Shock treatment. When I mention to other consumers that I go for shock treatments, also known as electro-convulsive therapy (ECT), the reaction I get is usually negative. They say things like, "Oh you’re going to fry your brain," or "You’re very brave, I would never do that," or "Don’t you worry about memory loss?" Others almost offer condolences with statements like, "Oh how terrible for you." They also recount how other patients looked and felt after ECT when they were in-patients. These responses put me on the defensive. They are not welcome and very hurtful. We need to support each other in whatever treatments work for us. ECT has made a tremendous difference in my life. It lifted me out of severe chronic depression. It worked when nothing else did.
The past two years have been very difficult for me. I was hospitalized five times. I was experiencing crippling bouts of depression. It seemed as if there was a black cloud over my head that I could not get out from under. The dosage of my medication would be increased and the depression would lift somewhat for a few weeks. However, even on the maximum dose of an antidepressant, the depression would come back worse than before. I would start to hear voices and have suicidal thoughts. A stay at the hospital would soon follow.
In the hospital, the medications were changed and again the depression would lift for a few weeks. This past December when I was admitted to the hospital, the staff got very angry at me. They made me feel that it was my own fault that I was so depressed and suicidal. I explained to them that I took my medication exactly as prescribed and was involved with New York City Voices, and the Picnic for Parity Planning Committee. In addition, I was going to the gym three days a week and getting together with friends when I felt up to it. The staff felt that these activities were not enough and upon discharge I was placed in a six week partial day hospital program. I attended the program and the doctors adjusted my medication further still. I felt a little less depressed. After partial day hospital I attended Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation Treatment (IPRT). My goal in IPRT was to go back to work, but after a few months I became so depressed that I quit.
In May, I hit rock bottom. The black cloud that is depression took over my life. I started sleeping 12 to 14 hours a day, stopped eating and withdrew from my friends and activities. One day while riding the subway, a voice told me that the world was going to come to an end soon. The voice further explained that since I was a major loser and had no future I should just go home and kill myself. The suicidal thoughts and ideas intensified and my therapist thought I needed to go to the hospital. I did not really want to go back to the hospital, but I knew that I was a danger to myself so I agreed.
This time at the hospital, the staff’s reaction to me was a little different. They realized the medications were not working and a new approach was needed. ECT was suggested and I agreed to it. I had had ECT in December 1995 and it worked. I was depression free for a year. The staff knew this and also recommended that I continue ECT as an outpatient. Despite the stigma surrounding ECT, I was not afraid. Since it had worked before, I hoped and prayed it would work again. I knew that after each treatment I would probably feel a little out of it because of the anesthesia and have a slight headache. That is exactly what happened, so after each treatment I would take Advil and sleep for a few hours. After the third treatment I started to feel a lot better. I had two more treatments and was discharged. After that I started going once a week for ECT as an outpatient. The black cloud of depression had finally lifted.
I went weekly for ECT for six weeks. Now, I go every other week and soon will go only once a month. The only side effects I experience are grogginess and minimal memory loss. The memory loss is only of the hours preceding the treatment. Contrary to popular belief, ECT is not frying my brain or turning me into a zombie. It has turned me into a happy, high functioning person. I am now very involved with New York City Voices as managing editor. I have an active social life and I swim every day. I believe that ECT along with the support of my family and friends is responsible for this.
There is a lot of fear and stigma surrounding ECT that I believe is unwarranted. Granted, in the past before anesthesia and muscle relaxants were used there were a lot of horror stories. But things have changed. The whole procedure is very humane and only takes a few minutes. The ECT procedure is as follows: The patient is given general anesthesia and a muscle relaxant, electrodes are placed on the patient’s forehead and a wave of electricity is transmitted through the patient’s head, causing a seizure.
In an effort to de-stigmatize ECT, I am participating in an educational video the nursing staff at Long Island Jewish-Hillside Hospital is making. In the video, I am not only interviewed about my experience with ECT, but am also filmed having an ECT treatment. The video will be shown to people who are considering ECT. I have become an advocate of ECT because it has worked so well for me. It has lifted my depression and has also been proven to increase the effectiveness of antidepressants. I have been symptom free for over five months. This is a recent record. Other people I have spoken to in the ECT unit waiting room report similar results. Now, I explain to other mental health consumers and non-consumers as well that ECT is not some form of torture. It is humane and very effective.
