 They have electroconvulsive therapy. It replaces insulin and Metrazol shock therapy. These treatments didn't generally cure schizophrenics, depressives and others of their mental illness; most were in and out of hospitals or ultimately spent their entire lives inside them. Lobotomis became popular during this time.

 Antônio Egas Moniz ( ) of Portugal was an ambitious and multitalented person -- a neurologist, political figure, and man of letters. By the 1930s he was already known for his successful refinement of techniques enabling doctors to visualize blood vessels in the brain by using radioactive tracers. He had hoped and perhaps expected to receive the Nobel Prize for this work, and was disappointed when he realized he would not.

 Overcrowded Institutions, by 1940, there were around 1 million patients and the population was growing by 80 percent per year  The Great Depression plunged state hospitals further into the custodial mode. Great numbers of indigent and aged people entered state hospitals.

 Conditions in state mental institutions deteriorated as a result of Depression-era financial hardships and the resource and personnel demands of the war. Decaying physical plants and extreme overcrowding were common.

 "Moniz develops lobotomy." WBBG, Web. 31 Oct  freeman, Shanna. "How Lobotomies Work." science.howstuffworks.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct  N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct