If this is a distressing subject for anyone, I apologise. I am worried about my dear friend, who has suffered with depression for years. She has had several episodes of severe depression, and even when she is 'ok', which can be for months or a couple of years, has to stay on antidepressants to prevent relapse. Between episodes of severe depression, she still suffers low mood a lot of the time.
She has had various antidepressants and is now on her 7th course of treatment. She is suffering an episode of severe depression now, and has seen the Crisis Team and her psychiatrist.
She has been told that if she changes meds in her current state, that she will need a week off work to stabilise. I've offered to stay with her for the week if she does that. She also asked about ECT, and has been told that she is eligible to have it, because she has had depression for so long and tried so many meds.
She says that she is reluctant to change meds because of needing time off work. She says that she is 'excited' at the idea of ECT, and that she has a fantasy that she will fall asleep and wake up cured. She knows and admits that is a fantasy: she is very intelligent, a successful professional with a vast amount of knowledge about health.
The impression I get is, that she is understandably sick and tired of all the meds and the mental torment that she suffers even with the meds. She wants a solution and has decided that even a risky one is worth a try.
I know it's not about me, but it scares me, for her sake. The information that my friend gave me about it, the info on Mind and NHS websites, scares me because of the risks involved.
I'm concerned that she has been allowed to make this decision while in crisis. She has now told me she is starting the ECT a week tomorrow.
Does anyone have any information or experience of this? And even if not, thank you for letting me offload.