Life After ECT (Anna)

This interview answers the most common questions people have about electroconvulsive therapy (also known as shock treatment, electroshock or ECT): Does ECT work? Does ECT cause Memory loss? Does ECT cause permanent memory loss? How will ECT memory loss impact my life, family and relationships? Does ECT cause brain damage? What barriers are common for people living life after ECT? Where can I get help after ECT for my injuries? Is the short-term benefit some people experience from ECT worth the risk of its long-term consequences? Marissa, a student in San Diego State University’s Rehabilitation Counseling Master’s program who chose to specialize in the Cognitive Certificate, interviewed me as part of her class project about barriers to accessing help after brain injury. In this video we discuss immediate and delayed consequences of repetitive electrical injury caused by electroconvulsive therapy, the California Department of Rehabilitation Brain Injury Advisory Board meetings, Neuropathology findings of electrical injury (gliosis, myelin sheath injury, vascular abnormalities, chronic microbleeds, brain stem injury, acquired channelopathies, dysarthria, swallowing issues, barriers to appropriate brain injury assessment for people harmed by medical treatment, academic accommodations, personal strategies I tried to improve my quality of life after ECT, memory problems and how memory loss impacts personal identity and personal relationships. Sarah Price Hancock, MS, CRC, lived for nearly two decades misdiagnosed with severe mental illness. She was given 116 bilateral ECT treatments and now lives with delayed electrical injury. Sarah holds a Master’s in Rehabilitation Counseling and taught for four years in San Diego State University’s Rehabilitation Counseling program. She also hosts The Emotional Self-Reliance Podcast and guest lectures on psychiatric recovery. Follow her on Twitter Sarah P. Hancock, MS, CRC ♿ (@PsychRecovery) / Twitter Help ensure patients like Sarah get access to vital testing and rehabilitation and medical care by signing her petition Petition · Standardize, Regulate & Audit Shock Treatments (Electroconvulsive therapy or ECT) · Change.org Injured By ECT? Visit our resource pages  Resources  Action  Litigation

There are so many things I wish I had known before having ECT. The following are the focus of this episode: Like how my doctors would treat me after being disabled by the procedure The "new and improved" safety measures aren't as effective as advertised ECT's lasting impact on how the brain processes vision That ECT doctors don't know much about electricity or what it does to the human body Some people will experience serious disabling conditions from the electricity used to cause a seizure citations and resources 5 Things I wish I knew before having ECT (electroconvulsive therapy)

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 

4 patient safety activists discuss their efforts for an independent review of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) use in the UK.

CAMPAIGN AIMS

Learn about the campaigners’ aims and find links to related resources: Guest blog: Call for an independent review into the practice of ECT

LUCY JOHNSTON

• Lucy Johnston is a consultant clinical psychologist and author.

JOHN READ

John Read is a professor of clinical psychology of East London with numerous publications to his name. He has been in the ECT reform space for many years following his first-hand experience with electroshock recipients while in the nursing field.

CHRIS HARROP

Chris Harrop is a private practicing clinical psychologist with 20+ years of experience working for the National Health Service (NHS). He has numerous publications on psychosis and is the coauthor of many of the freedom of information (FOA) requests regarding the UK’s ECT practice, regulation, or lack thereof.

SUSAN CUNLIFFE, MBCHB HONOURS

Sue Cunliffe is a former pediatrician and abuse survivor who suffered life-changing permanent damage from electroconvulsive therapy. She is a passionate campaigner for ECT patient safety through informed consent, regulation, and proper practice.

SARAH PRICE HANCOCK MS, CRC

Misdiagnosis of a medically treatable illness led Sarah to years of polypharmacy and 116 ECT treatments. Sarah now lives with the devastating long-term consequences of electrical injury. She is campaigning for the audit and regulation of ECT.

