Exploring the Different Types of Ketamine Therapy: Choosing the Right One for You
Ketamine therapy can offer relief for difficult-to-treat or treatment-resistant depression. It can also offer relief from the symptoms of other serious mental health conditions. There are a few different treatment methods used in ketamine therapy, and a few different types of ketamine therapy available. The one you choose will depend upon your provider’s recommendations, your age and symptoms, your overall physical and mental health, and the other methods of treatment you have tried in the past. Here is a guide to exploring the different types of ketamine therapy in Golden, CO and choosing the right one to manage your symptoms and condition.
What is Ketamine Therapy?
Ketamine therapy is a tested and proven treatment option for chronic depression, major depressive disorder, addiction disorders, and chronic pain conditions. Ketamine is a short-acting anesthetic that is classified as dissociative and mildly hallucinogenic. It is an NMDA agonist, which means it blocks the N-methyl-D-aspartate neurotransmitter in the brain. This means that it can essentially rewire your brain and change how your brain reacts and adapts to outside stimuli. With regular ketamine treatment from a licensed professional, you may be able to disrupt negative thought patterns and associations that are causing depressive episodes or other symptoms.
Are there Different Types of Ketamine Treatments?
Yes, there are different types of ketamine treatments. Ketamine treatment is a spectrum of therapeutic services that use ketamine for psychiatric, psychotherapy, medical, mystical, and holistic purposes. If one type of ketamine therapy does not work for you or is not producing the desired effects, you may have better outcomes with another treatment method. The most common types of ketamine treatment are nasal ketamine sprays, oral ketamine lozenges or sublingual pills, IV ketamine therapy, and intramuscular ketamine injections.
Intranasal Esketamine Therapy
Intranasal esketamine therapy is administered via a nasal spray. You should undergo this treatment in a clinical setting and be supervised or monitored for at least two hours after administration. Nasal ketamine sprays must bypass several layers of tissue before the dose reaches your brain. This results in only a 25-50% rate of bioavailability, meaning your body may only use 25-50% of the dose. Nasal ketamine therapy is easy to administer and has a low risk of error in self-administration. It reaches the brain quickly and can produce effects in 15-30 minutes. There is also a much lower risk of negative side effects when using nasal ketamine therapy.
Oral Ketamine Therapy
Oral ketamine therapy is administered via a pill or lozenge that is taken orally in a clinical setting. It can be the primary method of ketamine therapy, or a supplemental or maintenance treatment option in addition to other methods of ketamine therapy. Oral ketamine therapy offers 16-24% bioavailability, as it must be processed by your digestive system before it takes effect. This makes it less predictable or consistent as a treatment method. Oral ketamine therapy is easy to obtain and administer, which means it is a good option for patients who have a fear of needles or are looking for a more affordable option.
IV Ketamine Therapy or Ketamine Infusions
Ketamine infusion therapy is the administration of ketamine intravenously. It is the most efficient and effective method of ketamine therapy. IV ketamine therapy is the only way to achieve 100% bioavailability, which means that your body uses 100% of the ketamine dose. Your provider will insert an IV into your vein and administer a concentration of ketamine and a carrier substance directly to your bloodstream over the course of 40 to 60 minutes. IV ketamine therapy bypasses the gastrointestinal system, so if oral ketamine therapy has not been successful, you might consider IV ketamine therapy. IV ketamine therapy is fast-acting and has shown great promise in treating anxiety disorders, treatment-resistant depression, and major depressive disorder.
Ketamine Injections
Ketamine can also be injected into a muscle on your thigh or arm. Intramuscular ketamine injections produce effects that last around 40 minutes to an hour. You should be carefully monitored and supervised throughout the therapeutic experience. Ketamine injections can achieve 93% bioavailability, which means that approximately 93% of the dose will reach your brain and be used. However, ketamine injections do not require vein access or an infusion pump and still bypass your digestive system. They are also faster and simpler than IV ketamine therapy, which means they may be a better choice for patients who do not want to sit through an hour-long IV treatment.
Understanding the Differences Between Psychiatric Ketamine Therapy and Holistic Ketamine Therapy
Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy uses ketamine to unlock or stimulate certain feelings and emotions. Your provider will administer ketamine to help you enter a dissociative state that allows you to access feelings, memories, and triggers that are buried deep within your subconscious. Your provider will talk you through your thoughts and feelings and help you process them. Interrupting your normal consciousness and helping you achieve a new state of consciousness can help you gain deeper insights into your feelings and emotions.
Holistic ketamine therapy is a treatment approach that focuses on the combination of ketamine therapy and other treatment methods for depression, anxiety, and other major mental health disorders. Holistic healthcare goes beyond just alleviating symptoms and instead combines therapeutic approaches to tailor them to the individual patient’s health, symptoms, age, needs, and goals. Ketamine therapy can be used as part of an integrative approach that targets the underlying cause of depression and other symptoms. It can act as a transformative tool for change rather than just a method of temporarily relieving symptoms.
Schedule a Consultation to Discuss Ketamine Therapy in Golden, CO
At Kore Regenerative Medicine, we specialize in holistic regenerative, functional, and interactive medicine therapies that address our patients’ overall physical and mental health. We offer ketamine-assisted therapy in Golden, CO to patients who want to address depression, anxiety, chronic pain, addiction disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, and more. We can integrate ketamine therapy into an overall holistic health and wellness treatment program and pair it with other targeted therapeutic methods, such as bodywork, IV nutrition therapy, and more. Call us now or contact us online to schedule a consultation and find out if ketamine therapy is right for you.
