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Electroshock Therapy Electroshock therapy what is it? How does it work? What is it used for and what comes from it? This paper will answer all of these questions and will also try to prove that electroshock therapy is useful and not as bad as it appears to be. Electroshock therapy is an old process of ridding schizophrenia, and depression, and suicidal tendencies. It is used when people with major depression are taking too many anti depressant drugs, can’t take the side-effects of their medication, or they are taking too many drugs and anti-depressant drugs are too risky to take. It is also used to irradiate certain cases of schizophrenia and is being studied to treat dementia. (Mental Illness Assessment and Treatment p.78). Convulsive therapy using drugs rather than electricity was introduced in 1934 by Hungarian neuropsychiatrist Ladisles meduna , who speculated that seizures (similar to the ones occurring in epilepsy) could probably alleviate mental disorders. He based his theory on the belief that epileptic seizures prevented the symptoms of schizophrenia. Although this was a good theory, the drugs administered to the patients to induce these seizures was too risky to the patients lives. In 1937 psychiatrists started using electric shocks to induce seizures. In 1939 ECT was in wide use in the United States. In those days ECT was unrefined and resulted in many complications and was terribly abused. Today ECT is more refined, safe, and effective (Mental Illness Assessment and Treatment p.78). How does it work? Electroshock therapy or ECT involves exposing the brain to carefully controlled pulses of electric current that induce brief seizures. The reason why electroshock therapy relieves depression is still unknown. Researchers believe that Electroshock therapy alters monoamine function, as do the anti-depressant drugs. The process of inducing seizures through electroshock is not as complicated or as dangerous as people think. The patient is placed in a specially equipped r oom, where a clinical team first issues intravenous general anesthetic. After this a muscle relaxant is given to the patient. Oxygen is administered and an electric current is applied through electrodes. The patient undergoing the ECT does not feel the electric current, and the only reaction noticeable is the patients toes curling (Mental Illness Assessment and Treatment p.78). The plac... ...ublished in Rome and Venice in 1560. This volume became very popular, and was reprinted a dozen times during the next 330 years (Yoshiwara's Early Music Site). Many other volumes of his works were published during Lassus' life time. He became a very famous, respected, and wealthy composer. Lassus' work represented all of the main musical humanistic aspects of the time. He wrote many pieces which contained numerous voices. He also composed works in many languages. His work was influenced from classical civilizations. He also used bass and instruments to give his music a richer sound. Orlande de Lassus was one of the greatest humanistic composers, because of his infleunce by classical civilizations, his many famous works and volumes of his music, and the styles that he contributed to secular music. Josquin Desprez was another talented composer of secular music during the Renaissance period. Josquin was born in 1440 and died in 1521. He also started into music at a young age as a ch oir boy. He is often said to be the most influential composer on the history of western music, and is usually called by his first name. He began his career mainly as a composer of Church music. Later he