Ketamine Therapy

The discovery of ketamine as a highly effective and rapid-acting treatment for depression has been hailed as the most significant development in psychiatry in the last 50 years. Contact us to learn if ketamine therapy is right for you.

What is Ketamine?
Approved by the FDA in the 1970, ketamine is on the WHO list of essential medicines and is one of the most commonly used and safe anesthetics in adults and children. Recent research has shown that ketamine has considerable promise for treating a wide range of mental health issues. For people suffering from treatment-resistant depression or suicidal ideation, ketamine can often provide immediate relief.

In addition, ketamine creates novel states of mind which facilitate psychotherapy in general. By creating new neural pathways, ketamine provides the opportunity to override resistant habitual patterns and unconscious coping strategies.

Is Ketamine right for you?
Ketamine is used off-label (meaning a valid use, but not a use that the FDA originally approved) for a variety of mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, addiction chronic pain and more. Some medical and psychiatric conditions need to be treated before you can safely work with ketamine. These conditions include psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, untreated mania, cardiovascular disease, uncontrolled hyperthyroidism, increased intracranial pressure, cystitis, or evidence of liver disease. Substances use such as alcohol, benzodiazepines (valium, Ativan, Xanax etc) or opiates may diminish the effectiveness of treatment.

We strongly encourage our clients to be in ongoing psychotherapy in conjunction with and after their ketamine treatment. We will further discuss this in the intake process and make appropriate referrals to local resources as needed.

How we work

Full intake and evaluation
A personalized process to get to know you, understand your needs and develop a tailored treatment plan. All new patients must undergo full evaluation which includes medical and psychiatric history, as well as assessment of one’s physical and mental ability to receive this treatment. If you are deemed an appropriate candidate for ketamine treatment, a preparatory session is performed by a physician to prepare you for the experience and discuss what may come up.

Ketamine session
Ketamine may be administered sublingually (under the tongue) or via intramuscular injection (into the upper arm). Sessions take place in a private room and a physician with expertise in ketamine assisted therapy will be monitoring you during the duration of the treatment to ensure your safety. The treatment session usually lasts 2-3 hrs. Headphones and eye-shades are provided to help you turn inward during the treatment. Treatment plans, including route of administration, dose and frequency of treatment are individualized for our clients’ needs and several variables are considered to determine the best approach.

Integration session
Ketamine is most effective when followed by ongoing support to assist you in cultivating insights and implement lasting changes. For this reason, we strongly encourage clients to book an integration session soon after treatment. The integration sessions allow clients to discuss their experience and make meaning out of what they discovered during the treatment.