One of the chapters in my new book Managing the Depression Puzzle is focused on somatic treatments for depression, which involve the application of energy to the brain. These types of treatment are not as commonly used as medications or therapy, but they do have a role to play, particularly when it comes to treatment-resistant… Continue reading Somatic Treatments for Depression
Tag: ECT
I Wish ECT Was More Accessible
I'm not doing well. I'm extremely slowed down and just moving around my apartment is hard. Leaving home is just not happening. I know that ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) would be helpful based on past experience. But. One of the options is to get it as an inpatient. And as far as I'm concerned, that's really… Continue reading I Wish ECT Was More Accessible
Treatment-Resistant Depression: When What’s Supposed to Work Doesn’t
Wouldn't it be nice if the treatment of depression was simple? Unfortunately, there's nothing simple about depression treatment in the real world. Treatment-resistant depression (TRD) refers to illness that hasn't respond to trials of adequate duration and dosage of at least two antidepressants. The STAR*D research study found that only about 1/3 of people get… Continue reading Treatment-Resistant Depression: When What’s Supposed to Work Doesn’t
Book review: Birth of a new Brain – Healing from Postpartum Bipolar Disorder
Birth of a New Brain – Healing from Postpartum Bipolar Disorder chronicles author Dyane Harwood’s journey with postpartum onset bipolar disorder. The story’s rich, vivid descriptions draw the reader along on the intense roller coaster ride of the author's illness experience. Many elements of her story will be hauntingly familiar to those whose lives have been… Continue reading Book review: Birth of a new Brain – Healing from Postpartum Bipolar Disorder
This one flew over the cuckoo’s next: ECT in real life
Ask anyone of a certain age what comes to mind first when they hear the term electroconvulsive therapy (aka ECT, aka electroshock therapy, aka shock therapy), and chances are they will mention the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest starring Jack Nicholson. The reality is very different.
Navigating mental illness and childbearing
You occasionally hear horror stories of mothers who killed themselves and their infants due to postpartum depression, and I seriously worry that I could be that next horror story.