I'm not doing very well...
Hi Kelly,
I too struggle with depression, but at the moment Im stable on medication. Im also a psychiatric nurse and worked on a mood disorders unit for a few years. In Canada all treatment is covered.
We did ECT on a regular basis. We also had patients who were on a maintenence treatment regime where they came in for a treatment once a weeek, once every 2 weeks etc. It all depended on how long the treatment was holding them. We also did Transcranial magnetic stimulation, I have also seen this work on clients. And I know of 2 clients who have had the deep brain stimulation implants done. It worked fantastic for them, it was unreal the change. I know its hard to cope, but know there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
I too struggle with depression, but at the moment Im stable on medication. Im also a psychiatric nurse and worked on a mood disorders unit for a few years. In Canada all treatment is covered.
We did ECT on a regular basis. We also had patients who were on a maintenence treatment regime where they came in for a treatment once a weeek, once every 2 weeks etc. It all depended on how long the treatment was holding them. We also did Transcranial magnetic stimulation, I have also seen this work on clients. And I know of 2 clients who have had the deep brain stimulation implants done. It worked fantastic for them, it was unreal the change. I know its hard to cope, but know there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
SweetAndSassyOne
"Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels"
I experienced very slight improvement with ECT when I was going three times a week. When they reduced it to once a week, that improvement was lost. We went back to three times a week and I think I had something like 18 treatments in all, and only very slight improvement. The memory loss was significant and fairly debilitating. I was pretty disappointed because from the research I did, it seems to be pretty effective for many people.
Did you see good results with the TMS? I saw some research that made that sound pretty iffy.
Did you see good results with the TMS? I saw some research that made that sound pretty iffy.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
Hey Kelly,
If you had a lot of memory loss Im surprised they didnt do the treatments unilateral as opposed to bilateral. By this I mean they put the electrode to the base of your skull, in the back and on the right side I believe. Some clients found this helped. And as far as the TMS goes......to be honest Im a skeptic. But some clients have said it works.
If you had a lot of memory loss Im surprised they didnt do the treatments unilateral as opposed to bilateral. By this I mean they put the electrode to the base of your skull, in the back and on the right side I believe. Some clients found this helped. And as far as the TMS goes......to be honest Im a skeptic. But some clients have said it works.
SweetAndSassyOne
"Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels"
They started unilateral. When the results weren't great, they wanted to try bilateral and I agreed. I was expecting some short term memory loss but it was much more severe than I was expecting or what they had led me to expect. Like, I had been seeing the same psychiatrist and going to the same grocery store for about seven years. And I forgot how to get to those places. Had to get directions from someone and learn the routes again. I totally forgot that one of my cats had been treated for cancer about a year before I had the ECT. I don't remember anything about her cancer treatment, still - I only know she had it because people have told me and I believe them. It wasn't just forgetting things I did or conversations I had during the time I was having ECT.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
I feel for you too because I also have had long-term depression with some help from meds and therapy. I hope this doesn't sound too simplistic but I wonder about Seasonal Affective Disorder - does your depression seem worse in the winter? I see that you are in Ohio. I'm in Michigan and we rarely see the sun in the winter and maybe Ohio is the same? I've heard about light therapy for SAD - it looks like the lights for that vary in cost so I'm not sure if you want to spend money on something that you're not quite sure about. Maybe try craigslist?
I'm sorry you are struggling - depression sucks
I'm sorry you are struggling - depression sucks
It's definitely not seasonal. I've had severe episodes at all times of the year.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
Kelly,
You aren't alone here. I suffer from pretty bad depression, too. For me, it feels like a cloud (with a low pressure front) is following me around all the time. I don't have a lot of energy and I spend a lot of time sleeping when it's at its worst.
My depression is accompanied by almost crippling anxiety, which is only partially controlled by medication. I don't have panic attacks when I'm medicated, but I do have a lot of worry.
Depression is a tough one. I don't have a lot to offer, except that this isn't your choice. I love when people tell us to just snap out of it or just buck up and do X. It doesn't work like that.