Audit ECT campaign

A DISORDER FOR EVERYONE ORG

About A Disorder for Everyone

Website

Electroconvulsive therapy ( ECT ) destroyed my life but I’m not allowed to say it. If I do I get treated like a crazy liar. I’m accused of stigmatizing mentally Ill people who depend on ECT for survival. Some call me anti- science, others have called me a religious extremist. I've been told to shut up and stop complaining, that I “knew what I was getting into” when I agreed to have shock therapy. I did not because I was a minor who was not given full informed consent. And let's be honest, ECT consent for minors is an illusion, anyways; brain development doesn't stop till early 20’s. As for consent, I was told ECT, once controversial, was now a legitimate, science based treatment that can be life saving. “It’s not like One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest Anymore, the mantra goes.” For risks I was told ECT was safe, effective and did not cause brain damage. I was told any memory problems I had were temporary. None of this was true. I have brain & nervous system damage from ECT. I Am severely disabled. Now 13 years after my last treatment I am showing signs of neurodegeneration in my 30s ala long term sequelae of electrical injury. ECT defenders demand it be treated like a legitimate medical procedure but they don’t apply those same standards to themselves. If a patient has a known side effect the doctor acknowledges and treats it. Think of a surgeon taking post-op x-rays and writing physical therapy referrals for a knee replacement patient to get them walking after the trauma surgery. Doctors refused to believe me when I was suffering dangerous, debilitating, known side-effects from shock treatment. Eventually I got tested and have been diagnosed with chronic encephalopathy, anterior grade amnesia, working memory deficit– all evidence of brain damage. I still can't get any doctors to help treat these progressive injuries that are becoming life threatening. Seizures, heart abnormalities, acquired channelopathies, etc. Yet I’m not allowed to speak my truth. I’m not allowed to raise awareness that I was harmed and will die without correct medical care. What's worse? I’m not an outlier; I’ve met hundreds of injured ECT patients with similar outcomes and read even more accounts of serious disability from electroshock. Their doctors won't help them. They can't work, can't take care of themselves, and don't remember what they ate for breakfast. The trauma, confusion of brain damage and gaslignitng leaves many of us suicidal.  We're constantly told we’re imagining things, ECT doesn't do that, it's your mental illness, get over it, you chose this, stop stigmatizing people who need ECT.

David Russell is an involuntarily committed patient at the Minnesota Mayo Clinic, who has been subjected to forced electroshock therapy (ECT) against his will.

His case has drawn significant attention and advocacy efforts fromMindFreedom International⁠, an organization focused on human rights in mental health care.

Read David’s full story here:⁠https://mindfreedom.org/front-page/david-russell/⁠

Show Notes https://docs.google.com/document/d/1k2m7mZle83Snh_owlJ3B5NbrrkM6mqvg3FV3Z_HGSG8/edit?usp=sharing

Connecticut Public Health Hearings on SB898 ECT, February 1st, 2023

C G A (ct.gov)

2023SB-00898-R00-SB.PDF (ct.gov)

2021 Senate Bill 898 (wisconsin.gov)

Public Health Committee Public Hearing - YouTube

More works by Professor Read

• John Read and Irving Kirsch – Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Does the Evidence From Clinical Trials Justify its Continued Use? – Mad in the UK 
• A second independent audit of electroconvulsive therapy in England, 2019: Usage, demographics, consent, and adherence to guidelines and legislation  
• Why aren’t patients being told truth about electric shock therapy? 

Does Electroconvulsive Therapy have a place in 21st century evidence-based medicine?

The following is a Presentation by Professor John Read given in March 2024.

Dr. John Read is Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of East London. He has published over 180 research papers and in 2022 was listed in Stanford University's register of the top 2% most cited researchers in the world.

He has published six reviews of the ECT research literature (including four in peer-reviewed journals) and made multiple commentaries on the research.

His most recent peer-reviewed review of the ECT literature was a 40-page paper, in 2019, written with Professor Irving Kirsch, Associate Director of Placebo Studies at Harvard Medical School.

