More than 16 million Americans suffer from depression, and it continues to be one of the most common mental health problems in the United States. While oral antidepressant pills are typically the first line of defense for many sufferers, some individuals with depression experience uncomfortable and sometimes dangerous side effects from these prescription drugs. An increasing number of patients don’t respond at all or stop responding over time. More than 33% of patients are labeled (or their condition is labeled) as treatment resistant, meaning they have undergone adequate trials of two or more medications with insufficient response.
More and more people need alternative solutions now, such as ketamine infusion therapy. While many have heard of ketamine treatment, this common question still persists: “does ketamine treatment actually work?” Fortunately, Ketamine Infusions not only work to treat depression and other mental health conditions, but they work faster, better, and safer than the alternative options. There are more than 70 completed clinical research papers that prove the efficacy of ketamine for mental health conditions. Ketamine Therapy is a viable treatment for depression, anxiety, PTSD, suicidality, and other mental health conditions.
Most clinicians are administering ketamine to patients intravenously (IV) since the IV route of administration (ROA) is the safest, most effective way to treat depression and other mood disorders. This article discusses some of the important differences in ROAs and why IV infusions are the best for ketamine for depression. Originally approved by the FDA in 1970 as an anesthetic, ketamine has proven to provide rapid relief to most patients struggling with depression in a matter of days and more than 80% of the time at Ketamine Clinics Los Angeles.
Ketamine Infusion For Depression
So, how does ketamine work for depression? There are many important processes that occur on a neurochemical level and a psychological level. Neurochemically, ketamine is an NMDA-receptor antagonist and by blocking this receptor in the brain, it triggers an increase in glutamate, a key neurotransmitter. Ketamine also increases neuroplasticity, helping new, healthy connections form in the brain. Psychologically, ketamine helps patients to visit what would normally be painful memories without the pain, enabling the opportunity to think about them in new ways and heal from them. Ketamine infusion for depression can provide patients a unique perspective on themselves, allowing growth and healing to occur.
Unlike many antidepressant pills that can take 4-6 weeks to take any effect or only improve symptoms short-term, Ketamine Therapy is regarded as a medicine that produces positive effects rapidly, usually from hours to days, and also provides relief from symptoms for months or longer.
Is Ketamine Infusion For Depression Worth It?
With so many patients suffering from a mood disorder and receiving little to no relief, ketamine infusion for depression and anxiety disorder treatment are absolutely worth it. There are no long term side effects and the short term are minimal; nausea, dizziness, fatigue occur in about 10% of cases on the day of treatment and typically subside after a full night of sleep. Treatment is highly effective, over 80% success rate at KCLA. Treatment usually works from hours to days.
Ketamine is administered intravenously through a syringe pump instead of a bag at KCLA to provide a very precise rate of infusion with maximum control over the dose. Patients recline comfortably in a chair for about an hour for their IV treatment, and ketamine for depression side effects are very manageable, as mentioned above. Once the series of IV Ketamine Infusion Therapy treatments is complete, many patients notice a significant improvement in depressive symptoms and, in some cases, their depression is lifted completely.
Find out if you’re a candidate for IV Ketamine Infusion Therapy at Ketamine Clinics Los Angeles. Call us at 310-270-0625 for more information.
Ketamine Infusion Therapy treatments for depression, bipolar depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), suicidal thinking, postpartum depression (PPD), and other mood disorders are fast, safe, and effective. Please contact us at Ketamine Clinics of Los Angeles in Southern California for your free consultation. Call now; 310-270-0625.
