PTSD manifests with some of the most debilitating mental health symptoms and often co-occurs with other diagnoses such as depression, anxiety, and mood instability.
When clients suffering from PTSD share their symptoms with us, several recurring themes emerge.
Are you experiencing these symptoms of PTSD?
● Overreacting to ordinary daily stressors, finding stimuli overwhelmingly intense (e.g., a door slamming loudly).
● Experiencing road rage or heightened driving anxiety, making driving tasks significantly more stressful.
● Struggling to maintain romantic relationships, with frequent and unavoidable conflicts often leading to break-ups, separations, or divorces.
● Facing challenges in maintaining healthy relationships with friends and family, declining social interactions even with loved ones.
● Feeling overwhelmed by interactions with children, especially high-energy and needy ones.
● Experiencing panic attacks and anxiety attacks, ranging from tingling hands to complete shutdown, hindering engagement in desired tasks.
● Finding it difficult to manage job responsibilities, with work instability becoming a major stressor.
These symptoms often prompt individuals to seek KAP, which fortunately has shown effectiveness in addressing these exact symptoms.
How was ketamine therapy for PTSD discovered?
In the medical realm, IV ketamine serves as a common sedative and anesthetic and has frequently been administered during emergency surgeries, including those in war zones. It was through these emergency procedures that ketamine’s impact on PTSD was serendipitously observed. Soldiers who received ketamine for emergency surgery or pain management exhibited lower incidences of PTSD.
How does ketamine therapy work for PTSD?
Ketamine operates swiftly by intercepting pain messages sent to the brain. It stands out as a safer sedative due to its minimal impact on breathing rate and blood pressure when administered appropriately. Recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as an essential medicine, ketamine’s efficacy and safety in critical situations are well-established.
However, ketamine offers more than pain management—it interacts with disrupted neural pathways in the brain, which are characteristic of conditions like PTSD. In individuals with PTSD, certain neural pathways fire excessively and at inappropriate times, while essential pathways may remain underdeveloped.
When administered at appropriate doses, ketamine can serve as a “hard reset,” enabling the brain to slow down hyperactive pathways and facilitating reconnection of severed or weakened neurological connections. It fosters the formation of new neurological connections, aiding in the recollection of repressed memories or the discovery of new details. Additionally, it promotes the restoration of neurological pathways that have deteriorated or weakened.
While the precise mechanisms of ketamine’s action require further research, it has proven beneficial for many PTSD clients, facilitating:
● The processing of trauma from a third-person perspective (“observing the observer”).
● Disrupting the cycle of repetitive trauma recall and unlocking alternative memory pathways.
● Facilitating an objective processing of trauma.
When to consider ketamine therapy for PTSD?
PTSD presents limited treatment options and is notoriously challenging to manage. Individuals often exhaust various treatments with mixed results. Do any of these situations apply to you?
● You have attempted conventional pharmaceutical treatments for anxiety and depression (e.g., SSRIs, Wellbutrin), experiencing slow-acting effects, lengthy trial periods to find the right medication, and frustrating side effects.
● You have been prescribed potent benzodiazepines, which provided short-term relief but posed long-term risks outweighing their benefits as a treatment for PTSD.
● You have undergone EMDR therapy, struggling to perceive results due to the substantial time commitment required.
● You are experiencing gradual improvements from counseling and/or psychotherapy, yet find the extensive time investment and gradual progress challenging as standalone treatments for PTSD.
We highly recommend combining ketamine therapy with psychotherapy for optimal outcomes. Ketamine enhances the efficacy of psychotherapy sessions, often mitigating the initial challenges associated with trauma processing. Many clients report that after their ketamine medicine sessions, they feel better equipped to address and process trauma with a therapist.
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