He is also the lead researcher on two independent audits of the administration and monitoring of ECT in England's Health Service and co-author of three studies of the accuracy of information provided to ECT patients and their families.

https://www.uel.ac.uk/about-uel/staff/john-read⁠

His latest research:

https://lifeafterect.com/participate-in-groundbreaking-research-share-your-experience-with-electroconvulsive-therapy-in-the-sectaff-survey/

This presentation was in colaboration with Participation and the Practice of Rights (PPR)

https://www.nlb.ie/campaigns/mental-health

Full presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MY5CTuMbW2w&t=2s

Bill SB898 Public Health Hearings, Connecticut

The state of Connecticut held public hearings on several bills that would impact forced electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in that state.

This is the testimony of ECT survivor and attorney Kathy Flaherty regarding a new ECT bill in Connecticut that extends the timeframe a patient deemed unable to consent can be forcibly given electroshock and eliminates the probate court process. 

View written testimony 2023SB-00898-R000201-Flaherty, Kathy, Executive Director-Connecticut Legal Rights Project-Opposes-TMY.PDF.

Connecticut Public Health Hearings on SB898 ECT, February 1st, 2023

C G A (ct.gov)

2023SB-00898-R00-SB.PDF (ct.gov)

2021 Senate Bill 898 (wisconsin.gov)

Public Health Committee Public Hearing - YouTube

This is a presentation by Sarah Price Hancock for the Stop Depression Summit, 2023. ⁠⁠https://stopdepressionsummit.com/⁠⁠ 

Show notes and links

⁠https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EWo9lkpuK2lU4roaMYumZ8fJ6ujM4UKc_IBvsOnskfk/edit?usp=sharing⁠

About Sarah

Sarah lived for nearly two decades, misdiagnosed with severe “treatment resistant” mental illness. She was given⁠⁠ ⁠116 bilateral ECT treatments⁠⁠⁠ and now lives with Delayed Electrical Injury’s Myoneural Disorder.

Sarah holds a Master’s in Rehabilitation Counseling and taught for four years in San Diego State University’s Rehabilitation Counseling program. She also hosts The Emotional Self-Reliance Podcast and guest lectures on psychiatric recovery.

She founded a newly formed nonprofit, The ⁠⁠⁠Ionic Injury Foundation⁠⁠⁠, with a focus on electrical injury research. Donate to her fundraiser ⁠⁠https://www.gofundme.com/f/ionic-injury-foundation?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1⁠⁠

Learn how you can participate in⁠⁠ ⁠electrical injury research⁠⁠⁠.

Learn about⁠⁠ ⁠Sarah’s campaign⁠⁠⁠ to ensure those harmed by ECT get the help they need and future ECT patients are protected through standardization and regulation.

This is a recording of a presentation by electrical injury expert Dr. Marc Jeschke (pronounced yesh-key) explains the similarities between high and low voltage electrical injuries, the physical and social impacts of these injuries, and what research is needed to improve patient outcomes. We thank Dr. Jeschke for allowing us to share his important information with our community.

View slides  

Did you know ECT has never been FDA-tested for safety or efficacy? Learn more about why this matters and how you can help improve outcomes for all patients  - Audit ECT Campaign 

This video is for anyone who feels like they lost a part of themselves after ECT.

I want to give voice to the unseen challenges so many face after electroconvulsive therapy. Many who’ve had ECT are living with undiagnosed, untreated disabilities—struggling to find acknowledgment and support. The aftermath of ECT can be life-changing, impacting everything—identity, career, and relationships. I created this video essay to process my own experience of becoming disabled after ECT.

My hope is that it will help you know that your experience is real and you are not alone.

