Just Links

I admit I have been more busy than usual this year. Read into that whatever you like..... (one commenter on the last post said I was inferring that I was doing better).

I got no comments as to whether I should open the blog to google & yahoo for them to see the tags and direct people here. I've thought about setting up the $ google offers for being able to advertise as well - and donating it to depression charities. So I'm open to YOUR thoughts on those ideas.

I've collected a number of links of interest. The first has to do with a follow-up to the original Canadian trial of 20. I knew of 1 suicide, but apparently there were 2. Additionally 1 passed of natural causes. My condolences to the families and as odd as it may sound, my thanks. In fact my thanks goes to all 20 (and the original 6) who risked a LOT in order to promote the science. I can say though, from my standpoint of being one of the original 30 in the USA, the decision wasn't based on promoting the science as much as giving me some relief. A side note of opinion, I believe, even in my study, more should be done to avail LPCs or other therapists to the people in the study. The article is a little critical of the study but since we're talking BRAIN SURGERY, one should be very careful. The article: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2011/02/08/deep-brain-stimulation-dbs-for-depression-long-term-followup/

Another interesting point the author makes is that it is impossible to do a full "sham" study. You can't take a person and 'pretend' to do brain surgery like you can give a control group a placebo pill while testing antidepressants. My study did 'sham' the first 6 months, which from my standpoint should meet criteria. I'd love to see the update on my study, but alas, that might bias me - and we wouldn't want that. (tongue in cheek comment since I don't want to bias anyone considering the surgery but apparently my writing can be interpreted as it helping). I will say I haven't had any of the really bad side effects others have reported. 1 person I keep in contact with has regained a great portion of her life. 1 has suffered bad side effects but is currently stable. 1 has had some improvement but also slid back.

The next interesting link continues the ethical discussion, specifically believing the OCD DBS should not have been given approval by the FDA. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/15/health/15brain.html?src=twrhp. Interesting - but again, the person suffering from the severe OCD probably has a different view of the issue.

Finally the last link of interest talks about the 3 areas of the brain that are being researched and how they now believe the 3 are 'cabled' together so the results of affecting any one of the the 3 will be the same. Um, ok. Obviously more and more research is being done. I believe it is a German study that is wiring up 4 leads into subjects brains in order to maximize their ability to find the right spot(s) or combination. Batteries in my device last from 15 months to 2 years depending on the person's settings. I can only imagine the 'power' required to turn on 4 different nodes. (Mine has 2 on and lasted 18 months). Here's the link: http://www.mtbeurope.info/news/2011/1102034.htm.

Again, shoot me an email or a comment on your thoughts on allowing the search engines to see the blog or not.

If you're in another study, I'd love to hear from you and your experiences, if you are able to talk about it.

Thanks for your support.