Thanks to ECT, I have my life back.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Conquering Depression
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Saturday, September 24, 2011
Conquering Depression
Shock treatment. When I mention to other consumers that I go for shock treatments, also known as electro-convulsive therapy (ECT), the reaction I get is usually negative. They say things like, "Oh you’re going to fry your brain," or "You’re very brave, I would never do that," or "Don’t you worry about memory loss?" Others almost offer condolences with statements like, "Oh how terrible for you." They also recount how other patients looked and felt after ECT when they were in-patients. These responses put me on the defensive. They are not welcome and very hurtful. We need to support each other in whatever treatments work for us. ECT has made a tremendous difference in my life. It lifted me out of severe chronic depression. It worked when nothing else did.
The past two years have been very difficult for me. I was hospitalized five times. I was experiencing crippling bouts of depression. It seemed as if there was a black cloud over my head that I could not get out from under. The dosage of my medication would be increased and the depression would lift somewhat for a few weeks. However, even on the maximum dose of an antidepressant, the depression would come back worse than before. I would start to hear voices and have suicidal thoughts. A stay at the hospital would soon follow.
In the hospital, the medications were changed and again the depression would lift for a few weeks. This past December when I was admitted to the hospital, the staff got very angry at me. They made me feel that it was my own fault that I was so depressed and suicidal. I explained to them that I took my medication exactly as prescribed and was involved with New York City Voices, and the Picnic for Parity Planning Committee. In addition, I was going to the gym three days a week and getting together with friends when I felt up to it. The staff felt that these activities were not enough and upon discharge I was placed in a six week partial day hospital program. I attended the program and the doctors adjusted my medication further still. I felt a little less depressed. After partial day hospital I attended Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation Treatment (IPRT). My goal in IPRT was to go back to work, but after a few months I became so depressed that I quit.
In May, I hit rock bottom. The black cloud that is depression took over my life. I started sleeping 12 to 14 hours a day, stopped eating and withdrew from my friends and activities. One day while riding the subway, a voice told me that the world was going to come to an end soon. The voice further explained that since I was a major loser and had no future I should just go home and kill myself. The suicidal thoughts and ideas intensified and my therapist thought I needed to go to the hospital. I did not really want to go back to the hospital, but I knew that I was a danger to myself so I agreed.
This time at the hospital, the staff’s reaction to me was a little different. They realized the medications were not working and a new approach was needed. ECT was suggested and I agreed to it. I had had ECT in December 1995 and it worked. I was depression free for a year. The staff knew this and also recommended that I continue ECT as an outpatient. Despite the stigma surrounding ECT, I was not afraid. Since it had worked before, I hoped and prayed it would work again. I knew that after each treatment I would probably feel a little out of it because of the anesthesia and have a slight headache. That is exactly what happened, so after each treatment I would take Advil and sleep for a few hours. After the third treatment I started to feel a lot better. I had two more treatments and was discharged. After that I started going once a week for ECT as an outpatient. The black cloud of depression had finally lifted.
I went weekly for ECT for six weeks. Now, I go every other week and soon will go only once a month. The only side effects I experience are grogginess and minimal memory loss. The memory loss is only of the hours preceding the treatment. Contrary to popular belief, ECT is not frying my brain or turning me into a zombie. It has turned me into a happy, high functioning person. I am now very involved with New York City Voices as managing editor. I have an active social life and I swim every day. I believe that ECT along with the support of my family and friends is responsible for this.
There is a lot of fear and stigma surrounding ECT that I believe is unwarranted. Granted, in the past before anesthesia and muscle relaxants were used there were a lot of horror stories. But things have changed. The whole procedure is very humane and only takes a few minutes. The ECT procedure is as follows: The patient is given general anesthesia and a muscle relaxant, electrodes are placed on the patient’s forehead and a wave of electricity is transmitted through the patient’s head, causing a seizure.
