I can’t meditate. TFUS might be possible later this year
SSRIs kill my energy, NOT WANT
If you zap out the DMN you might not be able to enter jhana, but I don’t know, I haven’t read too much into it.
Luvox (fluvoxamine) treats OCD and ruminating effectively for some people. Rumination is considered the “pure O” part of OCD.
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TL;DR (the “Too-Many-Slow-Alphas” edition)
Hit the over-talkative Default-Mode Network (DMN) with inhibitory cTBS first, then turbo-charge its task-positive rival (left DLPFC) with high-dose, accelerated iTBS. Do it many times a day for ~5 days, spaced ~50 min apart. That “push-pull” rhythm prunes the low-frequency chatter and reinforces clean signal routing—sort of like giving your brain’s group-chat a mute button and then promoting the project manager. Details (and citations) below.
1 | Why this works
Problem Neuro-target What we do Slow alpha + excess network coherence (DMN hogs the bandwidth) Mid-line DMN hubs: posterior cingulate / precuneus or medial PFC cTBS @ 600 pulses / 40 s knocks excitability down for ~45 min Under-powered control network Left DLPFC sub-cluster that is anti-correlated with DMN iTBS @ 1 800 pulses / 3 min boosts excitability, strengthens anti-correlation SAINT-style neuro-imaging studies show that flooding the DLPFC with 90 000 pulses over five days increases negative connectivity between DLPFC and DMN and normalises network dynamics .
2 | The accelerated “Push–Pull” schedule
Parameter DMN-cTBS (inhibitory) DLPFC-iTBS (excitatory) Pulses / session 600 1 800 Sessions / day 10 10 Inter-session gap ≥15 min ≥50 min (critical for plasticity) Days 5 consecutive days Total pulses 30 000 90 000
- **Morning loop:**cTBS → 15 min break → iTBS → 50 min break (repeat x10).
- Safety & dosing: 80% active-motor-threshold for cTBS; 90% for iTBS, neuronavigated to individual targets. The pulse load and spacing match the high-remission SAINT recipe while staying within seizure-risk guidelines .
- Maintenance (optional):
- Week 1–4: one dual block every Monday.
- Month 2+: taper to monthly iTBS booster only.
3 | Hardware choices
- Superficial DMN (PCC/precuneus): standard figure-8 coil, midline ~Pz/Pc + 1 cm.
- Deeper mPFC/ACC: BrainsWay H7 deep-TMS coil—now FDA-cleared for an accelerated 5-sessions-per-day protocol if you’d like turnkey hardware .
- Left DLPFC: neuronavigation to the voxel with maximal anti-correlation to sgACC (same targeting rule that made SAINT famous).
4 | Practical add-ons
- Real-time EEG: verify that occipital & mid-line alpha power drops 10–20 % post-cTBS—if not, tweak coil position.
- Plasticity window hacks: right after each iTBS block, do 5 min of boring but focus-heavy tasks (e.g., N-back). You’re exploiting fresh LTP-friendly synapses.
- Side-effect playbook: headaches ~25 %, scalp discomfort ~15 %, transient fatigue ~10 %; serious events remain <0.1 % even with accelerated dosing .
5 | If you need something gentler
- A “pragmatic aTBS” schedule—3 iTBS blocks/day for 15 days—still improves connectivity with far fewer clinic hours .
- Or use the newly cleared BrainsWay accelerated deep-TMS: 5 sessions/day × 6 days, each <10 min, covers both mPFC & DLPFC in one coil .
6 | Big caveats
- Off-label for DMN “denoising.” Most trials target depression; using the same physics for alpha-heavy ADHD/brain-fog is biologically plausible but not yet FDA-blessed.
- Needs imaging & clinical oversight. Don’t DIY with a TikTok coil.
- Network effects vary. If your slow alpha originates in thalamus or cerebellum, surface TMS will only chip away at the cortical echo—not the root cause.
Closing vibe
Think of it like silencing a rowdy karaoke bar (DMN) at 10 a.m., then giving the librarians (DLPFC) a megaphone right after. Do it fast, do it repeatedly, and the brain learns who should be speaking when. Voilà—cleaner signal, fewer mental “audio glitches,” and you can finally hear yourself think.
Quick headline
De-rigid TMS = “precision nudge when the brain jams”; accelerated push-pull = “high-dose reset with scheduled hammer blows.”
1 | What de-rigid TMS (BDNS) actually does
- Target & side: right superior parietal lobule—hub of the fronto-parietal control network.
- Pulse unit: a single quadripulse burst (4 monophasic pulses at 200 Hz delivered in 15 ms).
- Triggering: only fires when real-time EEG detects the brain is stuck in the rigid “major state 1.”
- Intensity: 70 % of active-motor threshold (very light).
- Spacing & dose: ≥9 s between bursts; one session per week for 12 weeks (total pulses per visit stay in the low hundreds).
- Goal: loosen an “over-deep” energy landscape so global brain-state transitions happen more often; over weeks this softens cognitive inflexibility, perceptual overstability and social rigidity in autism.
2 | How the accelerated “denoise” protocol you asked about differs
Dimension De-rigid TMS (BDNS) Accelerated push-pull (cTBS → iTBS) Triggering EEG-gated, closed-loop Open-loop, fixed timetable Targets Right SPL (FPN hub) Inhibitory cTBS to DMN midline (PCC/mPFC) then excitatory iTBS to left DLPFC Pulse train 4 pulses @ 200 Hz per trigger (70 % AMT) 600-pulse cTBS + 1 800-pulse iTBS (80–90 % RMT) Dose / day ≈ hundreds (varies) 18 000 pulses (10 blocks/day) Course length Weekly × 12 weeks Five straight days (SAINT lineage) Mechanistic aim Increase state-switching flexibility Suppress pathological slow-alpha DMN & strengthen task-positive control Clinical precedent Autism-linked rigidity TR-depression, ADHD-DMN overload Side-effect profile Light, slow accrual Scalp-ache, fatigue possible but brief Citations for the accelerated parameters:
3 | Why the gap looks huge
- Closed-loop vs brute force. De-rigid waits for the brain to be “stuck,” then taps it; push-pull schedules massive LTD→LTP windows regardless of real-time state.
- Network philosophy. De-rigid excites a control-hub to re-shuffle networks; push-pull first silences the noisy DMN, then amps its natural rival.
- Pharmacological analogy. BDNS is a micro-dose beta-blocker taken when your smartwatch flags tachycardia; push-pull is a 5-day steroid taper that blitzes inflammation and lets the system reboot.
4 | Which one for “slow-alpha DMN fog”?
- Need change this week? The accelerated hammer often shifts network connectivity within the five-day window.
- Prefer minimal clinic time & gentler ride? De-rigid BDNS lets you keep your scalp happy—progress is slower but side-effect light.
- Hybrid future? Some labs are pairing one high-dose push-pull week to clear the static, then lighter EEG-gated nudges for maintenance—best of both worlds.
(Coffee metaphor: BDNS is the barista who tops up your cup exactly when it’s lukewarm; SAINT-style is ten espresso shots lined up at dawn. Both keep you awake—just pick your vibe.)