BrainHealth Solutions offers transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) for depression, OCD and anxiety to patients in Westwood and across West Los Angeles. Care is led by Dr. Robert Bota, the psychiatrist who founded UC Irvine's first TMS program.
Transcranial magnetic stimulation is a non-invasive, FDA-cleared treatment for major depressive disorder and OCD that uses focused magnetic pulses to stimulate nerve cells in brain regions that are underactive in depression. It is most often considered when medication or therapy has not worked or was not tolerated. At BrainHealth Solutions, TMS is delivered with MagVenture technology, and the same practice also offers the accelerated SAINT® protocol and Spravato®, so a Westwood patient can be matched to the right option rather than the only one on the menu.
A coil rests against your scalp and delivers brief magnetic pulses. The pulses pass painlessly through the skull and induce small electrical currents in the targeted cortex; nothing is implanted and no anesthesia is used.
Before your first treatment, the team performs motor-threshold mapping to find the stimulation intensity your brain responds to, then locates the treatment target. Coil design, pulse location, intensity and frequency all shape the effect, so this mapping is individual to you.
The effect is cumulative. One session does not relieve depression; a course of daily sessions gradually changes activity in the mood circuits, which is why most patients notice improvement after several weeks rather than several days.
TMS is FDA-cleared for major depressive disorder, OCD and smoking cessation, and insurers typically cover it for depression after two or more antidepressant trials have failed. Dr. Bota trained in TMS at Harvard University and the University of South Carolina and is a member of the Clinical TMS Society; the Westwood office is where West Los Angeles patients complete their psychiatric evaluation. Your evaluation takes place at our Westwood office at 1762 Westwood Blvd, Suite 320, Los Angeles, CA 90024. Your clinician confirms where treatment sessions are scheduled; our Costa Mesa clinic (3151 Airway Ave, Bldg R, Costa Mesa, CA 92626) is the practice’s main treatment center.
You share your name, contact information and a callback time. Our team explains TMS, SAINT® and Spravato®, answers questions and checks whether a full evaluation makes sense. You can also text the office first if you prefer.
A thorough visit covering your history, prior diagnoses and medications, medical background, sleep and goals. Insurance eligibility for TMS is reviewed at this stage, including the two-medication-failure criterion most plans apply.
At the first treatment visit the clinician determines your motor threshold and treatment target. This visit runs longer than a routine session because the settings it produces are used for the rest of your course.
Standard TMS is delivered five days a week for roughly six weeks, then tapered. You sit in a reclining chair, awake, and can read or talk during stimulation. You drive yourself home afterward.
Symptom scales are repeated through the course. Dr. Bota’s team adjusts the plan if progress stalls, and when the course ends you have a clear follow-up plan, whether that is medication management, psychotherapy or a maintenance schedule.
You remain awake and alert for the whole session. Most patients describe a tapping sensation on the scalp and hear a clicking sound; earplugs are provided. There is no sedation and no recovery period.
Standard sessions last about 20 to 40 minutes depending on the protocol. Theta-burst protocols are shorter. The practice’s TMS technician guides you through every session so the routine becomes familiar within the first week.
Because sessions run daily, many West Los Angeles patients schedule them before work or during lunch. If your clinician schedules sessions in Costa Mesa, the office will help you plan around the drive.
A standard TMS course at BrainHealth Solutions follows the FDA-cleared schedule. Expect:
TMS has no systemic drug effects, so it does not cause the weight gain, sexual side effects or sedation associated with many antidepressants. Side effects that do occur are local and usually fade within the first week.
Common and mild
Hearing protection is used in every session because of the clicking sound of the coil.
Rare
Your clinician reviews your full medical history before clearing you for treatment and monitors you throughout the course.
Published studies of standard TMS for treatment-resistant depression report that roughly half to two-thirds of patients respond and about a third reach remission, with higher figures in naturalistic clinic data. Dr. Bota's practice tracks symptom scales through the course rather than relying on impressions.
Realistic expectations are part of good care. TMS is not typically a cure; it is a treatment that can lift a depressive episode and is sometimes followed by maintenance sessions, medication adjustments or psychotherapy to hold the gains.
TMS may be a strong option for Westwood and West Los Angeles adults who:
TMS is generally not appropriate for people with certain metal implants in or near the head, a history of seizures, or some neurological conditions. These are reviewed at your evaluation.
Alternatives we offer when TMS is not the fit
Patients who have cycled through medications often choose TMS because it works on a different mechanism and leaves daily life intact. One patient wrote that “the TMS protocol was highly effective for my family’s needs,” and a mother described her son as “doing much better now” after his course.
