Aquamarine, Thank you for all of the info. I hope that your depression is better now. I will continue to look at the possibility of inpatient treatment if the new medications do not kick in and start working. I have begun to stop fearing a hospital stay and see it as something that may be necessary to help me get better so that's a good thing. I agree with you that meeting people who understand how hard depression is and who can relate would be a great help. Thanks again for your support and encouragement. momofthree

Hi Momofthree, ECT stands for Electroconvulsive Therapy. It is what used to be referred to as "shock therapy". Sounds scary, but it is nothing like people imagine. You are given a general anaesthetic and a muscle relaxant (to stop your body from convulsing). Then an electrical current is passed through one side of your brain (unilateral ECT)(the usual...less side effects), or both sides (bilateral ECT). The electrical current induces a seizure in the brain. They use it for people who may have tried numerous medicine trials with no success, or sometimes with people who maybe cannot take meds (i.e. pregnant) It is carefully regulated and my personal experience was that is may have helped me for a short time. Studies also suggest that ECT can help medication work in people whose depression was previously treatment resistant. It can also be helpful for people who are acutely suicidal. I feel I may have had some longterm memory/concentration difficulties, but I really believe these a) getting better all the time, with practice and b) I also believe I have memory/concentration problems that are CAUSED by DEPRESSION...not the ECT. It is hard to tell which causes the difficulties. I have had no memory problems that are unmanageable. For many, many people ECT can help when nothing else does. As for my stay in the hospital...ECT causes some short term memory problems...so you often don't remember things that happened around the time you did the treatments, so much of the programs I attended are a blur...but a couple things I remember: 1) I met some incredible people in the hospital...all of them patients. They gave me strength and hope. They helped me see I was not the only one who was like this 2) We had leisure activities...exercise, crafts, art stuff that helped me realize how important doing these things is to me I have been to some outpatient programs as well that included different types of group therapy. These group therapy sessions can be really valuable. Sorry I don't have more specific info about the inpatient program. Please ask me anything you want about this and I will try to answer. I have attached a link to a British Columbia guide for ECT in case anyone is interested in more info. http://www.mheccu.ubc.ca/docum

Aquamarine, Thank you so much for easing my fears. I am really struggling to keep my head above water and an inpatient treatment program has been suggested by my therapist. Can you tell me what ECT is? I so much want to get past this depression as it is becoming harder and harder to function day to day and I have three beautiful children and a marriage falling apart. I'm finally after 14 months of struggling through it ready to do whatever it takes to get better. Thank you so much for your support. I'd like to hear of your experiences in the hospital if you have a little free time. Like what the day was like and what the therapy was like... momofthree

Hi Momofthree, I admitted myself into the hospital for ECT treatment last January. It was the best thing I ever did for myself. I am not sure if the ECT helped, but the second I entered the hospital I felt a huge sense of relief. For a few weeks I could could STOP... - Stop trying so hard to get well when no meds/therapy was helping me, - Stop feeling guilty about not being able to do anything (I was in the hospital...I didn't have all my regular responsibilities anymore) - I suddenly saw that I was not the only person in this situation I met a couple people who are still my friends The hospital really was a good experience for me. Prior to going there I had been frantically trying to get well. The more ill I became, the more frantic I became...it was way too much for me to manage. I think too often people associate the hospital with being "insane" and none of us want to believe that we are crazy. I read a book once that said...they call it an "asylum" for a reason. When someone seeks asylum somewhere, they are looking for a safe place to be, they are seeking to be protected from something. I thought that was a really interesting challenge to the negative connotations the word has gathered over the years. Think of the hospitqal as a safe asylum from the stressors of the external world...a safe place to be and grow. ...Aqua

Has anyone here ever been admitted or admitted themselves to a hospital for treatment? If so, was inpatient treatment helpful? Thanks for any info.