Knitter

Hello,

A little background. After 2 1/2 years of sobriety, my son relapsed and is currently in rehab for co-occuring disorders. He has depression in addition to alcoholism. He is resisting moving from rehab into a structured housing that will help with his depression as he wants to work so as to not lose his car.

He told his dad today that when he is charged next week, he has arranged to live with a friend so that he can begin to look for work. He also said that the counselor at his rehab suggested shock therapy. I know that is not the PC term but it communicates. This seems a bit extreme as he has only been on meds for a few weeks. Does anyone have any experience with this? If so, I would love to hear your thoughts.

I am confident my son has the tools he needs to stay sober but not to alleviate his depression but shock therapy? I'm not so sure.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

sugarbear1

Maybe talk with a doctor about this situation?

lillamy

I know it sounds scary and very 1960s, but electroconvulsive therapy is still used and I know at least one person who says it helped her conquer depression when nothing else helped.

I would do some research and have a lot of discussions with the doctors about it. Here's what one hospital in Colorado says about it: Centennial Peaks Hospital | Electroconvulsive Therapy

Duckygirl1

Whoa! I didn't realize they still did that! Please get second and third opinions!

Seren

Actually, I had a friend who is a Vietnam vet with deep, recalcitrant depression. The doctors tried many, many courses of medical treatment for him over a number of years, and none of the drug therapies worked. He has gone through EC therapy, and it helped him, by his own admission, tremendously.

I do think it is wise to seek out other opinions, but EC therapy is not what it was or what was depicted in "one flew over the cuckoo's nest" any longer.

redatlanta

I have a client that was in yesterday that is getting this treatment. The last time I saw her out 6 weeks ago she was in a fog of depression. Yesterday she was a different person like her old self very cheerful she is pleased with the results.

dandylion

Knitter.....You may think I am a witch for saying this....but, I would take anything he says with a grain of salt.
these kids can be extremely manipulative....and, they know just what to say to get you in an uproar.
Yes, ECT is used in some circumstances----your son doesn't sound convincing, to me, though.

I don't understand why he would not be able to work while in structured housing???

Personally...I would ask him to sign a release so that you could talk to the medical doctor yourself.
By the way....only a psychiatrist can make the recommendation for ect--it is a medical procedure. I think he is trying to scare you or give you a "victim" story.

dandylion

AliWProk

A colleague with severe depression had ECT treatments and is greatly relieved. She could not take SSRIs. This was her last resort and it worked.

I am suspicious as it pertains to your son, however. dandylion has good points above.

LexieCat

I don't have any personal experience to share, but it's very possible that his counselor suggested discussing it with a doctor as a possibility that might help if nothing else is. I could see that coming up in the context of a meeting in which he expressed hopelessness of ever getting better.

LvWrAM123

I used to work in Med Psych and our psychiatrist did ECT. A couple of my patients who had failed med treatment and had debilitating depression or were very suicidal all had remarkable results after several sessions.

I wouldn't rule it out if they are worried he can't afford 6 more months of Med trials along with counseling to see if they will work, if it means he continues to spiral downward in the meantime.

There can be (or not) some retrograde amnesia, where the patient can lose memory of a bit of time (like up to a few hours) prior to and after the treatment which can make the patient feel uncomfortable and results may not be seen after the first session, but in my experience often by session 2-3 results could be fairly dramatic.

Knitter

Thank you all for your wisdom.
We're a few weeks out from my original post. My son was discharged from rehab and promptly relapsed. He had been staying with us since discharge. My husband and I can't quite put him on the streets. He became suicidal and is now in the hospital on a 72 hour hold. He's not being very cooperative but did sign a release for my husband and I to talk to his caregivers. They are considering ECT. I want so much for him to grab ahold of this time to get better and voluntarily admit himself into the hospital. If he doesn't voluntarily admit himself he will be released Friday evening. To where? To what? Is this the time for tough love? Will tough love lead to his death? I don't mean to sound dramatic; it's just what's going through my mind. Thank you as always great people for reading, commenting and caring.

knowthetriggers

Tight hugs Knitter - I am so sorry about his relapse; however it is quite common.

I can relate to your fear about "what next" and wanting so badly for him to check into rehab.

Have you considered Alanon or some sort of therapy to work on your recovery?

Refiner

How old is your son?

hopeful4

It does help for some. It's best to get a second opinion I would think, just in case.

thequest

Same here. I knew a guy who went for shock therapy several times a year. He swore by it. I think he had depression. He said it evened him out so to speak. He'd rather have that than drugs.

Not directly related but I also know of someone who gets their heart shocked a couple times a year to avoid medication and pace maker. It keeps or gets his beat/rhythm correct. He too says it works great. Goes to show if properly used/done electricity can be used for benefit.

I also should note the son needs to be diagnosed as a possible candidate. Is his case severe enough or can one of his medications be substituted with est. Or will it interact with other treatments.

CodeJob

Hello Knitter,

What is their reasoning to suggest ECT? Do they think they'll get a handle on the depression so they can then address his addiction? I'm so sorry to hear your son's case is serious enough to be proposing such an intervention.

Katiekate

If you want to investigate the ECT best to contact Mayo and talk to them about it. I have a friend that had it there, it was helpful to her, but it is not something that is suggested and then done, she was seen by a team there, they came up with a diagnosis and three treatments that they recommended. She chose ECT and it helped her.

It's a lot different now than it used to be, but not done just on a whim.

INgal

My son's psychiatrist offers TMS for depression. It's Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and it's supposed to work amazingly well. No good for addictions though. Could this be what he is referring to?

LexieCat

Hi, Knitter,

I can only imagine how difficult this is for you. Here's the thing, though, if he comes home you aren't going to be able to have him on suicide watch 24/7. If he's bent on self-destruction there's really nothing you can do to stop it, and it's awful having a front-row seat for it. He knows you love him and are willing to help him get better, but he's the one who has to accept the help. You can't force him and it's ultimately his decision what to do.

Hugs, I hope he will decide to accept help.

Knitter

Thank you all. My son is 30. I just finished a collateral interview with a representative from our county. The hospital has begun the process to civilly commit him. I abhor the idea of taking away his civil rights but I don't know that he will address his mental health and chemical dependency issues without such a commitment. This has escalated so quickly beyond my wildest dreams. Thank you again for your support and knowledge.