This video was originally uploaded to YouTube in 2016. Resources

Grief After ECT: https://lifeafterect.com/disenfranchised-grief-the-unseen-pain-of-those-disabled-by-electroconvulsive-therapy-ect/Resources: https://lifeafterect.com/resources/ ECT Stories: https://lifeafterect.com/ect-stories/

Get Involved

Learn how you can help support people harmed by ECT

https://www.change.org/p/standardize-regulate-audit-shock-treatments-electroconvulsive-therapy-or-ect ------------ Life After ECT Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people harmed by ECT through advocacy, education, and research.

https://lifeafterect.com/donate

Linda Andre Testimony - Vermont House Bill H12, Informed consent to electroconvulsive therapy, 1999

Testimony date: 2000

⁠Links to Linda's Work

If you can, please consider supporting Linda's son's GoFund me to cover funeral expenses and preserve her library of research. ⁠Fundraiser by Alandra Markman : Linda Andre's Legacy (gofundme.com)⁠  ( https://www.gofundme.com/f/linda-andre )

There are so many things I wish I had known before having ECT. The following are the focus of this episode:

• Like how my doctors would treat me after being disabled by the procedure
• The "new and improved" safety measures aren't as effective as advertised
• ECT's lasting impact on how the brain processes vision
• That ECT doctors don't know much about electricity or what it does to the human body
• Some people will experience serious disabling conditions from the electricity used to cause a seizure

citations and resources ⁠5 Things I wish I knew before having ECT (electroconvulsive therapy)

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 

Welcome to the Life After ECT Podcast! This intro give background on why I made this podcast and what I hope to accomplish. Thanks for stopping by!

Bill SB898 Public Health Hearings, Connecticut 

Chris Dubey is a survivor of forced electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). 

Read his written testimony We Must Not Remove Legal Protections for People at Risk of Forced ECT - Mad In America

Connecticut Public Health Hearings on SB898 ECT, February 1st, 2023

C G A (ct.gov)

2023SB-00898-R00-SB.PDF (ct.gov)

2021 Senate Bill 898 (wisconsin.gov)

Public Health Committee Public Hearing - YouTube

12/6/24

Update: David Russel has been released!

The following is an update on forced drugging and ECT hearings.

Content Warnings:

• Forced psychiactric treatment/ ECT

Show Notes

Life After ECT, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to improving the lives of those harmed by ECT through advocacy, education, and research. Learn how you can support our work.

Today audio is from Deborah Swartzkopf, a former Level One Trauma Nurse, electroshock survivor, and founder of ECTJustice.com. In this episode, she explains the steps you need to take to file a lawsuit after being injured by ECT. 

Deborah also covers issues like the statute of limitations for filing an ECT lawsuit, and tips for submitting your experience to law firms.

RESOURCES:  

Action Page 

Litigation Page

Help improve ECT patient safety - Audit ECT petition

Resources Page 

Obtaining medical records 

Testing 

Thank you for tuning into the Life After ECT Podcast.

Life After ECT Inc. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organazation focused on improving the quality of life for those injured by ECT.

Learn more about what we do and how you can support our work: Looking to a Brighter Future for Those Harmed by ECT

Show Notes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LrUHhroyOX66T7FUQ0iytyfNoCzmqKN91PQ0LfiKeBI/edit?usp=sharing

Correction: The law firm is now Wisner & Baum, not Baum Headlund

Disenfranchised grief: the unseen pain of those disabled by electroconvulsive therapy In this podcast, I talk about the grief that people disabled by electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) may experience, which often goes unrecognized. I want to clarify that I am not a mental health professional but someone who has gone through this experience, sharing what has helped my ongoing recovery. (see full disclaimer)

Resources mentioned in the episode: https://lifeafterect.com/disenfranchised-grief-the-unseen-pain-of-those-disabled-by-electroconvulsive-therapy-ect/ Support our mission: https://lifeafterect.com/donate/ Sign our patient safety petition: https://www.change.org/p/standardize-regulate-audit-shock-treatments-electroconvulsive-therapy-or-ect

Linda Andre Testimony - Vermont House Bill H12, Informed consent to electroconvulsive therapy, 1999

Testimony date: 2000

⁠⁠Links to Linda's Work⁠

If you can, please consider supporting Linda's son's GoFund me to cover funeral expenses and preserve her library of research. ⁠⁠Fundraiser by Alandra Markman : Linda Andre's Legacy (gofundme.com)⁠⁠  ( https://www.gofundme.com/f/linda-andre )

The following guest audio is part two of 3 part series from electroshock survivor, Lisa Morrison. She shares her experiences before and after receiving electroconvulsive therapy as well as valuable insights on patient care.

