Posted by Squiggles on December 2, 2005, at 8:22:47
In reply to Re: Last resorts » Squiggles, posted by Bob on December 2, 2005, at 0:32:40
> I had ECT voluntarily as an outpatient earlier this past spring. I wasn't in an ultra-crisis but was headed down hill and felt that I was at an impasse with meds. Unfortunately, I don't think it came out well.
I'm sorry to read this.
I've heard from plenty of sources that ECT helps many people, but I can say with some certainty that I wasn't one of them. There were some interesting positive things that occurred, but as time went on, I began getting some extreme negatives that eventually brought the treatments to a close.
I think having that option is good, be it with
meds or ECT, but especially with something
like this controversial treatment. In my reading
about the negative effects, I came across some
reports that say eventually, the negative as
well as the postive effects may fade.
One thing ECT did was give me some energy. Ironically, the time after cessation of the treatments was the worst, which no one saw coming, and I have never really gotten back to a truly safe place since. I'm in bad shape, and I don't think I'd ever go back to those treatments.My sympathies. I hope you find a doctor who
can give you the right medications and special
care to recover slowly.
I do think back sometimss and wish I could have retained the few benefits it proferred. I hate medicines, so it's not like I'm overjoyed to be back on them. My ECT doctor told me that some people are transformed to like new from ECT and I believe him. I don't really see why he'd lie.I don't think it's a lie, but in my own
unprofessional imagination, it seems that
it is not a precise treatment -- I'm not
even sure its trajectory in the brain is predictable -- so like any seizure it can leave
you with variable effects. On the other hand,
like any seizure, you can recover in time.Best of luck to you.
Squiggles
poster:Squiggles
thread:584162
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20051126/msgs/584455.html