I have had Major Depression now for 6 years and it continues to worsen each year. I do not respond to anti-depressants or therapy. I am severely functionally disabled and feel like Electroconvulsive Therapy is my last resort now. It is sad that it has finally come to this. Have any of you had this or known anyone to undergo this procedure?

my teacher did. she didn't recommend it. however, this was in the '50s and it was prescribed because she wouldn't kowtow to her husband

that talked about it, and just one segment of the series followed a terribly depressed girl who did it. I think the show was called "This Emotional Life", and it was a series that might have lasted 6 hours. I do remember that she didn't respond right away and it was a difficult treatment. But I think after a few treatments there was some progress. I wish I could remember better.

It's been a long time, but I thought it was a good, and wanted to watch the rest of it some time.

That said, I think your best resources would be doctors qualified in this area and research studies. What works for one patient won't necessarily work for another. A doctor would look at all the factors.

I hope you find something that helps.

My friend did about 2000 and it changed the world for her.

ECT can be very helpful for some people but disastrous for others. It is not without risks and serious side effects. Learn the pros and cons before having it done.

Your depression might be a symptom of another illness. My depression didn't respond well to treatment either. It made sense why when I was diagnosed with CFS.

His evaluation? (and the guy is by nature a wise-cracker:)

After all was said and done, he reported, "Well, yeah, the depression is still there I guess. . .I just don't care about it as much."

That didn't strike me as exactly a ringing endorsement, (and this was a guy whose opinion I felt I could trust), so I decided not to go that way. So my mood disorder and I just limp along - better on some days, not so good on others. But we get by.

worked for me

My mother in law who has serious depression had it done and she said she did not recommend it.

She also had herself committed at an institution for a short time and after staying there said she realized that the people there were much worse off than she was. Which she says helped her.

I know she currently uses medication but not sure what exactly.

If you do decide to do electro therapy please if you can share your experience with it as I think it will help people on here.

I hope you are able to work through this.

My email address is noelliesmommy@yahoo.com I would greatly appreciate an email. Thanks!

This is a serious issue and needs serious consideration. You need to work this out with a psychiatrist (not a psychologist, counselor or other mental health worker).
When it works (usually over several sessions), it's like magic.
But there are problems. Short term memory loss usually resolves. Usually.

In fact, I would talk about it with 2 psychiatrists. Just to make sure there is consensus.

A friend of a friend did this and she had permanent short-term memory loss.

This may sound a bit crazy, have you considered changing your diet? It wasn't until I found that I had Celiac Disease that I learned the most of the serotonin in your body is actually in your digestive tract, not your brain. For me, going gluten free because of the Celiac disease had the great side effect of helping with my depression. My intestines have healed from the damage of the gluten and that has helped me feel better. I am not saying that you have Celiac Disease, but there may be some underlying nutritional issue that is contributing to this.

Unfortunately most conventional doctors are only now beginning to figure out these connections. If you look into it, you might need to consider an integrative medicine doctor or a naturopath. It would be easy to try and see if it helps. If it doesn't you could still schedule shock therapy treatments.

I have Celiac Disease as well. It takes me about two months to get the gluten out of my system. In the meantime, I have no energy and severe depression.

One of my kids can't eat processed sugars-- it makes her manic.

There's definitely a connection between food, hormones, and the brain.

I get zapped for 2 months too. I get over the physical stuff pretty quickly, but the depression, apathy, and loss of attention lasts two months. It sucks.

Try nutritional therapy. Try exercise therapy. Try music therapy. Try movie therapy, laugh therapy, equine therapy, art therapy, meditation.

Try talk therapy, not psychoanalysis. Seek out therapists who are well trained in either CBT or Acceptance & Commitment Therapy.

Your brain isn't broken. Most psychiatrists are not going to be able to give you long term relief because they ignore life events, temperament, trauma, stress, means of support and focus on pills and other invasive 'treatments'.

Your depression is proof you are normal, like the rest of the planet. Suffering is normal, not proof of some imaginary chemical imbalance. The vast majority of the reason psych drugs work is due to the placebo effect, which is far more powerful than most people realize.

You've learned maladaptive coping skills and need to unlearn them and find more effective ways of coping, not the next magical cure.

