Alternative Treatments for Treatment-resistant Depression

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The following is from the Mayo Clinic, published Aug. 2007. The entire article, which contains some great information about depression, may be found at Treatment-resistant depression: Explore options when depression won't go away - MayoClinic.com


Alternative treatments for treatment-resistant depression

If standard depression treatment with medications and psychotherapy haven't been effective for your treatment-resistant depression, you may want to try a different type of treatment altogether.

These options, sometimes called neurotherapeutic treatments, include:

* Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). In ECT, electrical currents are passed through the brain to trigger a seizure. Although many people are leery of ECT and its side effects, it typically offers fast, effective relief of depression symptoms.
* Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS). VNS uses electrical impulses with a surgically implanted pulse generator to affect mood centers of the brain. The FDA approved this treatment in July 2005 for certain cases of severe or chronic, treatment-resistant depression.
* Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). TMS is an experimental procedure that uses magnetic fields to alter brain activity. A large electromagnetic coil is held against your scalp near your forehead to produce an electrical current in your brain.
* Deep brain stimulation. This is a highly experimental treatment for depression in which the brain is stimulated with surgically implanted electrodes.


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I came across this while doing some looking around online about VNS so I figured I'd post it here for others. The ECT works, just not long enough for me thus far. I'm pretty much convinced (mostly after talking with my awsome therapist, also a liscensed psychiatrist specializing in neurology) that there is little, if anything, to lose if I have the simple implant surgery to start VNS treatment. It's a pretty new treatment and yet two of the people he his currently seeing for therapy have already had the implant.

I haven't heard of the above kind of magnetic therapy so I'll have to learn more about it.

However, my therapist was the one who actually told me about the even newer deep-brain stimulation treatment for depression. He said, he's worked in hospital situations where he's seen literally hundreds of people who have had the deep-brain stimulation implant for Parkinson's, which he said it REALLY tends to help. At present, i can't imagine having true brain surgery, but his real-life experience/training with patients who had it for the Parkinson's allowed him to explain to me how it is much, much less menacing/scary than it sounds.

So...I'm never going to close my mind to any possible option for treatment. I've seen first hand how wonderfully fast and dramatically electroshock (ECT) can help major depressives like me...i just need something that can keep addressing my goofy brain on a more long-term basis.

Just some of my personal thoughts,

Hugs,
Jenna

[nandm]

Thanks Jenna. I saw a show on the deep brain stimulation. I think it was on 60 minutes or 48 hours something like that. It was stated that it was also being tested for PTSD with some positive results. The people that they showed who had undergone the treatment were very pleased with the results. I pray my depression and PTSD never gets to that point but I believe I would consider it if it did.

[historyteach]

Interesting information, Jenna.
Thanks for sharing!
And anything from the Mayo Clinic is always welcome! I LOVE that place!

Shalom!