I deal with it by partially accepting my limitations. I can't handle non-stop activity. I can work a full day, but I'm going to want the evening to decompress from the stress from pretending that I'm okay. I don't want added stressors in my life. I schedule periodic vacations away from social and pressures. I avoid the news as much as possible.
After a particularly harrowing case last fall, I've decided to fire clients when things get too bizarre. I just can't lose any more sleep to things that are beyond my control.
Obviously, this puts my career and my marriage on the top of my priority lists. My health comes next. My extended family sort of gets the shaft. My house is clean, but only because my husband has OCD. My community activities are somewhat non-existent right now, although I do pro-bono legal work. My friends understand, but I know I've lost the closeness I used to have with them. I want a bigger life, but I really can't have one with the level of depression and anxiety that I have.
That's the deal I made with myself. It's the best I can do. I've stopped feeling guilty about it (after a lot of therapy).
You aren't alone here. I suffer from pretty bad depression, too. For me, it feels like a cloud (with a low pressure front) is following me around all the time. I don't have a lot of energy and I spend a lot of time sleeping when it's at its worst.
My depression is accompanied by almost crippling anxiety, which is only partially controlled by medication. I don't have panic attacks when I'm medicated, but I do have a lot of worry.
Depression is a tough one. I don't have a lot to offer, except that this isn't your choice. I love when people tell us to just snap out of it or just buck up and do X. It doesn't work like that.
I deal with it by partially accepting my limitations. I can't handle non-stop activity. I can work a full day, but I'm going to want the evening to decompress from the stress from pretending that I'm okay. I don't want added stressors in my life. I schedule periodic vacations away from social and pressures. I avoid the news as much as possible.
After a particularly harrowing case last fall, I've decided to fire clients when things get too bizarre. I just can't lose any more sleep to things that are beyond my control.
Obviously, this puts my career and my marriage on the top of my priority lists. My health comes next. My extended family sort of gets the shaft. My house is clean, but only because my husband has OCD. My community activities are somewhat non-existent right now, although I do pro-bono legal work. My friends understand, but I know I've lost the closeness I used to have with them. I want a bigger life, but I really can't have one with the level of depression and anxiety that I have.
That's the deal I made with myself. It's the best I can do. I've stopped feeling guilty about it (after a lot of therapy).
I'm sorry to hear you are struggling! I've suffered with depression for half of my life so I "get it."
Even though you've tried many different medicines, do you think it's worth trying something different now, even if it's something you tried a few years ago? I found that welbutrin and lexapro worked well together for me for a few years and then just didn't anymore. I'm not sure what changed in my body but something did (this was pre-surgery). I'm on prozac now and I feel much better but still not depression-free. I'm not sure how long you've been on your current medication but maybe it's worth talking to your doctor about a change.
Also are you still in therapy? I find that when I get back into a really bad depression, it helps a little to restart therapy. Also if you are still in therapy, are you happy with your therapist? I've gone to many therapists but didn't really feel like it was helping until I started therapy with my latest therapist.
I know there's no cure-all answer and it sounds like you've tried a lot of different things, but maybe it's time to shake things up and see if you can get below an 8 :-).
Even though you've tried many different medicines, do you think it's worth trying something different now, even if it's something you tried a few years ago? I found that welbutrin and lexapro worked well together for me for a few years and then just didn't anymore. I'm not sure what changed in my body but something did (this was pre-surgery). I'm on prozac now and I feel much better but still not depression-free. I'm not sure how long you've been on your current medication but maybe it's worth talking to your doctor about a change.
Also are you still in therapy? I find that when I get back into a really bad depression, it helps a little to restart therapy. Also if you are still in therapy, are you happy with your therapist? I've gone to many therapists but didn't really feel like it was helping until I started therapy with my latest therapist.
I know there's no cure-all answer and it sounds like you've tried a lot of different things, but maybe it's time to shake things up and see if you can get below an 8 :-).
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