Posted by ChicagoKat on January 21, 2013, at 8:03:56
In reply to Re: Anyone know people that have had ECT?, posted by gilmourr on January 18, 2013, at 16:42:52
> > > I'm looking into unilateral ECT. Has anyone had it done, or heard of others that used it?
> > >
> > > Can it provide permanent relief or is it 100% always temporary?
> > >
> > > So sick and tired of the pill game.
> >
> > Gilmourr, I so wish I could go back and do my research as you are doing before having ect. ect gave me memory problems, sure, they tell you about that. But they don't tell you it has negative cognitive effects, that it causes actual physical brain damage, that it usually does not work well, and when it does the effect only lasts for a month or so.
> >
> > If I'd known these things I never would have done it. And in my case, it not only did not help, it made my depression and anxiety much, much worse.
> > Kat
> >
> >
>
> The only thing that concerns me about this is that maybe because it didn't work, your depression is clouding your memory and cognitive functioning. Like I feel completely slower atm than when I was on Nardil or stable on Zoloft after weeks of being on it. I just don't know that ECT is to blame for your cognitive dysfunction.
>
> Also quite a few journals have provided evidence that there is no brain damage involved in ECT.
>
> Plus the remission rates are around 70%+ so it's quite possible that you were just really really unlucky. Isn't everyone technically who belongs to this forum?
>
>
Gilmourr, you may be right, at least partially, that my depression is clouding my memory and congnitive functioning. But when I replied to your post I was simply summing up data I had dug up from reputable, peer-reviewed journals. I was shocked to read in one such journal that IQ rates go down an average of 40-60pts. Scary! Hopefully that info comes from a not-so-reputable journal. How I wish I had saved the links to all the studies I mention. You are right; my depression does affect my concentration, so hopefully that result at least was quite off! I must say, however, that I found the ECT - decrease in cognitive ability connection in many, many journal articles. And this was all a year and a half after I had experienced ECT, and when I was much more stable emotionally,having found an excellent pdoc and being put on Ritalin. As far as the brain damage, I did find an article, again in a peer-reviewed journal of a study (double-blind, placebo controlled) done with rats which quite obviously showed that in the rats who received ECT there were pinpoint hemorrhages in their brains; the distribution really depended on exactly where the electrodes had been placed; and that the rats who had not undergone ECT had perfectly normal brains, grossly at any rate. I found this to be frightening; it made me think of all the people who have had ECT and continue to get maintenance therapy. How many ECT treatments would it take to cause not just a pinpoint hemorrhage, but a larger, much more significant hemorrhage?
Lastly, all I can say, now that it has been almost 2 years since I had ECT, I wish like you would not believe that I had never had it done. I'll be honest: the effects on cognition that I mentioned reading about I have not much noticed in myself. But I DO know that ECT not only did not help, it made my depression and anxiety much worse, and for some reason after ECT my meds no longer worked. It DID have one positive effect on me however, and this is really weird, but after ECT I discovered I had a revulstion for alcohol. I don't even want a glass of wine with dinner. Even the smell of alcohol makes my stomach upset. Which is definitely all a positive thing b/c I used to binge drink, once a week - it was one of my crutches. But no more, now I have a Babble crutch - and my liver is very happy about that!!!! :) And, now that I've written a book, to answer your original question: I have never, ever heard of ECT being anything but temporary. It is my understanding that those who do obtain relief generally have to have monthly maintenance treatments. Good luck Gilmourr :)
Kat
p.s. One last tidbit: I have a feeling that a lot of those high efficacy rates are somewhat suspect; absolutely every single person I've ever talked to, either here, or when I've been inpt in a hospital (3 admits) has said that it did nothing for them, or worse, like me, that it made their condition worse. Of course these are not scientific results, but they are interesting.
Ive got a really bad disease
Its got me begging on my hands and knees
So take me to emergency
Cause somethin seems to be missing
Somebody take the pain away
Its like an ulcer bleeding in my brain
poster:ChicagoKat
thread:1035478
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20130112/msgs/1035941.html