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Ready to live again – Auburn
Hills woman |
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One in six people will experience an
episode of depression according to the American Psychiatric
Association. For Patrice Rudowski, her episode was on and off for more
than twenty years until the Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) device came
into her life. There is still a long way to go, but as Rudowski says,
“VNS saved my life.” To see her now, looking you straight in the
eyes, smiling, laughing and joking, you wouldn’t know the hard road
she has traveled. Rudowski claims the therapy saved her life, because the day she heard about the therapy from Dr. Joel Young, MD of the Rochester Center for Behavioral Medicine, she had planned to commit suicide. She had already said goodbye to her friends and relatives, told her Psychologist, Marie McMahon and had a list of logical (in her mind) reasons to tell Dr. Young, why she shouldn’t live any longer. Dr. Young said, “I don’t like the way you are talking” and “Your sister, Rene (Rudowski) would never get over it,” claims Patrice Rudowski. “He used quilt, he explained the new therapy and he called the VNS representative right then,” Rudowski remembers. This first talk happened in December 2005, but it wasn’t until May 2006 that the surgery happened. Let’s back up to Patrice Rudowski’s history. It could go back as far as when she was eight years old. Four years ago, she found where she had written, “I want to die” on a basement wall in her mother’s house. When she was eight, her grandmother died and her mother didn’t handle it well. Rudowski didn’t remember writing the sad message. Severe depression requiring periodic hospitalization began in her 20’s, but wasn’t diagnosed until 1994 after an unusually bad psychotic experience. It is common for people to ignore or deny that they have problems, so Rudowski wasn’t alone in years of denial. Women have twice the chance of experiencing depression then men, according to the National Institute of Mental Health; however, the rate of suicide in men is four times that of women. In 1994 Patrice was diagnosed with depression and Bipolar disorder. Her life was long bouts of mania episodes, consisting of euphoria, irritability, little sleep, energy, lack of control, poor judgment, argumentative attitude, extravagant ideas and spending, fearlessness and improper social behavior. These were followed by severe depression (sad, anxious, empty moods or numb, hopelessness, fatigue, difficulty concentrating or remembering, oversleeping, weight gain, irritability, paranoia and thoughts of death). She was unable to work or function, couldn’t go anywhere or talk on the phone, but her state case worker advice was to keep taking medications, nothing could be done. “Just taking a shower was a big deal. I was overwhelmed by everything,” stressed Rudowski. After 1994, she became worse. Days were meaningless. “I sat and stared at the wall or the TV. I didn’t feel anything,” remembers Rudowski. “If I saw someone on TV die, I thought they were lucky.” Nothing helped or if it did, only for short periods. Twenty-eight medications, ECT (Electro Convulsive Therapy, was called shock treatment) and psychoanalysis were tried. About this time, state case workers called her condition Treatment Resistant Depression. “Society thinks you can just snap out of it, but you can’t,” asserted Rudowski. “My family originally dealt with it that way. People don’t understand it, so they fear it. I’m so lucky my sister Rene Rudowski, (age 48 of Troy) stuck with me,” Rudowski smilingly states. In 1999, Rudowski requested a referral from her primary physician to a private practice psychiatrist. Enter Doctor Joel Young, MD, the turning point in her care. It still took several years, medications, coaching and VNS, but Patrice believes she is on the road to a better life. Dr Young states, “I’ve worked with Patrice about ten years. We tried many different medications. She would do well for periods of time, but had periods with deep depression. Over the years we used mood stabilizers and antidepressants. They would work for a while, but they didn’t sustain effectiveness.” Typically, 10% of patients have treatment resistant depression.” “Patrice was among my first VNS patients, I now have fourteen. These are my most challenging patients, but the majority are obtaining positive benefits,” claims Dr. Young. The device is like a pacemaker, called a pulse generator, permanently implanted in the chest muscle with a wire sending small pulses to the vagus nerve in the neck. This nerve sends a pulse directly to the brain. The vagus nerve does not contain pain fibers so it is painless according to Cyberonics® the device manufacturer. This therapy targets areas of the brain that affect the production or activity of neurotransmitters. When these transmitters are out of balance, depression is possible. The device isn’t new; it has been used for epilepsy seizures since 1997, only recently it started being utilized for patients with depression. It was discovered when patients using it for epileptic seizures were also obtaining a mood enhancement. According to Dr. Young, clinical trials proved the device was effective and it was approved for this use in July, 2005. This isn’t for mild depression it must only be used if four other treatments fail (ECT, antidepressants, mood stabilizers and psychotherapy), according to Dr. Young. Dr. Young claims his office works as an educator, not only to patients like Rudowski who was very apprehensive at first, but as a patient advocate in terms of insurance coverage. “The surgery was a minor procedure. A small flat deice was inserted under her collar bone by a trained surgeon. Wires were connected between the vagus nerve and brain. I programmed the device after she recovered. Patrice’s device pulses for 30 seconds every 5 minutes,” explains Dr Young. When asked about side effects, Dr. Young said, “It is common for patients to sound hoarse during the stimulation period.” Rudowski used a magnet to turn off the device during the interview, but removed it to demonstrate the effect. Dr Young points out, “Possible side effects of drug therapy, like weight gain and sexual dysfunction are not present with VNS.” At first Rudowski was apprehensive and doubtful the therapy would work. She told an old family friend Arlene VanBelle to pray for it to work, one of the few people that stayed in her life. Above it all she trusted Dr Young with her care. “He gave me hope and he really cares, Rudowski says of Dr. Young. Her first emotions after a few months of using VNS were excitement and joy. “Dr Young told me it wasn’t me, it was my brain chemistry. I no longer felt helpless. If you see Patrice Rudowski out shopping, (the first thing she did after the VNS therapy began working), or smiling, laughing, caring for her dog, listening to music, visiting friends, dining out, exercising, having her picture taken; remember these are all major milestones in a life that hasn’t included these normal things Rudowski hopes the device will help her to continue improving one step at a time. There is still apprehension, but there is hope. Hope for a brighter future, reduced medications, maybe a job and dating. These may seem like ordinary things, but they are big steps in this courageous woman’s life. |
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Sandie Parrott is a freelance writer and
photographer, living in Clarkston, contact her at
info@SandieParrott.com |
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