A New Appreciation of ECT

Max Fink

By
| April 1, 2004

Dr. Fink is professor of psychiatry and neurology emeritus at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He is the author of Electroshock: Restoring the Mind (Oxford University Press) and founder of the quarterly journal Convulsive Therapy (J ECT).

These hostile pictures of psychiatry and especially of shock therapy led to the legislation that interdicted ECT in California in 1973 and Texas in 1993, and regulated its use in other states. Historian Edward Shorter, Ph.D., asked in this series, how did it come about that an effective and safe treatment was so stigmatized as to preclude its use for the many chronic mentally ill for whom it may be a benefit (Psychiatric Times February, pp93-96)? The attacks on ECT by popular writers in the press and in film drowned out the voices that described its benefits.

The public testimony has changed; it is time to hearken to the testimony of these witnesses and roll back the unethical restrictions that commit our most disadvantaged citizens to unnecessary chronic illness, prolonged hospital care and even death.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6

References
1. Anonymous (1984), How I owe my life to ECT--By a practicing psychiatrist. Am J Soc Psychiatry 4:16-17.
2. A practicing psychiatrist (1965), The experience of electro-convulsive therapy. Br J Psychiatry 111:365-367.
3. Endler NS (1982), Holiday of Darkness: A Psychologist's Personal Journey Out of Depression. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
4. Fink M (1997), Prejudice against ECT: competition with psychological philosophies as a contribution to its stigma. Convulsive Ther 13(4):253-265; discussion 266-268.
5. Manning M (1994), Undercurrents: A Therapist's Reckoning with Her Own Depression. San Francisco: HarperCollins.
6. Miller J (1991), Madness [PBS/BBC Documentary].
7. Nuland SB (2003), Lost in America: A Journey with My Father. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
8. Plath S (1996), The Bell Jar. San Francisco: HarperCollins.
9. Rosenberg LE (2002) Brainsick: a physician's journey to the brink. Cerebrum 4(4):2-10.
10. Rouech‚ B (1974), As Empty as Eve. The New Yorker. Sept. 9:84-100.
11. Smith S (2003), Shock therapy aiding Kitty Dukakis. Boston Globe. July 24:B1.
12. Wasserman D, Kesey K (1970), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: A Play in Two Acts. New York: Samuel French.

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A New Appreciation of ECT

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