Good morning Lexi,

It sounds like you've been down the road with several meds and none have been effective-- is this right? What others meds have you tried? Also, can you tell us a little about what you're struggling with so we can get a better handle on what you're facing.

Others are right tho, there are several meds available, plus any number of excellent cocktails (combination of meds) that may still be available. ECT is usually a last resort and is used for what is termed "refractory Depression," Depression with psychotic features, Depression with unremitting suicidality, or if the person is pregnant and can't take meds. It remains highly controversial even though it was first used in the 1930's, much of it due to the side effects and b/c we still don't understand how and why it works. This is, of course, a discussion you should have with your PDoc should it come to that. My best advice is to become well versed on it by reading about it, just Google it and up will pop hundreds of sites. This will better prepare you to have an informed and knowledge based conversation with your MD. My sense is that you may be jumping too far ahead and worrying before you need to.

I was wondering if you have also been in treatment, specifically cognitive behavioral or dialectical behavioral therapy, both of which are extremely effective alone, but with meds, can be much more effective over the long run.

Good luck Lexi and I hope this helps,
Baaku