Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. We have several patients who utilise all of our treatment services to optimise their recovery. We usually run Esketamine and TMS combined treatments for patients suffering from treatment resistant depression and have had some fantastic results using this method.

Some private healthcare insurance companies may offer funding for our treatments. This would need to be discussed with your insurance provider.

Esketamine has shown to eliminate suicidality within 24 hours in some cases. Here in clinic, we have seen some rapid improvements to patient’s symptoms. In some cases, it can take a little longer for patients to respond. This can depend on multiple factors. All patients are reviewed weekly by the consultant psychiatrist in the initial stage of treatment to ensure dose and optimisation of treatment effects.

Yes. The side effects of Esketamine peak at roughly 45 minutes post administration but are generally much less after 90 minutes. There is a requirement that patients do not drive post treatment or operate any machinery until the following day.

The patient is required to stay in clinic for at least 90 minutes post administration. This is to allow time for the side effects to have worn off prior to discharge.

On the day of treatment, it is a requirement for patients NOT to eat 2 hours prior to their appointment and NOT to have any fluids 30 minutes prior to treatment. Patients can take their usual medications if more than 2 hours prior to treatment and if those medications are not sedative.

No. As Esketamine is a controlled 2 medication, it is self-administered and supervised by a qualified professional.

We have a range of specialist consultants to cover various areas of mental health including: • Full psychiatric assessments • Older Adult Psychiatry and Memory Services • Autism • ADHD

Each session is 1 hour long.

This is discussed with your therapist to decide what is more suited to your circumstances and availability.

The number of sessions varies depending on the condition, severity and response rate. This is something that is regularly reviewed with the therapist.

Each session lasts approximately 10–15 minutes.

Treatment is given as a course of 10 sessions across a 3–5 week period. Patients can decide if they want to do 2 sessions or 3 sessions per week until they reach their 10 sessions.

Yes. There are no side effects that will prevent you returning to your usual daily activities following treatment.

Every patient will be screened for treatment by a healthcare professional who will be able to tell you if you may benefit from TMS for Migraine and will be able to provide you with further information and complete a consent form with you prior to treatment.

We do not offer individual migraine treatment sessions. The treatment is booked as a course of 10 sessions to be paid prior to treatment commencing.

Yes. There is no contraindication between TMS for Migraine and any medications. It is always best to speak to your doctor before undertaking any treatment.

While both TMS and Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) are effective in the treatment of depression, there are many differences in safety and tolerability. Both are designed to treat depression through the application of energy into the brain, but the similarities end there. ECT is a more intensive and invasive procedure than TMS: ECT requires an anaesthetic and is designed to cause a controlled seizure. One of the main side effects from ECT is memory loss which does not occur with TMS. By contrast, TMS is an outpatient procedure with few side-effects. The patient can go about their day-to-day life as normal immediately after leaving the TMS clinic.

An ongoing support plan to ensure you maintain the benefits of your treatment can be done and individually tailored for your needs. Cost can be discussed based on the number of sessions. • Suitable for patients who have successfully completed a full course of TMS for any of the conditions • Two Theta-Burst sessions within one 30-minute appointment per month • Top up treatments as and when you need them

Current statistics suggest that up to 2 in 3 patients will relapse within the first year following their TMS treatment. To counteract this, Optimise Healthcare Group offer various maintenance options to help our patients optimise the improvements they have experienced.

For standard rTMS each session is roughly 17–20 minutes long. For patients who require treatment on multiple areas, each area will be stimulated for 17–20 minutes. For theta burst treatment (iTBS), treatment lasts just over 3 minutes for one session, stimulating one area of the brain.

Standard research is based on clients coming to clinic for treatment Monday–Friday and having one session. However, there are ways by utilising different protocols that these treatment sessions can be broken up with some patients only attending clinic 2–3 times per week.

There is no recovery period and patients are able to go about their daily activities immediately following treatment. Some patients report a mild headache following treatment, however, this is generally at the beginning of treatment.

In clinic, we have found 75% of patients get a significant improvement in their symptoms of depression from TMS. It is not possible to know which patients will respond so we break the treatment into two parts. If a patient is not showing any benefit following the first part, during their review with their consultant psychiatrist, we discuss the chances of further improvement with the patient. At this point, we may recommend alternative treatment options rather than continuing TMS treatment.