Life After ECT

First Aired: 05-12-2009 on Madness Radio ECT SURVIVOR ACTIVIST AND AUTHOR LINDA ANDRE TALKS ABOUT HER BOOK, DOCTORS OF DECEPTION, WITH MADNESS RADIO (2009.) Linda Andre became an accidental activist after her life was irreparably altered by ECT. She lost five years of her life and suffered permanent cognitive disability after a series of treatments she was aggressively coerced into having. Andre’s journey would lead her to the electroshock survivor community and activism, later to write what many consider the definitive book on electroshock, Doctors of Deception: What They Don’t Want You to Know about Shock Treatment. In this interview, Linda discusses her experience, the complex history of shock therapy, and elaborate efforts by the industry to mislead and suppress information about ECT’s true risks, side effects, and efficacy. If I could summarize my book in one sentence it would be this: if you tell a big lie and you tell it often enough and it’s big enough people will believe you. ~Linda Andre Listen here ECT MYTHS DISCUSSED: Modified ECT isn’t new – electroconvulsive therapy performed under anesthesia with muscle paralytics have been in use since the 1950s. Modified ECT is physically more damaging to the brain because the seizure threshold is raised by anesthesia, requiring more electricity to induce convulsions Pure oxygenation is used to make seizures last longer, not to improve patient safety. Patients injured by ECT struggle to be taken seriously by doctors, the media, and society. See ECT Arguments: All Medical Procedures Have Risks Celebrity ECT promoters like Kitty Dukakis and Carrie Fisher have acknowledged they have experienced permanent memory loss. Psychiatry lobbied against FDA safety testing at a time the device was supposed to be proven effective or taken off the market. Conflicts of interest are rife in ECT research. Show Notes  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SCiXfxFswJZNVzdp84ZOWNbG3EwPYsUHpKUHsD82Z5g/edit?usp=sharing 

I love Jim Carrey. While mostly known for his off-the-wall physical comedy, he has a few serious roles in his film roster. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of my favorite movies starring Jim Carrey. It's a story about a couple's breakup and the painful consequences that follow. Clementine, played by Kate Winslet, undergoes a procedure to erase Joel, played by Jim Carrey, from her memory, and he does the same in turn. However, this leads to some unexpected results. I watched this movie often during the early stages of recovery from brain damage from ECT. I think I was searching for a reflection of my new reality after losing old memories, and the ability to make new ones was wrecked. The film's choppy jump cuts and shuffled timelines felt true to my early recovery days. At that time, I constantly felt confused and struggled to make sense of my fragmented memories. I would go to places I'd been before but couldn't remember, talk to people I sensed I knew but couldn't place, and feel like something was missing but not know what place. Doctors refused to believe anything was wrong. I'd gone so long without talking to another injured ECT recipient, and doctors repeatedly told me ECT doesn’t cause permanent brain damage... I guess I needed to see a reflection of how distorted my world was after shock therapy after my ability to make new memories was wrecked. The idea of selectively erasing traumatic memories is interesting, but is it possible? There’s research on using Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD & PTSD), like in the movie, selectively erasing or reducing traumatic memories. Over the years, this topic has generated a lot of pop science buzz in the media, often citing Spotless Mind like I’m doing now. But I can speculate where the journalists can't because I’ve lived it. Many considering shock therapy says they don't care if their memories are erased from the treatment. I was one of those people. I wish I'd known more about memory before undergoing electroconvulsive therapy for supposed treatment-resistant depression (CPTSD and life-threatening undiagnosed medical conditions— all 100% treatable.) Memory is not a buffet you can pick and choose from. In a brain made up of mostly water, doctors can't control the electricity, let alone identify and target specific memories while leaving other memories and cognition intact. Cranial nerves involved in trauma responses are also at risk of damage in ways we're only beginning to understand. Trauma mixed with brain damage is a hell I could never have imagined. People like me desperately need comprehensive testing and rehabilitation for long-term sequelae of electrical injury from ECT. Learn how you can support all ECT patients https://www.change.org/p/standardize-... Blog post https://lifeafterect.com/can-ect-eras... Works Cited Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind. Directed by Michel Gondry, performances by Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet. Focus Features, 2004. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338013/ Gifs https://giphy.com/ Music courtesy of : RYYZN MEMORIES ERASED https://hypeddit.com/track/3zzfl9 Links to articles cited https://docs.google.com/document/d/1T...

