Ketamine

[redalbie32]

Has anybody been given ketamine before for depression? I had a doctors appointment today and she suggested that might be where we’re headed if it keeps getting worse for me. I always thought ketamine was a sedative, is it a common drug for depression?

[1428SRTYBK]

My experience with it was actually really nice. No side effects no weird feeling. You are sitting in this elevated recliner chair and have an IV and oxygen all ready to go. The Iv is where they distribute it to you over the course of around an hour! I actually fell asleep most the time and was dreaming! To be completely honest for me it didn’t have a hugeee impact long term (had 4 sessions before I stopped in March due to Covid closures) but short term or for the week/month I felt a little better! They say by the 4th-5th one you’ll know if you have this long term benefit from it! Hope this is helpful!

[_Alex_]

I think it's more anesthetic than technically sedative, (?) to be pedantic. It may qualify as a sedative also perhaps.

I don't think it's that commonly used for depression right now. Cost of treatment is probably one factor.

If you have treatment resistant depression, then maybe another thing to consider trying is MAOIs. Some patients report dramatic improvements on them.

[Hidden in reply to _Alex_]

Alex, they are having a lot of success with treatment resistant depression. It’s a 70% overall success rate. The doses of ketamine are small so you are able to stay awake for the whole thing with very little side effects. When they were done, I felt back to normal right away and just a little tired after I got home. You can’t drive because of the ketamine being in your system though. The cost is something to consider since it can be over $3000. I think it was well worth it for me. i’m part of a support group that have all had ketamine treatment. there is not one person that regrets having it done.

[_Alex_ in reply to Hidden]

Brilliant if it's working for some people. Hopefully it can become more widely available.

[lavendar_swimmer]

I haven't personally done ketamine treatment before...I suffer more from anxiety...but my friend that has depression swears by it! He said it worked wonders for him! The last time we talked he was just starting out and was still new to it so I don't know about long term results. I've personally found that a lot of medicines (especially natural supplements) will work for a very short period of time and don't have good long term results. But if you end up trying this ketamine treatment I hope it works! I would like to know how it works out for you

Also I forgot to add that I haven't heard of a lot of people using it so I don't think it's as common as other methods.....or at least yet.

[Vegcat]

I’m also considering ketamine as a treatment for depression. I have to talk to my psych about it, but I already scheduled a consultation at a clinic for mid October. I’d love to hear about people’s experiences. Also, hoping for some long term relief.

[Lm92]

My cousin in Florida has been doing ketamine therapy in one of the pioneering clinics. He has had very good results. He's done 5 visits and is also doing CBT therapy and he's so different, but in a good way. He's always been a very melancholy person, but in the past several months it's been amazing to watch him come out of his shell.

[Lazy_dog_lover]

I was looking into this as well. My therapist said she had several patients who had great success. I don’t have many clinics by me that do it. Transportation is an issue for me, too. After 30 years as-is, I am so curious. Yes, in a higher dose it is mainly an anesthetic.

[Hidden]

I did that 2 months ago. It was worth every penny. It literally saved my life. I’ve dealt with crippling anxiety, panic attacks and insomnia my whole life. I have ptsd from a trauma that happened when I was too little to even remember all the details of what happened. That event seemed to break me somehow and brought on a life of symptoms that I just lived with, and they got worse and worse over time. My therapist recommended ketamine infusion therapy. They treated me for ptsd and anxiety. I did 6 treatments over 3 weeks. You start to feel better after the first treatment but you won’t see the full effects until 2-4 weeks after your last treatment. What I gained from it was more self control than I’ve ever felt in my life. i now felt in control enough to successfully use all the coping techniques I previously learned but couldn’t do in my previous state. The negative thoughts all but disappeared. Now I try to make good thoughts by being positive and thinking positive. I’m not going to lie though. It’s not a silver bullet. You have to do some work afterwards. You need to make good habits and think positive because you can always revert back to the negativity and undo what was done. I’m not cured but my anxiety and panic are at a level I can now control. I have to keep working on myself so I don’t fall back on old habits though. i still fight negative thoughts but I’m keeping them somewhat controlled. The ketamine gives you a chance to start over and make better more positive thoughts and habits. It was like getting a do over.