Once you permanently alter neurotransmitter function via long-term psych drug use or lose neurons to damage from ECT, they're gone for good.

I've struggled with depression off and on very regularly for over 25 years, the first ten years medicated and the last 15 without. I know what it's like to suffer for prolonged periods that seem as if they'll never end. I'm currently coming up on the 3rd anniversary of when the bottom of my life felt like it dropped out due to family issues that went into crisis. It's been a clawing effort to not only let this latest depression just be what it is, but remember that is is a normal part of my existence. In my experience only, the more interest I take in avoiding sadness and negative feelings and chase after happiness at all costs the more extreme the times of misery can be.

My father who's nearing 70 has subscribed to the 'broken brain' story for over 30 years now. He started on a tricyclic in the 1980s after an episode of short term situational depression that made utter and perfect sense given the high degree of reasons for multiple points of stress, worry and sadness that existed in his life. However, he was told he had a chemical imbalance and believed it. He eventually switched to SSRIs, and a number of years ago graduated to a full 'cocktail': antidepressant, anticonvulsive ('mood stabilizer') and an atypical antipsychotic.

He is not the father I once knew, and his level of apathetic affect and brain damage is blindingly obvious to me. But he will never go off the meds - indeed, he really can't now due to withdrawal dangers that are likely permanent. All because he believed the utterly unproven and false notion that depression happens not because we humans often suffer intensely in trying to cope with life and lack consistent, caring support -- but because our brains are broken via chemical imbalances.

I wish you the best in your journey, but most of all I hope you will use extreme caution before utilizing methods that may have irreversible consequences. Peace be with you.

frogdogs Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> Your depression is proof you are normal, like the
> rest of the planet. Suffering is normal, not
> proof of some imaginary chemical imbalance.
>
> You've learned maladaptive coping skills and need
> to unlearn them and find more effective ways of
> coping, not the next magical cure.

> I hope you will use extreme caution before
> utilizing methods that may have irreversible
> consequences.

Depression is not normal. It may be common but it's not normal.

Imaginary chemical imbalance? Are you a neuroscientist?

How do you know what this person's coping skills are much less that they are maladaptive.

I agree. The OP should use extreme caution. You did not use extreme caution in your decision to diagnose and prescribe treatment for the OP.

Thank you for saying this. I unfortunately have long term damage from medications. I know I will never fix the damage and that depresses me even more. I appreciate you speaking up.

I started having panic attacks at the age of two. I was never abused by my parents or anyone else, nothing traumatic whatsoever happened that caused this condition that in a less severe form has followed me into adulthood. This wasn't caused by any external forces. It is something going on in my brain.

And you have completely misunderstood the current theories about depression and how SSRI's work. This is how it works: Normally neurons regulate their sensitivity to incoming signals (just like all cells in the body does), and just as diabetes can be caused by fat-cells missing the mark when regulating their sensitivity to insulin, so neurons in the brain can miss the mark when regulating their sensitivity to neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotenin e.t.c. Or regulation of the production of neurotransmitters and so on (it's way too complicated to name all the regulation going on that can go wrong, read a book if you're interested).

The point is that the depression is not that the pathways for sadness are activated, it's the mismatch between the outgoing and incoming neurotransmittors in certain parts of the brain. If ordinary sadness is that the first neuron isn't talking much, depression is that not only isn't the first neuron talking much, but his neuron friends don't listen when he talks anyway. And SSRIs are sending extra neurotransmittors so that a "normal" amount is recieved. The first neuron get's a megaphone so that his neuron friends are forced to listen. But then ofcourse the neurons will regulate themselves to the new level if they can, which is why they give so many initial side effects or might not work at all (if they manage to downregulate enough to completely compensate for the boost in neurotransmitters). And also why it's nonsense that you can't quit them. You just have to go slow enough that the neurons have enough time to regulate their sensitivity accordingly, or endure a month or two of the withdrawal effect that comes with quitting cold turkey.

I, too, would like to give some input but am not sure what is allowed on this board. Do you have an email address (even a throw away) where you can be reached?

Try omega 3 fatty acids. Check your diet.

