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Ask Dr. Manny Show: It was once called ‘electroshock’ therapy and thought to be a barbaric treatment. Now electroconvulsive therapy is making a co...
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In the Middle Ages mentally ill patients were in prison and a silence rather than treated.
By the nineteenth century English asylum -- -- rotating device which followed the patients around at high speeds he was meant to calm the nerves.
And had a -- -- were also used to bring these patients to their senses.
Today we all know that these are ridiculous treatments.
But one therapy often thought of our battery is making a comeback.
Now doctors and patients are trying to stifle the stigma attached to what was call electro shock therapy.
I felt like I was tiny and -- communicated back to the hospital staff.
Tonight.
Care to people around me to the wolves.
To the floor.
Everywhere I look everywhere I went every surface I touched.
63 year old Virginia -- -- has battled depression her entire life.
She says his daughter when she was a child her father was an abusive alcoholic she never -- -- -- childhood filled with panic and helplessness.
Even as she became a licensed practical matters a wife and a mother of two bullets and.
Extremely anxious shaky.
Very very tired very very inspired.
No control of that terrible feeling it's overwhelming.
But some us like you start burning up and could -- on fire comes heat up.
He gets terrible feeling that comes over you need test contraction.
-- -- Virginia saw a psychiatrist at the age of nineteen.
Analysts prescribe antidepressants which -- years later.
Four year old son Matthew died of brain cancer and not long afterwards her marriage fell apart to build double overtime and current clinical depression worsened to.
I couldn't race my eyes.
I couldn't do.
I had terrible things -- I was encouraged some groups who heads out -- rule taking interest.
Holding on to my room of my -- Recent bout with depression left -- -- hospitalized five times in the last six months not -- and not eating.
Not able to socialize not able to use her and likes -- very bright person some English majors.
Severity -- person not being able to function and -- -- activities and feeling like -- want to be done.
Dot -- ball and his colleagues at overlook hospital in New Jersey suggests that electrical -- -- therapy for Virginia.
ECT has also been -- electroshock therapy.
And it's gotten a bad rap because of how it's portrayed in the media -- Yeah.
We're running you know we know.
-- convulsive therapy is used to treat severe depression through electricity.
Doctors induced -- seizure this has long been shown to work like an anti depressants and mood stabilizer.
Some people think of it almost like pressing the reset button on a computer -- that that's a good scientific explanation but almost like somehow resets the brain.
And the brain are transmitters in a way that -- depression.
Went -- -- was first use in the 1940s.
It was done without anesthesia and without precise electrical current and there was a group -- From people's feelings about lobotomy is an insulin coma therapy and other therapies that were seen as.
Barbaric practice back now that we have more effective safe treatments.
In the mid 1950s.
Antidepressants became more popular and easy -- -- fell out of fashion.
Doctor Bullock says since then the weight ECT is administer it has improved dramatically in an effort to break easy to -- lingering stigma.
Amount not to mow lawn doctor rose an -- by direct cameras as I've ever looked at the procedure as is done today.
One major change is -- modern general anesthesia.
Which has he is a short acting.
Anesthetic called rabbit -- which makes a person policy for just a few minutes.
And right after they -- we give them a muscle relaxant called -- now calling which makes all of their skeletal muscles and their body relaxed again just for a few minutes then we induce the seizure through administering the low dose of electrical current.
Which is given through very sophisticated machine.
That is the current in what's called a brief pulse forms.
That's a very small amount it's much much much less than you would have if you accidentally.
Shot yourself by.
Liking something and -- appropriately in the law.
Six to twelve treatments are usually give it three times per week until the depression completely -- short term memory loss can be one of the side effects Virginia says she forgot some of the events leading right up to her treatment.
Those are usually not there are going to be there must cherish life memories some people have more memory loss than others.
For some people -- will last longer than for others.
We know from very good and very large cities that there is not brain damage from.
Team for patients who have responded to other treatments ECT works eighty to 90% of the time.
Doctor -- says for those people who had a poor response to other therapies.
ECT is still successful.
But that rate drops to fifty or 60%.
For Virginia the -- were remarkable.
This woman was wearing no makeup before and was looking really tired.
And then she all of a sudden -- fantastic she'd taken so much interest to have parents and putting those together.
-- any real signs of feeling good about yourself.
Despite Virginia's success there remains heavy criticism surrounding the street.
I think ACC is the treatment of last resort.
What I like to do with my patience is actually do lab testing to see if -- -- -- -- anything about the thyroid issue.
-- their low and essential fatty acids and Omega three fatty acids the fact is that when you aren't efficient.
In certain hormones or certain nutritional supplements and nutrients.
You compete extremely depressed and it won't respond to anti depressants because they're not giving you what your brain needs.
That Virginia is adamant.
That electro convulsive therapy saved her life and our desires to do certain things I have ideas about doing things iPhone.
-- really because he's getting things ready for the day of the week.
I'm more grateful that I would be able to back there -- wants.
-- -- -- says patients will continue to feel the ups and downs of depression.
But the lows won't be nearly as low as before.
Virginia -- -- group therapy three times a week and she will also on the go what school maintenance treatments which many ECT patients -- These boosted treatments are given once a month for four to six months I'm Dr.
Manny Fox News.
