The Patients Guide to Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Depression

INTRODUCTION

Everybody has a story. My story is the one I know best and can write about. It is not a memoir of chemical dependency or self-abuse. Those subjects have been written about many times. This is a story of my winning battle against depression and the vagus nerve stimulation treatment that saved my life by bringing me Out of the Black Hole. And, this is the first book to be published about winning the battle with a medical implant procedure called VNS Therapy?.

Personally, I don't believe the stigma associated with depression has changed one bit in the past century, so I was apprehensive about sharing my story. After all, I had spent the majority of my life hiding my depression from family, friends, and business associates--and now I was writing a tell-all book.

I wrote the main part of this book as if I were having a conversation with my closest friend who was looking for guidance with his or her debilitating chronic depression. I discuss the misery I experienced, the seemingly unending search for answers, the vagus nerve implant procedure itself, and my subsequent recovery from the grip of depression. The last part, the appendices, contains technical information about depression; the VNS Therapy System?; and Cyberonics, the manufacturer of the vagus nerve stimulator.
I hope my journey and the treatment I chose helps readers with their depression treatment plans; especially when they consider whether or not to undergo vagus nerve stimulation therapy. When I decided to participate in the investigational trial there wasn't any information available to me. I just signed an eleven-page consent agreement and hoped for the best.

On June 15, 2004, the FDA's Medical Device Advisory Panel recommended approval of vagus nerve stimulation as an adjunctive long-term treatment for chronic depression. Cyberonics, the manufacturer of the VNS Therapy System?, is in the process of providing the FDA additional information required for the FDA to render a final decision consistent with the Panel's recommendation. Currently VNS Therapy for the treatment of chronic depression is available in Canada and Europe.

I also wrote Out of the Black Hole: The Patient's Guide to Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Depression for the loved ones of people who suffer from depression. When a patient reaches the severe, chronic level of this disease, often it is their family members who are making the medical decisions. At the other extreme, the family members may be in the dark about what is going on between the doctor and the patient, or they don't trust the information that they're receiving from their loved ones. One thing is for certain, the lack of knowledge about this disease and not knowing the best way to help and interact with the suffering loved one complicates everything.
.

I have been fortunate throughout my life because I have always had access to the best medical care available (for any illness), and I have a close and supportive family. I don't know how people survive severe depression if they don't have access to good doctors, the latest pharmaceutical drugs, psychologists, psychiatrists, and a strong support group. Many depressed patients have none of the above, yet they still endure. Their stories, in many ways, are more remarkable than mine.

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton wrote a book titledIt Takes a Village. It's about how we can shape our society into the kind of village that enables children to grow into able, caring, resilient adults; physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. If my family wrote a similar book about the past ten years of my life, it would be titled It Took Heaven and Earth. So, I've also written this book for them. Let's get started.

Visit www.VagusNerveStimulator.com for more information on the book.

Charles Donovan was a patient in the clinical trial for the investigation of vagus nerve stimulation as a treatment for chronic depression.

---

PARLOT.COM: Turnkey Money Making websites

Raise Your Feeling Frequency with a Loving Smile

In every moment of our life we have the choice... Read More

Use Alternative Medicine to Ease Depression

Depression is a problem that faces many of us, young... Read More

Aspartame and Your Mental Health

In 1965, a chemist working to develop an ulcer drug... Read More

Aromatherapy and Depression

When artiste Leslie Cheung committed suicide, he left behind a... Read More

5 Super Effective Tips To Kill Depression

Being lonely is a normal part of our everyday lives.... Read More

Adult Men and Women Who Suffer From Chronic Depression

Market surveys on women, men and depression suggest an estimated... Read More

Depression is Underdiagnosed in College Students

Everyone feels down or blue once in awhile. Especially during... Read More

Recognizing Depression

Depression is a serious issue. There are simply hundreds of... Read More

Mental Health Stigma ? What Can We Do About It?

What is Stigma? Stigma is the use of stereotypes and... Read More

Natural Treatment for Depression - Is There An Alternative?

Many people who are suffering from mild to moderate depression,... Read More

Get Rid Of Depression Once And For All

Depression is something that will occur in many people's lives,... Read More

American Indian Youth and Depression - Using Traditions To Heal The Wounds

When most people hear the words American Indian, visions of... Read More

Anxiety and Depression Treatment - 5 Tips for Beating Depression

Everyone has days when they are down, worn out and... Read More

The Patients Guide to Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Depression

INTRODUCTION Everybody has a story. My... Read More

New Treatment for Depression to be FDA Approved by Late June

With the next few weeks, the FDA is expected to... Read More

To Long Term Care Professionals: How to Dramatically Improve your Residents Psychiatric Care

Long term care facilities and residents' doctors should consider combining... Read More

Depression is the Number One Cause of Disability in the United States

According to the World Health Organization, 4 of the 10... Read More

Seven Steps to Good Mental Health

Psychological well-being is something that we all have a right... Read More

Your Daily Struggle With Depression

If you have been diagnosed with depression or feel that... Read More

Major Depression and Its Serious Complications

When suffering from clinical depression, people have different ways of... Read More

Depression: 14 Universal Laws for Recovery

The Law of BlueJust sort of feeling blue, kinda out... Read More

A Simple Cure For Anxiety And Depression

Our innate desire is to be happy, and when we... Read More

A Look at the Different Depression and Anxiety Medications

While it may be easy to recite the various brand... Read More

Surviving the Storms of Life

August in Florida has a daily ritual that Floridians take... Read More

Natural Remedies For Depression

It is true that forms of depression cannot be avoided,... Read More