How SAINT® Works: Your Brain Mapped, Your Depression Treated in Five Days
SAINT® uses an fMRI scan to find the precise spot in your brain linked to depression, then targets it with 50 short sessions over five days, not six to nine weeks. FDA-cleared for adults whose depression hasn't improved with antidepressants.
In Stanford's trials, people who reached remission did so in an average of 2.6 days.
Prefer to call? 954-827-9793. FDA cleared for adults with major depression who haven't improved enough with antidepressant medication.
You've tried the medications. You've tried the therapy.
If you're living with depression, you know how exhausting it is to wait. Weeks for a medication to work. Months to find out if it helped. And you're still waiting to feel like yourself again. You're not alone, and you may not be out of options.
What is TMS?
TMS stands for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. It uses gentle magnetic pulses to stimulate areas of the brain involved in mood. It has been used to treat depression for years.
No surgery
TMS is noninvasive. Nothing is implanted.
No anesthesia
You're awake the whole time, sitting comfortably in a chair.
Comfortable
Most patients describe treatment as comfortable.
What is SAINT?
SAINT stands for Stanford Accelerated Intelligent Neuromodulation Therapy. It was developed at Stanford University and is FDA cleared for adults with major depression who haven't improved enough with antidepressant medication. SAINT is a newer form of TMS. It uses brain imaging to target treatment precisely, and it's completed in just five days.
SAINT is not the same as standard TMS
SAINT is a one-of-a-kind, FDA-cleared treatment. It combines proprietary equipment, a proprietary fMRI-guided targeting algorithm, and the science developed at the Stanford Brain Stimulation Lab — none of which standard TMS uses. Only clinics trained and credentialed as Verified SAINT Providers deliver it, not any TMS clinic advertising "accelerated TMS."
Six weeks, or five days.
Traditional TMS
One session a day, about six weeks.
SAINT® TMS
Ten short sessions a day, about ten minutes each, with rest in between. Five days, fifty sessions.
Same idea. A much shorter timeline. For someone who's been struggling with depression, five days can feel a lot more possible than six weeks.
No two brains are exactly alike. Your treatment shouldn't be either.
Before treatment, you'll have an advanced Functional MRI, or fMRI. It looks beyond the structure of your brain to see how the networks involved in depression are functioning and communicating. Stanford's proprietary SAINT mapping algorithm then analyzes that information to identify the precise area most likely to benefit from treatment. Your treatment isn't based on a standard protocol. It's personalized to your brain's unique blueprint.
How to get started
Your journey starts with a conversation.
A conversation
One of our compassionate Care Coordinators will take the time to understand your story, determine if SAINT TMS may be right for you, and review your insurance benefits.
Your personalized plan
You'll meet virtually with a Treatment Coordinator and one of our physicians to create your personalized treatment plan.
Scheduling your journey
Together, we'll schedule the beginning of your treatment.
Not a hospital room. Your own private suite.
Treatments are delivered once every hour for just ten minutes, with your treatment specialist by your side, monitoring your comfort and guiding you every step of the way. For the next fifty minutes, you'll rest in one of our private SAINT suites. You'll be offered a choice of catered lunch, and you're free to walk the grounds outdoors between treatments.
Every day of treatment, you'll be guided by a team that truly cares. Our therapists and coaches are here to support, encourage, and empower you, helping you build tools you can carry with you long after treatment ends.
10 min treatment
with your specialist
50 min rest
in your private suite
Five days. In patients' own words.
Your personalized brain map becomes the blueprint for every treatment. You'll review it with our physician, and then treatment begins.
You're welcomed again by a team that believes in you. Some patients tell us that around day two or three, they begin to notice a shift. They describe it as a new feeling of hope.
Patients have described this as the day the weight began to feel a little lighter. Many say they found comfort and calm in their private suite.
Many patients describe feeling lighter with each session. Clearer. More like themselves. Some say it felt like a fog was lifting.
Your final day of treatment. Many patients describe feeling clearer and more hopeful, even excited to feel like themselves again. Your care team gathers to celebrate this milestone with you.
Experiences described are from individual patients. Every journey is different, and individual results vary.
Is SAINT right for you?
SAINT is FDA cleared for adults with major depression who haven't found enough relief from antidepressant medication. If you've tried medications and you're still waiting to feel like yourself again, SAINT may be an option worth exploring. The first step is simple: a conversation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Every journey is different. For some, it begins in just five days.
Neuro Wellness TMS Centers of America. Cutting-edge depression treatment.
Start My Journey
Share a few details and a care coordinator will reach out within one business day.
If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or call 911.
SAINT TMS is FDA cleared for the treatment of major depressive disorder in adults who have failed to achieve satisfactory improvement from prior antidepressant medication in the current episode. Patient experiences described on this page are individual and not a guarantee of results. Individual results vary. This page is for informational purposes and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified provider to determine if treatment is right for you.
Neuro Wellness TMS Centers of America · (954) 827-9793 · neurowellnesstms.com/saint