[Kazooie47]

I have read alot of negative reports from people online saying how ECt really hurt them and damaged them, making them feel worse. What do pychiatrists say to this? Have their been talks between these people and pychiatrists? This seems like a very serious issue and I want to know if communication has been established

[Altered Moment]

I don't know about communication but from what I understand it is very effective but usually only used as a last resort for someone like me who is very treatment resistant. No doc has ever suggested it to me though. Seems to be much more common in the UK. Worst adverse effect is memory loss. It is much more refined today then the horror stories you here from the sixties.

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I hear different things from different people. For some it seems to be a lifesaver, for others it seems to just make matters worse. I'm not aware of any ongoing communication between psychiatrists & the mental health community as a whole. One might check out some of the professional mental health websites to see if there appears to be anything there. While I was in the hospital, following my 1st suicide attempt, the pdoc there tried to get me to have it. I declined & still never have, although I've thought about it a few times when the going got tough. The pdoc I see now has never mentioned it.

I have had a few psychiatrists talk to me about ECT for my unremitting depression. When I was inpatient and considering it, they played an informational video about it for me too. None of the doctors, nor the video, explained anything about the potential very worrisome (to me) side effect of not just short term memory loss, but long-term memory loss also.

[Kazooie47]

Yes I just hope they are cognizant of the people who it is not helping and if they follow up with them. Seems odd that this has been going on for so long and they don't follow up or acknowledge some of these claims.

I have no idea what kind of "dialogue" is going on between patients and doctors about ECT in general, research-wise. I know my own pdoc has always been very upfront with me about ECT, including negative side effect possibilities. He and I had detailed conversations about those issues and he worked diligently to put protocols in place to be as pro-active about combatting those possible negative problems as possible (it worked for me by the way).

[jjm51]

just like all things psychiatric, my opinion is i think it depends...

1. where are you looking to have these 'discussions' with pdocs? if you are looking online you will find a wide variety of opinions. most with some sort of agenda. breggin, etc.

2. if you have developed a strong and trusting relationship with a pdoc in the real world i think you will get a more balanced view of the potential positives and negatives.

3. if you are in-patient, in agony and 'willing to give your left testicle' as my old high school football coach used to say about certain things (in this case to make 'it' stop) i bet you could be talked into it pretty easily. i was.

i am neutral to slightly negative on ect. i had right unilateral at ucla. i was in very bad shape and did not know what was happening to me. i was very scared. but, i was also only into my depression just a few months at that point. i really lost it on the first one. i was crying like a baby. by the the 3rd or 4th i was much calmer. the doc and the staff really treated me kindly. kindly and shocking the brain doesn't seem to fit, does it? lol

they did work. it was absolutely amazing. i was like 'wtf am i thinking about trying to kill myself! get a grip.' the feeling was a bit strange in a way, but complete absence of depression for a few days after each treatment.

but, it didn't last. shock doc wanted to do more, but by #12 i said no more.

i am glad that i had the more 'mild' form of ect, if you could even say that. also, ucla is a top-notch psych hospital. still, i cannot believe i had it done and i do have dreams about it sometimes. argh. i try not to blame the docs. i was telling everyone my life was over and researching how to end it. but! i think now it may have been used to early.

i would stay way from the internet for info. you'll get extreme points of view. again, find some doctors (multiple?) to get some opinions. and, make sure you are going to a very up-to-date facility. these are usually universities or teaching hospitals here in the usa.

i really do my best to look at it as another failed drug trial. might sound crazy, but i had less side-effects from my ect than many of the meds i have tried. now, isn't that nuts?

by the way, i had ect where kitty dukakis, carrie fisher, **** cavett, and many more well-known people had it. some do it continuously. in some way it made me feel less of a freak. look-up the people who have had it done. you'll be surprised. james taylor's 'fire and rain' (the title) some say is about his ect treatments. (fire = shock/rain = ice cold showers/baths they gave after the shock in the 60's.)

feel free to pm me if you want more of my experience.

take good care.

john

[shabur]

I had 12 sessions of ECT while I was inpatient because my depression wasn't responding to treatment. I was in such sad shape I didn't even think to question it when my pdoc suggested it. I have to say "I HATED IT", but it worked. What I hated was:

1. having to wake early because it was done in the hospital's recovery room and they needed to be out by 7am;
2. the anxiety as I waited for it, and;
3. the fatigue and nausea I had after. You're put under anesthesia for each treatment and that's what caused this side effect.

I did have short term memory problems for about 6 months, but my pdoc told me I would.
You can have additional treatments on an as needed basis.

Talk to your pdoc about it. I agree that you shouldn't just consider what people are saying. We don't know what percent of patients with what experiences are responding.

[Nobodyandnothing]

I was one of the supposed minority with severe short and long term memory loss. No recollection of.....
college
grad school
the birth and childhood of my children
several long term jobs
the deaths of both my parents

All these memories and more are gone, and my short term memory and ability to concentrate are gone too.

And my pdoc recently asked me to consider more ect..

[artemis1978]

I had two very prolonged sessions of ect and I think it helped keep me from stepping over the edge. My pdoc was very supportive of ect in my case.