Feeling numb and ambivalent about her life was once common for Prisha Miller.*
“I’ve struggled with depression and anxiety for the past twenty years,” says the Vancouver-based professional. “Nothing seemed to help.”
But after completing the core treatment phase of in Vancouver, things began to change.
“I’ve noticed my depression and anxiety symptoms decreasing significantly,” Prisha says. “I can feel joy and excitement again. I’m more productive at work, and I can deal with stress in a much more productive way.”
She does still have small depressive episodes from time to time, but nowadays they are much more manageable. Despite once thinking that nothing would help, she’s noticed that the effects of esketamine therapy are lasting – something she’s very excited about.
Prisha’s story is unfortunately a familiar one for others. Depression is a public health crisis. Statistics Canada reported in September that screened positive for symptoms of depression, anxiety or posttraumatic stress disorder.
The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic have added fuel to this fire of compromised mental health: In, 43 per cent of adults now rate their mental health as ‘fair,’ ‘poor,’ or ‘very poor,’ compared to just 19 per cent before the pandemic began.
Dr. Diane McIntosh – a psychiatrist, educator, and the author of This is Depression – says multiple risk factors contribute to a person developing depression, whether biological (for example, genetics or hormones), psychological (a traumatic experience or a lack of stress-management skills) or social (external forces such as bankruptcy, divorce, or loneliness).
Compounding the problem of increasing depression among the population is that many people delay seeking professional help.
“Many people don’t look for treatment until they’re quite ill,” says Dr. McIntosh. “There’s still a lot of stigma associated with depression. What this means is that people often don’t reach out for support early on, even in situations when perhaps they should. When these early opportunities to intervene are missed, treating depression can become more difficult.”
The most severe reported cases of depression are often referred to as Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD). Dr. McIntosh notes that “there is no universally agreed-upon definition of TRD.” According to Canadian psychiatrists, if a patient has tried two or more antidepressants at therapeutic doses and their depression has not improved, they may be experiencing TRD. Unfortunately, 15 to 30 per cent of people will have TRD.”
The mental health team at in Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»is working to provide solutions to TRD by offering two options for alternative treatments: rTMS and esketamine.
rTMS and esketamine are available from TELUS Health. Photo: iStock
The promising potential of rTMS and esketamine
Two treatment options offer promise for people living with treatment-resistant depression. rTMS (Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation) is a non-invasive procedure carried out in a clinic by a medical professional. It’s a lesser known but increasingly more available treatment option for moderately-severe depression. Esketamine is a completely new option derived from the anesthetic ketamine. Esketamine is administered under close supervision of a clinician in a safe and comfortable setting.
Dr. McIntosh notes that esketamine is “generally reserved for people who have very severe depression, including with acute suicidal ideation, and data suggests it’s very effective.”
In addition to rTMS and esketamine, Dr. McIntosh notes that psychedelics, such as psilocybin, are a very exciting area of psychiatry.
“They’ve been around since the 1950s, but there was very little research done for many years, because they were controlled substances. But high-quality research is emerging – including in depression, anxiety, and other psychiatric illnesses – and the data is compelling.”
Today, both in Vancouver. To speak to someone on the mental health team, call 1-866-937-3892.
*Name has been changed to respect patient privacy
