Our Treatment Process

At any time during the treatment process, you have the option to speak with one of our Patient Ambassadors. A Patient Ambassador is one of our current patients who has already had the Reed Procedure® and is now enjoying their life with their headaches finally relieved. Our Patient Ambassadors have volunteered their time to share their stories and insight with anyone considering this procedure. Our patients are the ideal people for you to talk to because they can genuinely relate to your suffering and speak from personal experience about how this procedure changed their lives. 

Click here to learn more about our Patient Ambassadors and find their contact information.

Please note that while we encourage all of our patients to complete this step, it is not mandatory.

After you watch the webinar, one of our patient coordinators will contact you to answer any additional questions you may have about the treatment. They will also ask if you would like to schedule a complimentary, obligation-free consult with Dr. Reed, the inventor of the Reed Procedure®. The consult takes approximately one hour and is typically held over the phone, allowing you to have your consult while in the comfort of your home. Alternatively, if you live local to our Dallas, Texas main office, you can elect to have an in-office consult with Dr. Reed.

To schedule the consult, we first need to verify your insurance. Insurance verification allows us to confirm that your benefits cover this procedure. We can usually complete this process within one business day of receiving your insurance information. Once we verify your insurance, we will schedule you for the consult. 

During the consult, Dr. Reed will describe the Reed Procedure® in great detail. Then, he will take all the time necessary to answer your questions and address any concerns. Finally, Dr. Reed will carefully examine your medical history to determine if you meet the criteria for the procedure. 

In general, we consider you to be an ideal candidate for this procedure if you have the following medical history:

1. You have 10 or more headache days per month.
2. You have tried other headaches treatments (i.e., medications, etc.) for at least 6 months.

Again, there is no charge for the consult and no obligation to move forward with the treatment. We simply feel that it is important for our patients to have all of the information about the procedure made available to them. 

Click here to request a free consult with Dr. Reed.

If you qualify for the procedure and decide to move forward with the trial, the next step would be to seek pre-certification from your insurance company. Pre-certification is a standard, routine process whereby your carrier will provide written confirmation that your insurance will cover the procedure. Your carrier may also refer to this process as pre-authorization or pre-determination. 

Our team will help to ensure you receive the maximum benefits available in a timely fashion by working directly with your insurance carrier on your behalf. 

Click here to learn more about our insurance verification process.

The trial procedure is a short (commonly 20 minute), minimally invasive outpatient procedure during which we place a temporary stimulator. The trial is virtually painless and requires no surgical incisions. Once you are in the recovery room, a stimulator specialist will turn on and program the system to your specific needs. At that point, you will begin to feel a mild, pleasant sensation over the front and back of your head. You will then go home wearing the temporary stimulator for three to seven days to see if it helps control your pain.

Based on extensive experience (over 30 years) and research (over 100 published medical papers), we know that an implanted stimulator dramatically relieves severe head pain for most patients. But the beauty of the trial stimulator is that it allows you to see if the stimulator works for you. Typically, the effects of the stimulator are dramatic, and you will know whether it works right away with a high degree of certainty. Thus, the trial provides you with the information you need to decide whether you would like to have the permanent stimulator implanted.

After the trial period, you will return to the office to have the temporary unit removed and tell us if it worked for you. If the trial stimulator works, which is the case for over 80% of our patients, we will immediately begin the process of scheduling you for the permanent procedure. 

Click here for a detailed description of the trial procedure.

Click here for a detailed description of the permanent procedure.

Recovery from the trial and permanent procedures varies from patient to patient, but we typically observe the following:

Trial procedure: Most of our patients return to their everyday activities (work, school, etc.) within a few days to one week of the trial procedure.

Permanent procedure: Most of our patients return to their daily, light activities within one to two weeks of the permanent procedure. However, full recovery takes, on average, 4-6 weeks. During this time, we recommend you avoid any physically-demanding activity. 

After the permanent procedure, we will follow up with you periodically and monitor your results. But, we are available to assist with your questions at any time. In general, though, the permanent stimulator units are simple to use and maintain. The battery lasts for up to ten years, and replacing the battery can be done in a simple 15-minute outpatient procedure.

Our patients come from all across North America, so many of our patients have to travel for the trial procedure and/or permanent procedure. While the trial procedure may be performed at any of our locations, the permanent procedure must be performed in Dallas, TX. 

We typically schedule our patients for the permanent procedure three weeks after a successful trial. If you have to travel, we recommend that you reserve accommodations for a 4-night stay near one of our facilities for each procedure. Our staff would be happy to help you coordinate the travel arrangements if you need assistance.

Click here to view information about our locations.