No anesthesia, no systemic medication, no recovery time. You leave each session and resume your day.
Most major insurers and Medicare cover TMS for depression once two medication trials have failed. The BrainHealth team verifies benefits before you start.
Motor-threshold mapping and target location are individual, not a preset. Dr. Bota’s research background in neuromodulation shapes the protocol choice.
TMS can continue while you stay on medication or in therapy. Many patients taper medication later, under supervision.
The same practice offers SAINT®, the accelerated protocol, and Spravato®, so a non-response does not mean starting over somewhere else.
Dr. Bota founded UC Irvine’s first TMS program and has helped bring TMS into mainstream psychiatric care.
Treatment-resistant depression usually means two or more adequate antidepressant trials without adequate relief. It is the population TMS was studied in and the population most insurers cover. If daily sessions over six weeks are not practical, ask about SAINT®, which delivers ten sessions a day over five consecutive days at the Costa Mesa clinic, with the initial evaluation available in Westwood.
Across Los Angeles, self-pay TMS is commonly quoted in the range of $300 to $500 per session, which puts a full standard course between roughly $9,000 and $15,000 before insurance (market ranges compiled from published Los Angeles clinic price lists and TMS directories, 2026; these are not BrainHealth Solutions’ prices). With insurance approval, patient responsibility is usually limited to copays or coinsurance per session. Because your plan’s TMS criteria, deductible and authorization process determine the real number, we quote only after reviewing your benefits.
Insurance and financing
BrainHealth Solutions accepts insurance and self-pay. Many major plans are accepted, including Medicare and Anthem, and CareCredit financing spreads self-pay costs over monthly payments. Submit your plan through the insurance-check form on our site, or ask on your 15-minute screening call, and our team confirms what your plan covers before you commit to anything.
Dr. Robert Bota, MD, MSG, DFAPA is a board-certified psychiatrist and Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He trained in TMS at Harvard University and the University of South Carolina, founded and directed the first TMS program at UC Irvine, and has authored more than 60 peer-reviewed publications.
Dr. Bota has been principal investigator on more than 20 clinical trials in depression, schizophrenia, PTSD and Alzheimer’s disease, and the practice participates in brain-imaging research with Kernel neurotechnology. Treatment plans are informed by that research and reviewed as your symptoms change.
Care at BrainHealth Solutions is delivered by a team that includes psychiatrists Dr. Tina Allee and Dr. Mahtab K. Yousefi (child and adolescent care in English and Farsi), Spravato® specialist Dr. Dragos Serseni, TMS technician Anna Venezio and office manager Peter Bota.
Many plans are accepted, including Medicare and Anthem, and CareCredit financing is available for self-pay. One parent wrote that the team “even helped get insurance coverage when others said it wasn’t possible.” Use the insurance check on our site or ask on your screening call.
Published Los Angeles self-pay rates generally run $300 to $500 per session. With insurance, most patients pay a per-visit copay or coinsurance. BrainHealth Solutions verifies your benefits and gives you a personal estimate before the first session.
Non-removable metal in or near the head (cochlear implants, aneurysm clips, some stents), a history of seizures or epilepsy, and certain neurological conditions are the main exclusions. Dental fillings and braces are fine. Your evaluation covers all of this.
The main trade-offs are time, since a standard course requires daily visits for about six weeks, and the fact that not everyone responds. Side effects are usually limited to scalp discomfort and early headaches. SAINT® addresses the time problem for eligible patients.
Medicare and most commercial plans, including Anthem, cover TMS for major depression after two or more failed antidepressant trials. Many plans are accepted at BrainHealth Solutions, and the team handles the authorization.
Your evaluation is at the Westwood office at 1762 Westwood Blvd, Suite 320. Your clinician confirms where daily sessions are scheduled; the Costa Mesa clinic at 3151 Airway Ave is the practice’s main treatment center and the only site for SAINT®.
Standard TMS is one session a day for about six weeks. SAINT® is an fMRI-guided accelerated protocol with ten sessions a day over five consecutive days. Both are offered by BrainHealth Solutions; the screening call helps determine which fits.
Yes. TMS involves no sedation, so you can drive yourself to and from every session and return to work immediately afterward.
Schedule a 15-minute screening call with BrainHealth Solutions and find out whether TMS, SAINT® or Spravato® is the right next step for you.
Westwood office: 1762 Westwood Blvd, Suite 320, Los Angeles, CA 90024 · (949) 670-9177. Costa Mesa clinic: 3151 Airway Ave, Bldg R, Costa Mesa, CA 92626. Same-day appointments may be available. The screening call asks only for your name, contact information and a callback time; there are no long intake forms before you speak with us.
