Electroconvulsive Therapy

Has anyone had treatment? If so, what's your feelings about it?

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

I think this is one for the forum members to respond too. ECT is recommended primarily for intractable and prolonged depression that responds to no other treatment. You should try psychotherapy and medications before you consider this treatment.

[dgull]

Your present is judged by your past and if you are depressed then you filter experience thru that filter and expect similar bad results. When you wake up in the morning it takes you a few seconds to recognize oh, It's me. ECT is just killing some short term memory and stopping some past comparison of present stimuli thereby making you face it in novel terms so it doesnt create near the going down spin that the depression had and gives you a fresh start. I had the same thing happen when I felt I might die on the toxic effects of prozac on my system.. It made a chasm between the past and the present. I would use meditation and relaxation to create the break not a short term memory zap.

[CCB]

Its not quite understood how ECT works and why it works but you may have trouble finding someone who will do it, generally it is not used unless the depression is very severe and doesnt respond to other treatments.  You may already know this: that ECT involves inducing a seizure.  The patient is given a muscle relaxant and an anesthetic to keep them from from hurting themselves durring the seizure.  Patients will usually experience some post ictal (after-seizure) confusion or memmory loss as a side effect.  ECT may work by reducing blood flow to the brain/metabolic activity, but again, thats not fully understood. Hope this helps.

[afxyldy]

Thanks so much for response. Greatly appreciated. Very helpful information.