Dr. Joshua Halbauer poses with the NeuroSTAR TMS Therapy system at The Guidance Center. He is certified to perform the alternative treatment for major depression.
Era photo by Caleb Huntoon
The Guidance Center is now able to provide an alternative method for the treatment of major depressive disorder in adult patients who have failed to receive satisfactory improvement from prior antidepressant medication usage.
The NeuroSTAR TMS Therapy System is now available upon the prescription of a licensed psychiatrist to those who meet qualifying standards. TMS, or transcranial magnetic stimulation, has been used since the 1980s by physicians looking for other treatment options.
Dr. Joshua Halbauer, one of The Guidance Center’s psychiatrists, has been trained and approved to perform this treatment. Halbauer noted, “The TMS machine utilizes magnetic pulses that we can strategically direct to those parts of the brain involved in mood regulation. By so doing, we can improve blood circulation, stimulate the uptake of glucose and affect the releases of chemical messengers thus improving mood — much like a massage, but to the brain.