Tuckute

[Tuckute]

I am a 73 year old single man, living alone. Been seriously depressed for 18 months. Had 3 hospitalizations, tried several meds, all ineffective. Have started ECT, with 3 sessions (last on June 3, 2024) and resuming tomorrow. No effective results yet.

[Aguila1794]

Your hardship of trying to find relief resonates with me deeply because I have also been in mental hospitals that didn’t help. In all seriousness, have you given God and Christianity a shot?

[Tuckute in reply to Aguila1794]

I am a faithful Catholic/Christian and I pray to God to lead me in the right direction, but it's still difficult.

[Aguila1794 in reply to Tuckute]

I’m glad you’re a Christian and I agree that it’s very difficult at times. May God and peace be with you.

[Agora1]

Hi Tuckute, according to Mayo Clinic, results from ECT can take up six treatments

before seeing some results. Highly used for patients unable to tolerate medications

or any other treatment that was provided. Talk with your doctor about your concerns.

Patience is necessary as results may be different for each patient. My best to you Tuckute.

Please keep us updated on your progress. xx

[Tuckute in reply to Agora1]

Your words are encouraging, Agora. Thank you.

[kassalee]

This is my first time here, I ended up here in a kind of serendipity thing, with one of my teachers talking about how we need an Anxiety Anonymous.

So, I ran a search and ended up here.

I hope its okay to make suggestions here, it seems like it would be, so here goes.

I am a member of Recovery International (aka RI Self Help). I have been a member for many years, there are Zoom meetings all over the USA and some abroad.

recoveryinternational.org/

People drop in on the Zoom groups all the time, checking things out.

The meetings are free, but donations are appreciated.

I encourage you to take a look, its basically peer support group, people from many walks of life, many midlife and senior citizens.

[SayNOtoPanic]

Blessings to you Tuckute. Prayers for healing for you. Hang in there. You got this.

[PacoDennis]

I am 71 and have depression and anxiety for 15 years. Sometimes it gets really bad. I have made it through the bad times so far. That helps me believe I can do it again when/if it gets bad again. Mostly I use CBT methods of balancing my mental illness. I hope something works for you soon!

[brendahol]

it is so hard getting older, I know where you are coming from. Besides all of the anxiety and depression many people have, we also have to contend with physical changes, a “double whammy “. I am so glad to hear that you have faith. I wish I could help more. Just know you are not alone and we are praying for you. Sending a big hug😊

[designguy]

You might want to have a check to see if you are suffering from low testosterone it can contribute to or cause depression and even anxiety. Also have your thyroid and adrenals checked, they can also contribute to mood disorder if not balanced. Low testosterone is fairly common with older males, mine was low and I now do biweekly shots.

[bethelbee]

Talk to your doctor about TMS if ECT is ineffective. It's a noninvasive treatment that uses magnetic pulses to a part of the brain to help eliminate depression. Treatment is typically 5x/wk for 6-7 wks with each session about 20 minutes. As I with any treatment results vary. I a 69 and was on meds for decades, some with great success but a few years ago became treatment resistant to them. Luckily my therapist recommended TMS. For me it was successful. I hope you are able to find relief!!

[Hidden]

I get it! I am a little younger than you are. since I was 19, I have been searching for ANY relief. I have tried a cross-section of multiple meds in all the antidepressant categories. I have tried ECT, EMDR, talk therapy. Now I am dealing with aging related issues. May I add you to my prayer list?