Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy
Experience the sensation of a new, healthier baseline with the help of Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy.
Ketamine is a safe and effective treatment for a variety of mental health conditions. When combined with psychotherapy, its effects can be further magnified and sustained.
What is ketamine?
Ketamine is a drug treatment used for depression, anxiety, OCD, and other mental health conditions. Its use has been clinically studied since the 1960s. Many patients who have demonstrated little or no previous gains from other forms of treatment have found ketamine to be an important, if not vital, part of their therapeutic process.
Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic. Its action on the NMDA receptor system is responsible for its antidepressant, analgesic, anesthetic, and psychedelic effects. It is an atypical psychedelic, meaning its mechanisms of action when compared to serotonergics such as LSD, Psilocybin, or DMT for example, are completely unique.
Because its chemistry is distinct from other psychedelic compounds, it may be safely taken with some psychiatric medications (following an evaluation from a licensed medical practitioner).
Effects vary based on dose and methods of administration. Nasal sprays, sublingual tablets, and intra-muscular injections are used in Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy. Intra-venous ketamine is administered in hospitals as an anesthetic pain killer, often without therapeutic guidance or oversight. Nasal sprays tend to have a lighter effect, while the other methods tend to produce more significant experiences. Dosage also determines the strength of the effect. Lower doses have more antidepressant and antianxiety effects. Higher doses can produce remarkably disassociated and psychedelic experiences.
The ketamine that is used in drug treatments is synthesized in laboratories, though the compound of ketamine itself is found in nature. It is produced as a metabolite in a microscopic species of soil fungus in South and Southeast Asia, where it has a role in maintaining the balance of ecosystem and protecting plants from parasites.
What is Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy?
There are many avenues for working with ketamine therapeutically, though ketamine assisted psychotherapy (KAP), has proven to be the most efficient.
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy is a collaborative effort between the client, a licensed therapist, and a licensed medical practitioner such as a psychiatrist or MD. The medical practitioner is responsible for the approval of the usage of ketamine. The licensed therapist is responsible for preparing the client before the session, overseeing the client throughout the duration of the session, and helping the client integrate their experiences after the session.
KAP is a well-studied protocol that begins with a series of preparatory talk-therapy sessions between the client and licensed therapist. During these sessions, the therapist and client establish a therapeutic relationship of trust, and gain clarity on the client’s mental health history, current experience, and intentions for the ketamine session.
The ketamine session is typically about 3 hours. It begins with a check-in and preparation with a licensed therapist. The ketamine is then administered. The effects last a duration of 1-2 hours, during which the therapist provides guidance and oversight. After the session, the therapist provides integration and processing, as well as closure of the session. As the medicine itself can impair one’s ability to drive, it is important to arrange for safe transportation to and from the appointment.
Benefits of Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy
Perhaps more aptly explained in the words of a dear friend and colleague of mine, ketamine has the ability to help give you a break from your own mind. As I have come to describe it, ketamine can help give you some distance from your thoughts, especially negative repetitive thoughts that many trauma survivors experience.
Under its effects, one may have access to a sense of self beyond suffering. This opens up pathways to new insights, and a chance to experientially know and feel the possibility of a new healthier baseline.
The dissociative nature of ketamine produces the effect of dis-identifying from oneself. Lower and moderate doses create distance from one’s thoughts. Higher doses can evoke ego dissolution, and conscious awareness without a sense of self. Mystical experiences at this level are not unheard of.
When combined with therapy, the mental health benefits of ketamine can be magnified and sustained. I have personally seen this in my own healing journey, as well as my psychotherapy practice.
Working with me for Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy
If you are interested in the possibility of Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy, you are welcome to book a free consultation call below.
I have been providing KAP sessions in a clinical setting for four years. I received a Certification of Training in Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy from the Ketamine Training Center in 2021. As part of my own healing process and my training, I have first-hand experience taking ketamine in a therapeutic setting. I currently work in collaboration with several licensed psychiatrists to provide clinically safe KAP sessions.
My intention is for the experience with ketamine to be held within the container of a larger therapeutic healing process. Within this container, the ketamine session can be a catalyst for healing that re-connects us to our inner wisdom. As with any psychedelic or entheogenic medicine, the true medicine is in the ability to integrate the insights, and translate the experience into new ways of being in our everyday lives.
Book a free consultation
If you’re interested in exploring the possibility of ketamine assisted psychoterhapy with me, please schedule a free 20-minute phone consultation below. You can also contact me at gerardartesona@proton.me or via text or call at (302) 242-7574.