I second what frogdog says plus hypnosis might help. Electoconvulsive Therapy can help as a last resort and that can only be determined by a doctor. Do not take it lightly. I have seen two of these and I have never forgotten it. The person stated they felt no pain and was sedated. I have a friend that went through it and she is glad she did it. You will still need to understand the depression is not cured and you may have to repeat it a few times. But even then, you may be better, but it can always come back.

My email address is noelliesmommy@yahoo.com I would greatly appreciate an email. Thanks!

A dear friend of mine has had two series of these treatments, about five years apart. I find it completely scary and amazing that it can help - but it does, with serious memory problems after.

She is not the person she once was. Not at all - but she is better. Not normal, but better than she was at her worst/sickest...and now she is experimenting with drinking alcohol (sure to be a bad idea).

I'd try every other thing possible first: gluten free, nutrition and diet changes, anything and everything.

I wish you well.

My daughter was a tech at UNI (University of Utah Neuro Psych Institute) for a year and did worked in this area. It works well for some, but not for others. AND should be a last resort. Good luck.

I remember reading about the nightmarish ECT treatments of the 1950s and 60. That is an old, discontinued technology, superseded by TMS.

Link to some TMS information.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/transcranial-magnetic-stimulation/basics/what-you-can-expect/prc-20020555

As many others have suggested, what you are, or aren't getting in your diet can make a tremendous difference. I have had serious depression for 15 years, both situational and for nonapparent reasons. I've been in and out of suicidal ideation regularly. Hospitalized numerous times. It sucks, I hear you. A few months ago I came across a website that pointed me in the direction of a book, "Depression free, naturally" by Joan Mathews Larson. I know it sounds hokey, but please believe me when I say that this book is changing my life. Our bodies are a few centuries behind all the processed food we eat, and very little of what we do eat is giving us what we need. Depression that isn't situational can almost always be associated to a food sensitivity or food deficiency. I have drastically cut back on processed sugar, added in several supplemental vitamins/amino acids and healthy omega 3 fats, and focusing on better overall nutrition. I am amazed at how much better I am functioning and feeling! I am looking for a naturopath to help me continue to fine tune my exact needs, and I am convinced that I will be able to get off my SSRI and other mood drugs with time and supervision.
I agree with much of what frogdogs suggested, but I will disagree on one point. I don't think anyone needs to suffer needlessly. When your depression can't be traced to any life circumstances or events, when it is just "there" like a black cloud sucking you dry, that's the stuff where nutritional therapy is going to make a huge difference . Everyone experiences pain and depression at some point, it's a part of life and we shouldn't try to medicate it away if is associated with real life circumstances. Those are the situations where a good talk therapist will be most helpful. But a depression that has no real source is not going to benefit much from talk therapy, and as I am learning medicating this type of depression only at best hides the underlying problems and can create other problems.
At some of my worse times, I considered ECT, but I couldn't bear the thought of losing portions of my memory or not being "me" anymore. And it sounds like it's really a crap shoot on whether it will help or hurt the patient. Please consider the alternative suggestions, and again, I highly recommend the book above.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2014 10:20PM by torn.

I had it 16 times over a one month period 12 years ago.I think it helped at the time as I was stuck in a very bad place, and made some major changes afterwards. The procedure was painless, and left no lingering aftereffects. They put me under with pentathol and I was out and about in the afternoon after the procedure. Happy to say I have not had it since and have been RX drug free for almost four years.

Thanks all for sharing your stories and information. I've learned a lot about my sister's depression and her treatment through this. You guys are awesome!

My experience says no. My ex, after 20 plus years of therapy and trying every drug and combo thereof, went through the ECT sessions. Basically changed her from a depressed woman to a an idiotic, depressed woman with no memory. This was about 2008. She Was hard to live with before and impossible afterwards.
What ever you decide, I've heard of some having good results, best of luck!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/26/2014 08:37AM by hermanuno.

ECT can be very effective when nothing else works. I have seen it help when all conventional antidepressants have failed. Having said that, there are many drawbacks to ECT which I am sure you are aware of.

Another option that does not get discussed much and is experimental is Ketamine. This is a drug commonly used as an anesthetic. It is also abused as a street drug. There have been some studies that have found it to be very effective in a single dose when used to treat severe refractory depression. Do some online research and ask your psychiatrist about it before you get zapped. Just google ketamine and depression.