Should i let my mum have Electro-convulsive treatment (ECT)?

If your mother is in a state where she's not herself and medication has not helped then ECT might be the next logical step for her. I had ECT for nearly three years and it helped me a lot. I was severely depressed and nearly suicidal. It saved my life. None of the several medications I was taking at the time were working. I had three treatments a week, then twice a week, then once a week, then every two weeks, then every three weeks, etc. I had maintenence treatments every three weeks for nearly three years. I asked my doctor for ECT because I felt that it was my last and only hope. It is a safe and effective treatment for severe depression. It worked when medications did not. Not everyone does maintenance treatments like I did; many patients feel significantly better and discontinue ECT after a short while. I discontinued it when my doctor prescribed a medication called Abilify, which helped me tremendously and enabled me to function without doing the ECT. I haven't had a treatment in 18 months. But I don't regret doing it. It saved my life. The only side effect was some short-term memory loss, which was temporary. The decision is ultimately up to you and your mother, but I wanted to let you know that there is nothing to be afraid of, and that ECT works. All the best to you both.

ECT is usually always a last resort after trying therapies and a number of different of anti depressant/mood stabiliser combinations. As a last resort 6-12 sessions of ECT have proved really successful for some patients

Has she tried anti depressants? If she has and they have not worked then ECT may be a viable option. The biggest issue with it is the memory loss which is temporary in most cases. Most peope that I know who have ECT (I am in Bipolar and in a large support group) have said it helped when nothing else worked. But ultimately it is not your choice... it is up to your mother.

Ask the hospital what the odds are for a successful outcome. I would have thought that drug treatment would be less risky. Ask her GP, not the hospital, for his opinion. I too have my doubts about ECT.