Over the past several years, more people have heard about using magnetic pulses to treat depression. The traditional approaches to treating clinical depression include talk therapy, counseling, and medication. But there's another option worth knowing about: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, or TMS.
A Brief History of TMS
Transcranial magnetic stimulation has been studied since the 1980s, including for its effectiveness in treating major depressive disorder. The FDA first cleared a TMS device for treating adults with depression who hadn't responded to antidepressant medication in 2008 — the NeuroStar system was the first transcranial magnetic stimulation device to meet FDA standards. In the years since, TMS has built a substantial track record as an effective treatment for depression that hasn't responded to medication alone.
Depression remains extremely common. In the United States, an estimated 8.3% of adults — more than 21 million people — experience at least one major depressive episode in a given year, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Globally, the World Health Organization estimates that roughly 5.7% of adults, or about 332 million people, live with depression, making it one of the leading causes of disability worldwide.
TMS uses a pulsed magnetic field to stimulate neurons in regions of the brain that help regulate mood. When properly stimulated, these neurons release neurotransmitters like serotonin, which are often depleted in people with depression.
How TMS Therapy Works
During a TMS session, an electromagnetic coil is placed against the patient's scalp near the forehead. The device delivers short, focused magnetic pulses to a targeted area of the brain — typically the left prefrontal cortex, a region that often shows abnormal activity in people with depression — generating a small electric current in the nearby neurons.
Those pulses excite neurons in ways that researchers believe help the brain rebuild healthier patterns of activity over time, essentially supporting its natural capacity to form new neural connections. Because the brain is so interconnected, stimulating one region tends to have effects in others as well.
TMS is noninvasive and doesn't require anesthesia or sedation. It's typically used when other depression treatments haven't worked well enough on their own, and it's usually paired with ongoing medication management or psychotherapy rather than replacing them. TMS isn't a cure for depression, but for many people it's a genuinely effective therapy — including people who go on to have another course of treatment if symptoms return.
How Well Does TMS Work?
According to Harvard Health, roughly 50–60% of people with depression who haven't responded to medication experience a clinically meaningful improvement with TMS, and about one-third achieve full remission — meaning their depression symptoms resolve completely. Relapse is possible, as it is with other depression treatments, but many people feel better for months after their last session, and additional TMS courses are an option if symptoms return.
What's New in TMS
TMS has continued to evolve. In September 2025, the FDA cleared an accelerated deep TMS protocol that compresses treatment into a shorter timeline — an intensive initial phase followed by a tapering schedule — with a clinical trial showing outcomes comparable to the standard, longer protocol but with meaningfully fewer office visits. Earlier, in 2024, the FDA cleared TMS as an add-on treatment for major depressive disorder in adolescents ages 15 to 21, expanding this option beyond adults for the first time. These developments mean TMS is becoming more accessible and more flexible for people who need it, though research in younger patients is still developing.
Many insurance plans now cover TMS for medication-resistant depression under specific circumstances, and with roughly two decades of clinical use and FDA oversight behind it, TMS has become a well-established option for people whose depression hasn't responded to other treatments.