Part 1 

See show notes for links:

Show Notes 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CABT2asu7F3JdFDjhMFMiLMGfozu_mSMJm-ZsG42PQo/edit?usp=sharing 

Lisa Morrison:

"The following 3-part blog arose after agreeing to be interviewed about my experiences of receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) by the BBC NI. The purpose is to share my views, experiences, and questions arising from facing the reality that I had received ECT on far more occasions than I remembered. The purpose is to share my views, experiences and questions arising from facing the reality that I had received ECT on far more occasions than I remembered. I have also since, received some of my records which had been requested because of my sketchy memory. These validated issues I have raised through my work but were quite challenging and at times distressing to read. This is a bog-standard reflection of my thoughts on ECT and the system in which it was delivered as I try to make sense of my own journey through mental health services. It has helped me take what felt overwhelming and ‘too big’ and translate it into a narrative which I hope will contribute to positive change. I have not tried to give all perspectives or reference multiple research papers. This is just my story. I intentionally refer to ‘the system’ and not individuals as I believe, in the most part, people wanted to help."

I often get asked if electroconvulsive therapy can erase bad memories. I made this video to answer that question by sharing my experience with traumatic memories before and after shock therapy to show how it can impact people with this condition.

Can ECT erase bad memories? Electroconvulsive Therapy and The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - Life After ECT

This guest audio is from the Emotional Self Reliance Podcast. Sarah P. Hancock and her friend, Greg Threadgold have both had electroconvulsive therapy with remarkably different outcomes. In this episode, the two compare their different results with ECT and discuss the need for better regulation of this procedure to ensure good outcomes for all patients.See original interview.

SHOW NOTES

I sat down with Greg Threadgold, an ECT patient who feels ECT saved his life. 

We had a sincere discussion about the differences in treatment practices and the need to prevent injury among ECT patients. 

Greg Threadgold discusses his ECT Success and shares how he felt about my failed treatment. 

Repetitive head injury has delayed effects as does low-voltage diffuse electrical injury. 

ECT must be considered through the lens of both repetitive head trauma and an electrical injury (900 milliamps/450 volts/504mC).  

To standardize, regulate, audit ECT and provide rehabilitation to patients if/when injured, please sign and share the international patient safety petition www.change.org/patientsafetyECT   

Your signature could save a life.  

Sadly, Greg's experienced his first episode of symptoms associated with delayed electrical injury eight years after having 13 treatments. His experience speaks to the reality that even "successful ECT outcomes" carry the risk of developing low-voltage diffuse electrical injury symptoms years after treatment. Paroxysmal neurological disorders from electrical injuries acquired channelopathies can be difficult to recognize and diagnose.  

We desperately need researchers who study acquired brain injuries and/or repetitive head injuries to do a retrospective study on people with a history of shock treatment to identify needs associated with the delayed effects of repeatedly exposing the brain to 900 milliamps/450 volts of electricity.   

Dr. Bennet Omalu, the neuropathologist who first identified and published on Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy among American Football Players, stated in California's Department of Rehabilitation TBI Advisory Board Meeting that electroconvulsive therapy must be considered through the lens of a repetitive electrical injury to the head. 

The neuropathology of ECT is clear. It's both a repetitive head injury and an electrical injury--and must be considered as such when considering the functional acquired brain injury to develop appropriate interventional rehabilitative care. (Omalu, B. (2019, August). TBI Advisory Board Meeting of California's Department of Rehabilitation, Sacramento, CA).    

