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Re: Lets talk about ECT.........

Posted by Sebastian on June 28, 2005, at 18:58:15

In reply to Lets talk about ECT........., posted by ed_uk on June 24, 2005, at 17:53:58

> Hello,
>
> I'd like to hear from people who've had ECT. I'm not considering ECT myself but I've got a couple of friends who's pdocs have recommended ECT.

ECT is the strongest med out there.
>
> If you've had ECT, how were the electrodes placed...
>
> 1. Right unilateral
> 2. Left unilateral
> 3. Bitemporal
> 4. Bifrontal

They did not tell me.

>
> How often did you have ECT during the initial phase? How many treatments did you have? Did you recieve continuation or maintenance ECT? How often?

I had ECT probably every day for about a month.

>
> Why were you given ECT? eg. depression, schizophrenia etc.

They did not tell me that either.

>
> Were you forced to have ECT or did you choose to have it?

They forced me.

>
> How were you treated by your 'shock doc', did they provide you with good information? Did they undermine your side effects?

They draged me out of bed unexpectidly and gave me the ECT. After the ECT memory was nothing. The only thing I came to expect was a heavy dose of morfine (spelling). and then I would pass out.

>
> Did you tell your family/friends/boss that you were having ECT?

I was jobless and in hospital.

>
> Before ECT, were you given a premedication?

They gave me lots of medications at the time, no I don't know what they were giving me.

>
> Do you have any idea which anesthetic you received? eg. propofol (Diprivan), methohexital (Brevital), thiopental (Pentothal), etomidate (Amidate) etc.

morphine is what they told me.

>
> How did you feel when you came around from the anesthetic? If you remember!!! :-O

Like my brain was dead, compleatly fried. Probably the effects of ECT. Often I woke up not knowing what had happened. Once I even thought I was just born and in an alien world, because I did not reconize anything that I was looking at. Which after a while I decided it was a radio.


>
> Was ECT effective in reducing your depression/psychotic symptoms??

I didn't know what depression was after. In fact I didn't know what anything was.

>
> Do you regret having ECT........would you have it again?

I would never do ECT again. I wish I had not had so many of them. After ECT it was like starting life over again. Not to mention my brain could not think or most importanly remember any thing.

>
> What side effects did you have from ECT? eg. anterograde amnesia, retrograde amnesia. Did you ever regain your lost memories? Do you feel that you have suffered permanent cognitive damage?

Ten years later and I still have not regained some memories. Slowly over the years things would come back to me. And all the time my exgirlfreind of the time would and still does remind me of things I have only seen in dreams and some times don't remember.

>
> After ECT, what medication did you receive to prevent relapse? eg. nortriptyline, lithium etc. If you relapsed, how quickly?

After ECT I refused to take any meds. So I went medless and would relapse and end up in hospital again.

Finaly I started taking zyprexa a year later. Since the zyprexa I have not needed any ECT. I took zyprexa for 7-8 years and now I'm switching to geodon which seems to work for the last 6 months.

>
> Do you believe that your ECT restored the efficacy of a 'pooped out' antidepressant?

Before ECT I had not taken many or much medication. And aparently none was working. Meds that I had taken in hospital.

>
> If your course of ECT was not effective, would you consider having a different type of ECT in future? eg. bilateral instead of unilateral or high-dose unilateral instead of low-dose unilateral.

Never again. I remember things much better when I smoke pot heavly for many years. I did reach a point when I quit pot and after 3 years the memories got bad again. And yes ECT did cross my mind. But instead I smoked a little pot and seem to have gotten over the whole idea.

>
> If your ECT was effective but caused substantial amnesia, would you consider having a different type of ECT in future? eg. right unilateral instead of bilateral or bifrontal instead of bitemporal.

once again all I know is that I had ECT, it took many years to get that much information out of them.

>
> ~Ed
>
>


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Psycho-Babble Medication | Framed

poster:Sebastian thread:518256
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050627/msgs/520738.html