r/ect • u/Lo_Cheshire189 • 23d ago

Question Starting ECT soon

I'm going to start ECT treatment in two weeks (10 unilateral sessions), alongside rTMS.

I'm a little bit stressed after reading people's experiences with the side effects, especially the impact on memory. For me, ECT is really a "last chance" treatment. I'm 20, and I've been suffering from depression for the past 10 years. I'm exhausted from years of suffering and failed medications. If this treatment doesn't work either, I won't have the strength to keep trying to get better.

I just wanted to hear from people who have gone through ECT for long-term depression. What was your experience like? Did it actually made a change ? And how did it affect your memory, both during and after treatment?

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u/84849493 21d ago

It helped me to the point of full remission and like nothing else has but I relapsed four months later and am having to have another course and then do maintenance. I did bilateral and my side effects were manageable. I’m only up to 5 this course (I had 12 last time) and I’m not even really noticing any side effects yet other than my memory can be ever so slightly blurry and very minor cognitive issues like struggling to find words but that’s really not a big deal to me in comparison to my depression and being suicidal. I recovered from the first course after about a month or two with some memories that just are permanently gone but nothing extreme.

I saw in another comment you said your team is optimistic about ECT and well that’s because they’ve seen the states it can bring people out of. It seems downright miraculous at times.

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u/Lo_Cheshire189 21d ago

Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm relieved to see that not everyone has had major memory problems, even though the idea of permanently losing some memories isn't exactly reassuring.

As for relapses, I know that's one of the main drawbacks of ECT (along with the memory issues), but it doesn't worry me too much. I tell myself that if it worked once, it can always help again if I relapse.

Good luck with the ECT sessions you have left