shock treatment
4
5.8
- noun
- /ʃɑk ˈtritmənt/
- Specialized
:
tratamiento de electroshock
- Other research has found that SSRI antidepressants and shock treatment, among other factors, restore the hippocampus to a more normal volume.
- electric shock treatment
- give shock treatment
Examples
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The psychiatrist recommended shock treatment for her severe depression.
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The shock treatment was her idea.
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I guess I'll have to give him the shock treatment.
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Her doctor gave her electric shock treatments.
Blog text (20) -
Shock treatment is indicated in a case like hers.
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She's been getting insulin shock treatments...
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They shut him up in a hospital, and after six months of shock treatment and psychopharmacological therapy, he was never quite the same again.
Fiction book (2000) -
They gave my mother shock treatments because she was "manic-depressive," and they wanted to do a lobotomy, but I said no!
Fiction book (2000) -
After several sessions of shock treatment, he began to show signs of improvement.
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Many patients have undergone shock treatment to alleviate their mental health issues.
Synonyms
16
7.5
A medical treatment that uses a strong electric current through the brain to cause seizures to treat serious mental illness
8
5.1
A treatment that uses electric shocks to treat severe mental illness
6
5.1
A medical treatment that uses a strong electric current through the brain to treat serious mental illness
1
6.5
A medical treatment using brief electric shocks to the brain to reduce severe depression symptoms
1
8.9
A medical treatment that sends small electric pulses to the brain for severe depression or other serious mental illness
A medical treatment that uses a drug to cause seizures and coma
A medical treatment from the past that gave injections to cause strong seizures to treat mental illness
A medical treatment using Metrazol to cause seizures and coma
A medical treatment that uses large doses of insulin to cause seizures and coma, formerly used for serious mental illness
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a medical procedure involving electric shocks' is directly derivable from combining 'shock' (an electric reflex/current) with 'treatment' (medical care). This compositional pattern is straightforward and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Shock treatment comes from a medical practice where doctors give a short electric shock to the head as a treatment for serious mental illness, to change how the brain works. That's why today shock treatment means that 'medical procedure'.