In an effort to de-stigmatize ECT, I am participating in an educational video the nursing staff at Long Island Jewish-Hillside Hospital is making. In the video, I am not only interviewed about my experience with ECT, but am also filmed having an ECT treatment. The video will be shown to people who are considering ECT. I have become an advocate of ECT because it has worked so well for me. It has lifted my depression and has also been proven to increase the effectiveness of antidepressants. I have been symptom free for over five months. This is a recent record. Other people I have spoken to in the ECT unit waiting room report similar results. Now, I explain to other mental health consumers and non-consumers as well that ECT is not some form of torture. It is humane and very effective.
Thanks to ECT, I have my life back.
The past two years have been very difficult for me. I was hospitalized five times. I was experiencing crippling bouts of depression. It seemed as if there was a black cloud over my head that I could not get out from under. The dosage of my medication would be increased and the depression would lift somewhat for a few weeks. However, even on the maximum dose of an antidepressant, the depression would come back worse than before. I would start to hear voices and have suicidal thoughts. A stay at the hospital would soon follow.
In the hospital, the medications were changed and again the depression would lift for a few weeks. This past December when I was admitted to the hospital, the staff got very angry at me. They made me feel that it was my own fault that I was so depressed and suicidal. I explained to them that I took my medication exactly as prescribed and was involved with New York City Voices, and the Picnic for Parity Planning Committee. In addition, I was going to the gym three days a week and getting together with friends when I felt up to it. The staff felt that these activities were not enough and upon discharge I was placed in a six week partial day hospital program. I attended the program and the doctors adjusted my medication further still. I felt a little less depressed. After partial day hospital I attended Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation Treatment (IPRT). My goal in IPRT was to go back to work, but after a few months I became so depressed that I quit.
In May, I hit rock bottom. The black cloud that is depression took over my life. I started sleeping 12 to 14 hours a day, stopped eating and withdrew from my friends and activities. One day while riding the subway, a voice told me that the world was going to come to an end soon. The voice further explained that since I was a major loser and had no future I should just go home and kill myself. The suicidal thoughts and ideas intensified and my therapist thought I needed to go to the hospital. I did not really want to go back to the hospital, but I knew that I was a danger to myself so I agreed.
This time at the hospital, the staff’s reaction to me was a little different. They realized the medications were not working and a new approach was needed. ECT was suggested and I agreed to it. I had had ECT in December 1995 and it worked. I was depression free for a year. The staff knew this and also recommended that I continue ECT as an outpatient. Despite the stigma surrounding ECT, I was not afraid. Since it had worked before, I hoped and prayed it would work again. I knew that after each treatment I would probably feel a little out of it because of the anesthesia and have a slight headache. That is exactly what happened, so after each treatment I would take Advil and sleep for a few hours. After the third treatment I started to feel a lot better. I had two more treatments and was discharged. After that I started going once a week for ECT as an outpatient. The black cloud of depression had finally lifted.
I went weekly for ECT for six weeks. Now, I go every other week and soon will go only once a month. The only side effects I experience are grogginess and minimal memory loss. The memory loss is only of the hours preceding the treatment. Contrary to popular belief, ECT is not frying my brain or turning me into a zombie. It has turned me into a happy, high functioning person. I am now very involved with New York City Voices as managing editor. I have an active social life and I swim every day. I believe that ECT along with the support of my family and friends is responsible for this.
There is a lot of fear and stigma surrounding ECT that I believe is unwarranted. Granted, in the past before anesthesia and muscle relaxants were used there were a lot of horror stories. But things have changed. The whole procedure is very humane and only takes a few minutes. The ECT procedure is as follows: The patient is given general anesthesia and a muscle relaxant, electrodes are placed on the patient’s forehead and a wave of electricity is transmitted through the patient’s head, causing a seizure.
In an effort to de-stigmatize ECT, I am participating in an educational video the nursing staff at Long Island Jewish-Hillside Hospital is making. In the video, I am not only interviewed about my experience with ECT, but am also filmed having an ECT treatment. The video will be shown to people who are considering ECT. I have become an advocate of ECT because it has worked so well for me. It has lifted my depression and has also been proven to increase the effectiveness of antidepressants. I have been symptom free for over five months. This is a recent record. Other people I have spoken to in the ECT unit waiting room report similar results. Now, I explain to other mental health consumers and non-consumers as well that ECT is not some form of torture. It is humane and very effective.
Thanks to ECT, I have my life back.
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