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I think it's an abomination, archaic, and should be outlawed...
Not necessarily. Why do you say that? As someone else said, it's not like what you see in the movies. A woman I know from online REQUESTED it, because she suffers from severe depression and when she gets to a certain point every few years, it is the only thing that makes her functional again.
There are side effects--she loses some memory of recent events.
I think the word "bipolar" has been put out in public way too much. Sometimes it seems that anyone that has a mood or two thinks that is bipolar. I have a friend who had seasonal depression and constant MJ smoking for 35 years who said he thought he was bipolar, and I asked him about manic states, and he didn't know what I was talking about.
Regarding Mel Gibson, he clearly is a raging drunk. Dunno about any underlying diagnoses, but he should stop drinking and see who is home.
I agree that there isn't a "cure" for bipolar, anymore than there is a cure for diabetes. There is treatment, there is management, there is stability, there is relief of symptoms. And yes, people who become psychotic (for any reason, including mania) might hear voices. They also might exhibit any number of psychotic processes, not specific to bipolar disorder.
ECT certainly isn't the treatment of choice for true bipolar disorder. It might be more of a Hail Mary if the many medication options don't work, but there are many medication options. Problem is, people often go off them when feeling better or missing the highs, or finding that side effects, like gaining weight, are too onerous.
I am not sure what medication the previous poster could be referring to, medication given during the proecess of ECT and what effect that might be referred to.
I think it is called Clozeril. The ECT was given in a hospital setting but the Clozeril (if I'm right) produced side effects like drooling and this guy just could not handle the side effects. I knew of one other woman who had ECT and she said it had done wonders. I think if it were to work on anyone it would have to be a bipolar depressive. Of course, no Dr. here but I know ECT is a treatment of often last resort for those who deal with depression.
I agree that many go off the meds when they start to feel better but there are other reasons as well. And certainly some of these psychotropic drugs have been known to pack on the lbs (and I'm talking 70 lb weight gains) so everything has to be balanced out. Unless someone becomes a danger to self or others I think it's far more dangerous to take psychotropic meds that can lead to that kind of weight gain. Such weight gain leads to a whole host of medical problems - high blood pressure, diabetes to name just a couple. Plus, we don't really know what the long term impact of these powerful drugs really is.
All in all, I am for less medication than more unless it's obvious that someone can just completely NOT function unless on certain doses of these powerful drugs.
Clozaril and ECT are not related. The person might well have been started on Clozaril and it can cause drooling, especially if started a bit high and too fast going up. It has nothing to do with ECT.
The way I see ECT, you are messing with your electricity. With medication, you're messing with your chemistry. Either way, you're messing with the basic function of the brain to try and get it to work properly/better.
No one really understands too precisely how things work, but they can work and often do.
Clozaril and ECT are not related. The person might well have been started on Clozaril and it can cause drooling, especially if started a bit high and too fast going up. It has nothing to do with ECT.
The way I see ECT, you are messing with your electricity. With medication, you're messing with your chemistry. Either way, you're messing with the basic function of the brain to try and get it to work properly/better.
No one really understands too precisely how things work, but they can work and often do.
Well, they sure were in his case. He was considering another round of ECT but decided against it as part of the process meant he take Clozeril. I assume his physician required this. So it obviously did have something to do with ECT in one person's situation.
I have had several clients who have undergone ECT treatments. Two of them were Bipolar and had gone catatonic, and one had severe major depression and couldn't even get out of the bed or get dressed. It helped all three of them. The ones who were catatonic came out of it, and the one with major depression showed moderate improvement. It is now being used for people suffering from major depression with some good results. Of course, in my opinion it should always be used as a absolute last resort because the researchers can't even agree on why exactly it helps much less what it is actually doing to the brain. The treatments are not barbaric like they were in the past. They are done while the patient is sedated and in a hospital setting, but it is not something I would want to do myself. Patients who receive it can count on short-term memory loss. Most of the time your ability to make short-term memories comes back gradually about a week after treatment. However, I have seen a client who has received the treatment for the past 10 years every three months, and there has been significant cognitive regression.
I have had several clients who have undergone ECT treatments. Two of them were Bipolar and had gone catatonic, and one had severe major depression and couldn't even get out of the bed or get dressed. It helped all three of them. The ones who were catatonic came out of it, and the one with major depression showed moderate improvement. It is now being used for people suffering from major depression with some good results. Of course, in my opinion it should always be used as a absolute last resort because the researchers can't even agree on why exactly it helps much less what it is actually doing to the brain. The treatments are not barbaric like they were in the past. They are done while the patient is sedated and in a hospital setting, but it is not something I would want to do myself. Patients who receive it can count on short-term memory loss. Most of the time your ability to make short-term memories comes back gradually about a week after treatment. However, I have seen a client who has received the treatment for the past 10 years every three months, and there has been significant cognitive regression.
Re the bolded--I had a good book on depression that I seem to have misplaced, but the MD who wrote it agreed that they didn't know exactly how or why ECT works. His description was that just as when a radio gets staticky and you bang on it and it sort of resets itself and works again, the ECT seems to "reset" the brain in some way. Crude, but interesting analogy.
Not necessarily. Why do you say that? As someone else said, it's not like what you see in the movies. A woman I know from online REQUESTED it, because she suffers from severe depression and when she gets to a certain point every few years, it is the only thing that makes her functional again.
There are side effects--she loses some memory of recent events.
Hey...if she actually WANTS it....asks for it...then it's on her, and I guess she doesn't mind the "side effects"....but no-one should EVER have to submit to ECT involuntarily...that...is barbaric.
Hey...if she actually WANTS it....asks for it...then it's on her, and I guess she doesn't mind the "side effects"....but no-one should EVER have to submit to ECT involuntarily...that...is barbaric.
I don't think they do that anymore. As someone else said, it's not like in the movies where they drag a screaming person into a little room, strap them down, put a rod in their mouth and then start zapping the hell out of them.
I had a friend who had it done years ago and he's a basket case now. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. It is normally used for treatment resistant depression.
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