ECT and brain injury: what does electroconvulsive therapy-induced brain damage look like and how can patients get testing and rehab?  Continuing this special series, Deborah, former level 1 trauma nurse and electroshock survivor, explains  ECT injury symptoms & consequences of those injuries as far as we understand  Barriers keeping patients from getting appropriate testing and rehabilitative following ECT  What tests to request How sharing your experience can help yourself and other patients  PETITIONS  Sarah's petition - Petition · Standardize, Regulate & Audit Shock Treatments (Electroconvulsive therapy or ECT) · Change.org Sarah’s Latest Article Open Letter to the FDA's Denial of ECT's Harms - 2021 - Life After ECT  Sue's Petition - closed Medical Errors Podcast interview - ECT & Brain Damage - A Physician's Experience - Life After ECT Maudsley Debate  RESOURCES  Electroconvulsive trauma episode  Aftercare following electroshock  Obtaining medical records 

Today marks the 59th anniversary of renowned American author, Ernest Hemingway's suicide. Hemingway killed himself following a series of involuntary electroshock (ECT) that wrecked his writing ability, giving one of the most cited quotes on ECT injury in the process: "What these shock doctors don't know is about writers and such things as remorse and contrition and what they do to them . . . Well, what is the sense of ruining my head and erasing my memory, which is my capital, and putting me out of business? It was a brilliant cure, but we lost the patient." Ernest Hemingway, Papa Hemingway, A.E. Hotchner Hemingway's case is still relevant in the year 2020; people are still losing their livelihoods to electroshock. Some patients like Ernest, kill themselves, too. I recently learned of more tragic circumstances leading up to his death that I feel more people should know about. I will also share a bit about similar struggles with work and school and I invite other survivors to also for a follow-up episode. It's easy! Your Story: What work/education problems did you have after ECT? Leave a voicemail Voice Mail - https://anchor.fm/lifeafterect/message Include your name, initials or alias if you prefer to remain anonymous Briefly describe any work/school issues you had Stay tuned for the follow-up episode! RESOURCES Hemingway Hounded by the Feds https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/02/opinion/02hotchner.htm  Ernest Hemingway: macho man of letters http://www.cnn.com/fyi/school.tools/profiles/hemingway/index.story.html Latest analysis of ECT efficacy The latest analysis of ECT dismal efficacy https://www.madinamerica.com/2020/06/john-read-irving-kirsch-electroconvulsive-therapy-ect-evidence-clinical-trials-justify-continued-use/ http://cepuk.org/2020/06/04/guest-blog-by-richard-bentall-ect-is-a-classic-failure-of-evidence-based-medicine/ Did you know shock therapy has never been standardized? Learn why this matters and how you can help https://www.change.org/p/standardize-regulate-audit-shock-treatments-electroconvulsive-therapy-or-ect ----- [email protected] LifeAfterECT.com

Deborah was coerced into having electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) at a vulnerable time in her life.  As a result of these treatments, she lost her career as a trauma nurse, skills, marriage, memories of her children's lives, and the ability to make new memories, and more. Read The impact of electroshock on my life She has since worked tirelessly to help educate society and help peers obtain legal and medical support for their injuries.    Over the years she has done extensive research and her activism efforts have propelled our cause forward with the first successful class-action lawsuit, and medical & psychological tests that confirm brain damage from electroshock.   She has generously let me convert her videos to podcast format so this valuable information can reach more people.   Topics Covered:   issues with informed consent   evidence ECT causes brain damage   brain damage symptoms   how patients struggle to get testing by most medical fields who prefer to protect colleagues rather than help brain-damaged patients   lawsuits   how to get testing & rehabilitation   Learn more about Deborah's work  ECTJustice.com   Life After ECT Resource Page  Life After ECT Action Page  Did you know ECT has never been safety tested by the FDA, nor is it regulated or standardized? Learn why this matters and how you can help Petition