Please continue to share the #AuditECT petition https://www.change.org/p/standardize-...

An Interview with Linda Andre by Philip Bennet, recorded several years ago (the recording date was not included in the file). In it they discuss her book, Doctors of Deception, What they Don't Want You to Know About Shock Treatment.

Our community has recently suffered a great loss. Linda Andre, author of one of the most important books on ECT ever written, passed away this month. Linda was my hero. I first came across her work while desperately searching the Internet for answers when ECT damaged my brain and my doctors refused to believe me. Reading her presentation "Electroconvulsive Therapy as a Head Injury" changed my life.

Her work showed me that ECT can cause permanent brain damage and those affected by ECT are routinely denied testing and rehabilitation, as was the case with me. Linda showed me the hope of recovery through the stories of people who found a way to recover when doctors couldn't help them.

There is so much I want to say about Linda, but after ECT, the right words are always so hard to find. Until I can write a full tribute post I wanted to do something so I recorded a small tribute to ger along with her second inteview with Philip Bennet. In it they sumarize key points from her book.

Find links and resources and tributes to Linda Andre in the show notes.

This is a presentation by Sarah Price Hancock for the Stop Depression Summit, 2023. ⁠https://stopdepressionsummit.com/⁠ 

Show notes and links

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EWo9lkpuK2lU4roaMYumZ8fJ6ujM4UKc_IBvsOnskfk/edit?usp=sharing

About Sarah

Sarah lived for nearly two decades, misdiagnosed with severe “treatment resistant” mental illness. She was given⁠ ⁠116 bilateral ECT treatments⁠⁠ and now lives with Delayed Electrical Injury’s Myoneural Disorder.

Sarah holds a Master’s in Rehabilitation Counseling and taught for four years in San Diego State University’s Rehabilitation Counseling program. She also hosts The Emotional Self-Reliance Podcast and guest lectures on psychiatric recovery.

She founded a newly formed nonprofit, The ⁠⁠Ionic Injury Foundation⁠⁠, with a focus on electrical injury research. Donate to her fundraiser ⁠https://www.gofundme.com/f/ionic-injury-foundation?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1⁠

Learn how you can participate in⁠ ⁠electrical injury research⁠⁠.

Learn about⁠ ⁠Sarah’s campaign⁠⁠ to ensure those harmed by ECT get the help they need and future ECT patients are protected through standardization and regulation.

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...

In this episode, we'll touch on some news then follow up with guest audio from electroshock survivor Lisa Morrison’s amazing 3 part series about her experience with ECT. The following guest audio is a 3 part series from electroshock survivor, Lisa Morrison. She shares her experiences before and after receiving electroconvulsive therapy as well as valuable insights on patient care.  See show notes for links:  Show Notes  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zALXBgdPTzcYoDkay9uxXJX_HsbUgq75YFAHtvMye4Q/edit?usp=sharing  Lisa Morrison: "The following 3-part blog arose after agreeing to be interviewed about my experiences of receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) by the BBC NI. The purpose is to share my views, experiences, and questions arising from facing the reality that I had received ECT on far more occasions than I remembered. The purpose is to share my views, experiences and questions arising from facing the reality that I had received ECT on far more occasions than I remembered. I have also since, received some of my records which had been requested because of my sketchy memory. These validated issues I have raised through my work but were quite challenging and at times distressing to read. This is a bog-standard reflection of my thoughts on ECT and the system in which it was delivered as I try to make sense of my own journey through mental health services. It has helped me take what felt overwhelming and ‘too big’ and translate it into a narrative which I hope will contribute to positive change. I have not tried to give all perspectives or reference multiple research papers. This is just my story. I intentionally refer to ‘the system’ and not individuals as I believe, in the most part, people wanted to help."

Connecticut Public Health Hearings on SB898 ECT, February 1st, 2023

C G A (ct.gov)

2023SB-00898-R00-SB.PDF (ct.gov)

2021 Senate Bill 898 (wisconsin.gov)

Public Health Committee Public Hearing - YouTube

The state of Connecticut held public hearings on several bills that would impact forced electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in that state.

