'I was given electric shocks to knock the homosexuality out of my brain'

A growing number of individuals who experienced electric shock therapy aimed at altering their sexuality during the 1960s and 1970s have come forward to urge the government to investigate this historical issue. This follows a BBC report revealing that over 260 people, mostly now in their seventies and eighties, underwent this discredited treatment in NHS hospitals. Those affected describe enduring significant physical and emotional trauma due to the therapy, which sought to forcibly change their sexual orientation.

The treatment involved exposing patients to images linked to same-sex attraction while administering painful electric shocks. This method, known as aversion therapy, was used in multiple NHS facilities across England. Despite government assurances about drafting legislation to ban such practices, many survivors say they have yet to receive an official apology, nearly a year after the initial revelations. Among them is Norman Goodman, who recounted his experience of being restrained and subjected to electric shocks as a young man in a Manchester psychiatric hospital, a treatment intended to suppress his homosexuality but which left him frightened and debilitated.

Another distressing story comes from Debbie Burley, whose grandfather Arthur James Emberton endured electric shock therapy after being convicted of indecent assault in 1965. Arthur’s life unraveled following the treatment: he lost his family, his business, and lived in isolation as a result of the shame and trauma he carried. Debbie reflected on the profound injustice he suffered, stating, “He was wronged by the state, the medical system and the attitudes of the time.” Similarly, an anonymous man shared how he received weekly electric shock treatments for two years beginning at age 16, which left him feeling like a “zombie” and emotionally broken, highlighting the devastating long-term effects of the treatment.

Experts emphasize that men were predominantly targeted for this therapy, but women and even children were also subjected to it, often referred for treatment by family members, schools, churches, or the courts. Professor Hel Spandler from the University of Lancashire believes the recorded number underestimates how many were affected, noting that being gay or trans was viewed as a mental illness at the time and aversion therapy was an accepted NHS practice. She also pointed out that the practice spread beyond the UK, and hundreds more people internationally may have undergone similar treatment. Survivors continue to call for a thorough investigation, accountability, and an unequivocal ban on all forms of conversion therapy, even as some religious groups challenge the proposed legislation in Parliament aimed at outlawing these harmful practices

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