While ECT can be an effective means of treating serious depression, its invasive nature has been a longtime source of controversy. Now there is a promising alternative that works on the same principle as ECT, but may be less traumatic. An experimental procedure known as Rapid Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (RTMS) uses a powerful magnet to deliver an electric jolt to the brain in the same manner as ECT, but without electrical stimulation to unnecessary parts of the brain. Scientists believe that the technique works like a heart defibrillator. The electric voltage that passes through the brain causes its neurons to fire at once and somehow this action seems to reset the rate at which the brain releases its various neurotransmitters.

In clinical trials, some people who have failed to improve by using medication and other therapies have responded to RTMS treatments within six days, while the majority are significantly better after two weeks of twenty-minute treatments. Because of its newness, no one knows if these benefits will last longer than six months, but preliminary indications are promising. Like ECT, RTMS will most likely be used to "jump start" the brain so that other forms of medical care can then be used to maintain the patient's well-being over the long haul. Magnetic therapy has been a viable medical therapy for thousands of years. Having a "gentler" form of ECT available is exciting news for people who suffer from long-term treatment-resistant depression.