Posted by Spector on July 28, 2005, at 12:27:19
In reply to Re: Deep Brain Stimulation.... » Spector, posted by Ant-Rock on July 28, 2005, at 7:06:45
> Wow Nomi,
> Thank you so much for the great info.
> I can't believe the study is at Brown, I actually live in that city!
> I would love the contact names, just in case I ever consider this route.
>
> It's so hard chosing an option for treatment. I'ts almost like rolling the dice with your life, but so is not treating the depression.
> I'm just trying to gather as much info as possible, and hoping technology speeds up.
>
> I don't know if neurofeedback would help, seeing that my illness has lasted so many years, but I will keep it in mind. Is it the same as biofeedback?
>
> Also, thank you for sharing your ECT outcome with me. Was it Unilateral?
>
> Anthony
Hi Anthony,The woman you want to speak with is Dr. Linda Carpenter. The number is: 401-455-6537.
My mom's memory actually is that you don't need to have done ECT. It's more that they want you to have tried a certain number of medications of different types, but not some astronomical amount.
You live in Providence. Wow. That helps a bit.
Yes, rolling the dice with your life. Yes. I know. But as serious as DBS is, as you probably know, they've done the technique on thousands of Parkinson's patients. It is brain surgery, but relatively noninvasive and low risk. And it is reversible. But still, of course, a huge investment of everything that you have so little of because you are sick now -- energy, hope, everything.
Neurofeedback is a type of biofeedback, but with the brain. It is operant behavioral conditioning designed to retrain your brain into a healthier wave pattern. You do exercises looking at a graphic representaion of your brainwave patterns and when you are mysteriously able to alter them into a better pattern, you are rewarded with plesant dings. You don't know how you're doing it -- it's not exactly relaxation or concentration, but apparently the brain knows. It learns. And then hopefully it is able to "generalize" -- maintain the better pattern when your not doing to training. It has worked for people with chronic severe depression. It has been way more effective than regular biofeedback.
No, the ECT I did was bilateral.
I wish you the best of everything you need right now. You will come out.
Nomi
poster:Spector
thread:533330
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050728/msgs/534785.html