My First ECT (or MST)

I was supposed to have my first treatment on Wednesday but it was delayed because at the last minute the anesthetist decided he wanted to have my asthma assessed, it was fine. So this morning at 8am I jumped into a taxi with a nurse and headed to the hospital conducting the trial, by 9am I was signing the consent form giving them the right to electrocute me causing a seizure. Within minutes of signing I was hooked up to EEG and ECG machines and put to sleep, I didn't even feel the anesthetic kick in (I usually do). I woke up half an hour later with a very sore throat, but no headache and none of the other muscle pains I was expecting. After some water and two cups of tea my throat was better and I was ready to go. When I arrived back I was told to go to bed but ended up playing Spore because I wasn't the least bit tired. I feel like nothing has happened, which is great, but I also worry that I should be feeling something. I don't know if I had MST or ECT, my guess is MST because my memory is completely intact, but when I said that to the recovery nurse she said that's not uncommon for ECT either, but she's got to help keep me confused! I'll find out at the end of treatment which one I had, only eight more to go

Here's a little description of MST for those of you interested.

Magnetic Seizure Therapy (MST), like ECT, involves the induction of a seizure for therapeutic purposes. The major difference, however, is that in MST the seizure is induced using magnetic stimulation rather than the electrical current that is used in ECT.  Magnetic fields are able to pass freely into the brain, making it possible to produce a very focused seizure in a specific area.  The widespread nature of the seizures produced by ECT is thought to be responsible for the memory loss that people report following ECT.  Therefore, by avoiding the use of direct electrical current and inducing a focal seizure, it is thought that MST will be able to improve depressive symptoms without the memory loss seen in ECT. 

MST is a medical procedure performed by doctors.  It involves having a general anaesthetic and a muscle relaxant.  The brain is then stimulated with a controlled series of magnetic pulses using a coil that is placed at a precise location on the head.  The magnetic pulses cause a seizure in the brain which will last up to two minutes.  Because of the muscle relaxants and the anaesthetic, patients do not convulse or ‘fit’ and do not feel any pain. Patients wake up five to ten minutes following the procedure.