Last October, Pamela Rose and I had the awesome opportunity of visiting the Brain Treatment Center (BTC) in Newport Beach. Here, we were beneficiaries of a medical treatment called Magnetic Resonance Therapy (MRT) that uses transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to treat many brain-related disorders, including autism, depression, stroke and Alzheimer’s.
The BTC’s director, psychiatrist and neuroscientist Dr. Yi Jin, is treating veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for free. Established just five years ago, its affiliations now include the USC Keck School of Medicine, the Department of Neurorestoration, the Mission Viejo Hospital and others.
Our time at the BTC gave us a unique but unsettling exposure to vets suffering from PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). We learned that PTSD symptoms include an inability to sleep, nightmares, hyper vigilance, panic attacks, rage issues, substance abuse and depression. For some, hopelessness and despair deepens to the point where 22 vets of both sexes commit suicide daily.
On our first day at the BTC, we met Sergeant Jonathan Warren whose story is typical of veterans who return home from war with severe PTSD. The Los Angeles Times ran a feature article on him on Oct. 6, 2013 called “Healing Sgt. Warren.” Then in, January of 2015, the Washington Post ran a story on Jon after he received MRT. The article posed the question, “Is this a product of science? A matter of faith? Or simply a mystery? Yes, yes and yes … Miracles sometimes require all three.”
Knowledge that a noninvasive and nonpharmacologic medical protocol exists that can also be used on a myriad of mental conditions portends a dramatic shift in treatments for mental illnesses. BrainTryst will advocate and educate the public on these new protocols through media-driven events to raise awareness and funds to pay a debt owed to all Vets and to educate and advocate for desperately needed improvement in treatment of mental illness.
Please save the date for Saturday, Oct. 31 at 5 p.m., when the BrainTryst and our nonprofit partner, the Global Stress Initiative, will be honoring all veterans. For more information, visit BrainTryst.com.
Mona Loo