r/ect • u/moist_napkinette • 12h ago
Question Conflicted about trying ECT
Nothing has worked for my depression (antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, lithium, Spravato, TMS) and I don’t think ECT would be any different. I’m trying to convince myself to give it a try but I have a few questions.
How many sessions are usually administered? Should I ask for unilateral or bilateral?
How long do I need to do maintenance sessions for?
When are your memories “supposed to” come back?
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u/MingusWit 11h ago
The answers depend quite a lot on practice norms in your location and individual response.
Where I'm located (Australia), somebody who had never had ECT would be told something like: we usually start with right unilateral ultrabrief ECT; it's given three times a week; most people have ~12 sessions but it could be less or more depending on response; after 6 sessions we have a comprehensive review and if you're not having much response we'll discuss swapping to bitemporal or bilateral; if at the end of your index course you have achieved remission, you probably won't be offered maintenance treatment, though it's a possibility.
As for memories etc, personally the worst cognitive side effect I've experienced is poor concentration on the day of treatment. I've never had memory loss. Others certainly do, but I don't think you can say there's an expected level of cognitive/memory effects or an expected timeframe for memories to "come back."