Time Out!

Whoa! That last ECT session knocked me for a loop. I mentioned how it did me in to the pDoc, and he had me skip this week. Thank God! If you have had the treatment, you know exactly what I mean; if not, then you wouldn't believe me if I told you.

This time I was pretty much out of it for most of the day. Things that I did on a regular basis throughout each day escaped me. For example, I knew that my wife and I ended up in the living room after we got home from work, but I didn't have any idea how. In other words, the steps that we took (and I am usually a very routinized person) totally escaped me.

Years ago, on my way into work one morning, I came across an accident. A man was climbing out of his car, and up the hill. I stopped and asked if he needed a ride. He did want a ride to the service station to arrange for someone to tow his car out of the ditch. As we drove down the road, I tried to make small talk by asking his name. He looked at me with a blank look across his face, and said, "That is something I ought to know, right?" The longer we drove, the more confused he became.

This was how my day went after the treatment. I was constantly encountering something I thought I should know, but I couldn't bring it to mind. It got better as the day went on, but it took a while. Anyway, I'll be "off treatment" for a week.

Later.

What's it Like?

A simple question: How much time is there between your manic and depressive periods? What is that time like for you?

For me, I can go up and down in a heart beat, and sometimes it happens many times a day. I find it to be very exhausting.

So, how is it with you?

The Random Punch of ECT

Here we go again!

Two and one-half years ago I had two ECT treatments. My BiPo was way out of whack, and my pDoc thought this would help. So off I went on a brand new adventure. If you have had ECT, let me tell you, I guarantee that it isn't like anything else you've ever experienced.

In my case, I was led into a mini-surgical room, and lay down on an exam table. (Note: Keep in mind, one possible side effect of this treatment is memory loss. So the experience I am sharing with you might be true, made up or a combination of random memories. I'll share, and you decide.)

An IV is set up, electrodes are placed on your temples and they administer a drug that makes you sleep for about 10 minutes. At this point, I am asleep, so I don't know what happens ... I think it has something to do with a queen, a rabbit, a young girl and a deep, deep hole. Just kidding. They place a rubber block between your teeth to keep you from biting your tongue, because the purpose of the treatment is to cause a seizure.

Within 20 minutes you wake up in a recovery room, usually confused and experiencing a feeling that has to be experienced. In my experience it was as if my perception of my surroundings had increased 10 fold, and everything had come alive. Then the next thing I knew it was morning. I remembered a few fleeting images of the day, but the 20 hours or so after the treatment just vanished. Also some of my memories disappeared as well. Things that had happened over the past few years were randomly erased.

Was it worth it? Hell yes! That is why I will begin another round in a few weeks. I will probably do one every week or so, and see what results. I'll keep you posted.

W.S.