Well. I had my first ECT treatment on Monday, and I've got the second one in just a couple short hours. (I have other things to update you on, like Alaska and haircut, but at the present moment ECT takes first priority).
I have to say, at least on Monday, it took me out a lot more than I expected it would.
The procedure itself went well. One of the nurses updated Nasser with "she had a good seizure" at some point. And I really appreciated everyone there- the nurses, the doctors, the staff. They all liked me, haha.
At the end of it all, the nurse wheeled me downstairs where Nasser was waiting for me. Nasser said I just kept falling asleep- in the car on the way home, immediately on the couch once we got home. My wonderful Buddy Cat came and snuggled next to me on the couch for a long time on Monday.
The jaw pain was the first part that was difficult. I couldn't eat much because of it, and resting my head on the couch armrest made it even worse. The jaw pain lasted most of the day, improving a little in the evening, and enough to eat bits of bagel throughout the night. (Although they give me a muscle relaxant, it doesn't really work on the jaw? So they put a mouth guard in during the seizure so that I don't accidentally bite my tongue off).
The headache was rough. It lasted through until the next morning, improved a little then, but never fully went away, even yesterday. Head might finally be better this morning, but of course that's all going to change in a few hours.
It was a good thing I slept a lot of the day on Monday. I was surprised that at no point during the night did I wake up, wide awake. I woke up a lot, about every 1 to 2 hours, but it was for sips of water, the bathroom, a few bites of bagel, and pain meds if it was time.
Monday evening was tough with the kids since neither of them got the importance of them going to camps this summer. They were just angry and unsympathetic. So, I told them more about it. This was the first time we told them about the seizure portion of the procedure. We didn't tell them to scare them, but more to express the seriousness of my treatment. Since Tuesday morning, the kids have been much more supportive.
Sigh. I can't believe how much more of this I have to get through, well, and really, we don't actually know how much more it will be. The acute phase, going 3x a week, can last anywhere from 2 weeks to 5 or 6 weeks. It'll just depend on how much I'm improving.
Going to finish this post with a quote from the ECT doctors' office from Monday.
