Electro Convulsive Therapy For Severe Depression

Jack Nicholson's depiction in "One who flew over the Cookoo's Nest" of him receiving electro shock therapy, was one of the major turning points in the public's negative perception.

Quite frankly, it looks and sounds scary from an outside observer.

The thought of getting electricity zapped through your brain and watching your body convulse is not happiness inducing fodder.

However, electroshock therapy still remains the number one treatment for severe major depression.

After a course of 6-12 treatments spread over a couple of weeks, success rates of 60-70% are generally observed.

And these are success rates for individuals who’ve had no prior success beforehand. 60-70% over 0% speaks volumes.

Indications for Electro Convulsive Therapy

Detractors to Electroshock Therapy

The increase in women and elderly patients are most likely due to their increased overall depression rates. Younger and male populations tend to have less incidences of depression as a whole.

Completing electroconvulsive therapy without consent is generally reserved for the most mentally ill patients (severe psychosis) or people who are a threat to themselves or others.

Informed consent is treated very seriously by medical professionals in the developed world with specific regulations and ethics being enforced and held accountable to.

Minimizing ECT Side Effects

- Brief pulse currents over sine wave currents
- Unilateral as opposed to bilateral ECT (although is less effective)
- Using minimum current thresholds (higher currents impose more side effects)
- Reducing the time the brain in under current.

The bottom line is… if the choice is between suicide or risk of memory loss and remission of depression. Which is the greater good?

If you are at the end of your rope, don’t let the inaccurate portrayals of ECT scare you from a very promising therapeutic aid to your depression.