Did you get any improvement with your course of treatment?

i noticed some during the unilateral treatments, but the bilateral treatments made me regress

I feel sorry the bilateral ETC wasn't effective for you. Hope you find some treatment that is

thanks. hopefully soon

i have had ECT maintenance treatments for the last 3 years. No medication worked for me, or had horrible, intolerable side effects.

ECT is like a monthly booster shot. I don't have to remember to take a bunch of pills that make me gain weight, turn into a zombie, drool and don't work! The spotty memory loss is worth it. 'And you just learn to live with it by making lists, telling others things and keeping journals. And it isn't as bad as the stigma makes it out to be. It saved my life, and it is something I can be compliant with......

For a certain percentage of the population, ECT is the treatment of preference and may be the only thing that works.

That's interesting that Bilateral would make you regress, Pecos.

In what ways did you regress??

After the unilateral I was doing noteably better than I had been, but I was still lacking. Bilateral brought me back to the state I was in before I started unilateral treatment. And memory loss for me wasn't spotty....major projects I had invested months of effort in were a complete surprise when I got home.

I am considerring it again myself but would do the unilateral. I had bilateral many years ago and I think I remember feeling like a walking zombie and not necessarily that much better. It sort of made me forget that I had been so depressed.

My mother says she didn't think it helped me. I think it made me numb.

I remember going to the Norton Simon museum and being moved by nothing.

Pecos - can I ask what brought you to the decision to have ECT?

I too am considering it. I am tired of screwing around with meds and feel they are ruining my health in some ways.

I am also severely depressed and am not coming out of it easily with med changes.


How is your memory loss with the unilateral treatments.

I have spent a lot of time learning a lot of hula hoop moves and I would hate to suddenly pick up the hoop and not not remember how to do certain things. Does anything like that happen with unilateral?

You guys considering ECT should really check into it. It really really helps me, I am doing maintenance as I said. I do have issues with my memory that are sometimes extremely frustrating. But think about the feeling of wanting to die, about the deep abyss and the depression that feels so awful and horrible.....When you compare there is no question at least to me which I would choose.

I decided to have ECT because I'm extremely depressed and nothing else is working, so that's what my doctor reccommended. and no the memory loss isn't that bad with unilateral

ECTs were a godsend for me. i even considered them for this last bout of depression that hit me. i chose meds first and they have started working for me. i gave myself 3 weeks and if the meds didn't turn around then i was going to have the treatments. YMMV, but they work for me.