Reply #33: No way I'm sitting this one out

[davidthegnome]

As soon as they open up I'm giving them a call.

Post traumatic stress is my diagnosis too, undergroundpanther. I have been treated (though "mistreated" would be more accurate) since I was about 13 with psychiatric drugs, a variety of chemical cocktails. When I was 18 (I'm 24 now) I was in a psych ward for five days. A young lady there who was very depressed and suicidal was receiving voluntary ECT.

Fortunately I got to know her in between treatments. Lovely young woman from South Korea, adopted into an American family in infancy. She was very bright, compassionate - and it was her advice and her empathy that helped me make it through more than anything else.

The ECT wiped out her memory base - despite conversations we'd had, hours long, chess games we'd played, the sharing of our life stories... she couldn't remember me at all once she was finally released from the hospital. It is my understanding that she committed suicide a couple of years later.

ECT is a barbaric practice, it has no place in the treatment of the mentally ill.

As one of the mentally ill - Ray's story may have been my own. I have my ups and downs, and I can imagine the sort of situation that might have placed me in similar circumstances. This is indeed fascism, tyranny, and those of us who are aware of it and sit idly by will have no one to help us should we ever end up in the same situation.

Of course, generally speaking, our mental health institutions are guilty of a great deal more than this - past and present. But this is one of those times when we can, and should do something about it.

I'll be glad to help you out with this in any way I can.