This is the testimony of Sarah Price Hancock, MS, CRC, regarding a new ECT bill in Connecticut that extends the timeframe a patient deemed unable to consent can be forcibly given electroshock and eliminates the probate court process. 

Sarah lived for nearly two decades, misdiagnosed with severe “treatment resistant” mental illness. She was given 116 bilateral ECT treatments and now lives with Delayed Electrical Injury’s Myoneural Disorder.

Sarah holds a Master’s in Rehabilitation Counseling and taught for four years in San Diego State University’s Rehabilitation Counseling program. She also hosts The Emotional Self-Reliance Podcast and guest lectures on psychiatric recovery.

She founded a newly formed nonprofit, The Ionic Injury Foundation, with a focus on electrical injury research.

Learn how you can participate in electrical injury research.

Learn about Sarah’s campaign to ensure those harmed by ECT get the help they need and future ECT patients are protected through standardization and regulation.

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

This video is for anyone who feels like they lost a part of themselves after ECT. I want to give voice to the unseen challenges so many face after electroconvulsive therapy. Many who’ve had ECT are living with undiagnosed, untreated disabilities—struggling to find acknowledgment and support. The aftermath of ECT can be life-changing, impacting everything—identity, career, and relationships. I created this video essay to process my own experience of becoming disabled after ECT.

My hope is that it will help you know that your experience is real and you are not alone.

This video was originally uploaded to YouTube in 2016. ResourcesGrief After ECT: ⁠https://lifeafterect.com/disenfranchised-grief-the-unseen-pain-of-those-disabled-by-electroconvulsive-therapy-ect/⁠

Resources: ⁠https://lifeafterect.com/resources/ ⁠ECT Stories: ⁠https://lifeafterect.com/ect-stories/⁠

Learn how you can help all who undergo ECT live their best life by supporting reforms that will ensure informed consent, rehab if recipients need it, and more https://www.change.org/p/standardize-regulate-audit-shock-treatments-electroconvulsive-therapy-or-ect⁠ ------------ Life After ECT Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people harmed by ECT through advocacy, education, and research.

⁠https://lifeafterect.com/donate⁠

Connecticut Public Health Hearings on SB898 ECT, February 1st, 2023 This is the testimony of ECT survivor Jill Edwards regarding a new ECT bill in Connecticut that extends the timeframe a patient deemed unable to consent can be forcibly given electroshock and eliminates the probate court process. C G A (ct.gov) 2023SB-00898-R00-SB.PDF (ct.gov) 2021 Senate Bill 898 (wisconsin.gov) Public Health Committee Public Hearing - YouTube The state of Connecticut held public hearings on several bills that would impact forced electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in that state.

Bill SB898 Public Health Hearings, Connecticut

The state of Connecticut held public hearings on several bills that would impact forced electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in that state.

This is the testimony of Emily Stanton, a concerned mental health advocate, regarding this bill in Connecticut that extends the timeframe a patient deemed unable to consent can be forcibly given electroshock and eliminates the probate court process.

Connecticut Public Health Hearings on SB898 ECT, February 1st, 2023

C G A (ct.gov)

2023SB-00898-R00-SB.PDF (ct.gov)

2021 Senate Bill 898 (wisconsin.gov)

Public Health Committee Public Hearing - YouTube

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

1. Include your name, initials or alias if you prefer to remain anonymous
   
2. Briefly describe any work/school issues you had
   
3. 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

-----

JaneLifeAfterECT@gmail.com

LifeAfterECT.com

Welcome to the Life After ECT podcast!

In this episode, we discuss:

- The reality of forced ECT still happening today.

- MindFreedom International's Shield Program, which helps protect against unwanted psychiatric treatment.

- The importance of psychiatric advance directives to formally assert your treatment preferences.

