Sherwin Nuland is a successful surgeon and author known for his bestselling books on the nature of life and death. But 40 years ago, he faced spending the rest of his life in a mental institution; indeed, a team of psychiatrists recommended a prefrontal lobotomy. Fortunately for Nuland, someone recommended what was then called electroshock therapy. Nuland describes how ECT gave him a second lease on life in his talk at the TED 2001 Conference.
