message during business hours, we will typically return your call the same day. Most of the time we are able to schedule an appointment within 24 hours of your call as Rizwan Khan, PA-C has immediate openings.