Learn how these resources can help you or a loved one, and how you can get involved in advocating for human rights in mental health care.

Disclaimers

Life After ECT Inc. is not directly affilated with Mindfreedom International -- we believe they are an invaluble human rights resource and want to make those at risk of forced treatment aware of the support they offer.

About Life After ECT Inc.

Life After ECT Inc. is a 501 (c)(3) charitble organazation dedicated to improving the lives of those harmed by electroconvulsive therapy through education, advocacy and research. Learn more about what we do and how you can support our work: Looking to a Brighter Future for Those Harmed by ECT

Show Notes

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FAbX1qa0Z7UQz8vN47dx22ZPHyE1x5ZanWqsiJ73cBo/edit?usp=sharinghttps://docs.google.com/document/d/1FAbX1qa0Z7UQz8vN47dx22ZPHyE1x5ZanWqsiJ73cBo/edit?usp=sharing

Have you experienced any unexpected problems after undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)? Have you faced difficulties in convincing your doctor to refer you for testing and rehabilitation? You're not alone. For over 80 years that ECT has been in use, people have reported disabling side effects. Despite decades of ECT's use, no mandatory standards have been established to ensure that individuals can receive comprehensive testing and rehabilitation if necessary. View the ⁠⁠⁠#AuditECT petition⁠⁠⁠. In 2016, there was an opportunity to address this issue when the FDA attempted to reclassify the ECT device. The FDA's proposed guidance included mandatory neuropsychological testing for those undergoing treatment. However, the American Psychiatric Association (APA), a professional organization representing 36,000 psychiatric physicians, opposed the idea of mandated testing. Eventually, when the reclassification was finalized, the original proposed testing mandates were abandoned. There are people who underwent ECT many years ago and have never undergone a neuropsychological evaluation, not to mention the countless people who have recently undergone electroshock therapy. With an estimated 2 million people worldwide undergoing ECT each year, a staggering number of individuals will continue to struggle to access appropriate testing and treatment for disabilities caused by ECT and other health issues related to electrical injury. See show notes for links and resources.

Many harmed by electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) want to protect themselves from forced ECT in the future.

One way to do this is by creating a psychiatric advanced directive (PAD), which is a document that outlines their wishes regarding psychiatric treatment.

Content warnings: In this episode I briefly discuss forced treatment, unmodified ECT, and the limits of advanced directives. Be sure to practice self care if any of these topics are disressing to you.

Learn more about psychiactric advanced directives, forced and unmodified ECT in the show notes.

The following guest audio is part 3 of 3 part series from electroshock survivor, Lisa Morrison. She shares her experiences before and after receiving electroconvulsive therapy as well as valuable insights on patient care. Part 1 Part 2 See show notes for links: Show Notes https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EWo9lkpuK2lU4roaMYumZ8fJ6ujM4UKc_IBvsOnskfk/edit?usp=sharing 

Lisa Morrison: "The following 3-part blog arose after agreeing to be interviewed about my experiences of receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) by the BBC NI. The purpose is to share my views, experiences, and questions arising from facing the reality that I had received ECT on far more occasions than I remembered. The purpose is to share my views, experiences and questions arising from facing the reality that I had received ECT on far more occasions than I remembered. I have also since, received some of my records which had been requested because of my sketchy memory. These validated issues I have raised through my work but were quite challenging and at times distressing to read. This is a bog-standard reflection of my thoughts on ECT and the system in which it was delivered as I try to make sense of my own journey through mental health services. It has helped me take what felt overwhelming and ‘too big’ and translate it into a narrative which I hope will contribute to positive change. I have not tried to give all perspectives or reference multiple research papers. This is just my story. I intentionally refer to ‘the system’ and not individuals as I believe, in the most part, people wanted to help." ----------------------------------- RESOURCES  How to Report Your ECT Injury to the FDA Action Litigation  Additional Resources  Petition · Standardize, Regulate & Audit Shock Treatments (Electroconvulsive therapy or ECT)