Date: Sat, 9 Mar 1996 15:12:58 -0600 (CST)
From: Elizabeth Harrison <sybil-AT-csd.uwm.edu>
Subject: Re: (Fwd) STOP FORCED ELECTROSHOCK!


On Sat, 9 Mar 1996 WITKIEWICZ-AT-aol.com wrote:

> While this may not be the appropriate forum to discuss ECT, my strong
> reaction to Sybil's defense of this practice leads me to respond.  As a
> practicing psychotherapist, I am invariably appalled when when I hear of or
> witness instances of this barbaric practice.  While we hear of the occasional
> "remarkable" results some individuals have received, my observation is that
> this practice occurs mostly when medical practitioners have run out of
> options in their limited bag of tricks, and appears to happen in a context of
> "punishing" individuals who have not responded to traditional forms of
> psycho- pharmacology.  The notion that ECT's effects on memory are invariably
> short-term is extremely misleading and not substantiated.  The renewed
> interest and practice of ECT is evidence of the poverty of the medical model
> of psychology.
> 
> Marc Ferguson
> Northampton, MA
> 
> p.s. see http://www.javanet.com/~pzskiba/dbt.html for a treatment modality
> which is a counter-example to the prevailing medical model.
> 
Dear Marc;
  My post seems to have poduced some misunderstanding which is entirely 
likely concidering the volatile topic of ECT.  You are correct in 
questioning whether this discussion belongs to the DGean debate, it 
probably does not.
  Let me just say, however, that my initial objections to the post re:ECT 
involved the author's attempt to associate it with premature death 
(whatever that is) in the elderly, long term memory loss, and human 
experimentation.  Finally, although I personally do find the practice 
barbaric, it is not without its success stories.  Several current cancer 
therapies for example could also be described as barbaric but it is 
important in our discussion that we avoid misrepresentation.  This is 
surely as much of a concern for scientists as it is for philosophers.
S.

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