Have you ever heard of ketamine therapy? Sometimes, when you’re feeling a little depressed, doctors might prescribe you this treatment. But what exactly is this, and who is not a good candidate for ketamine therapy?
Join me as I walk you through this procedure to ensure you know everything you need for a smooth and life-altering experience.
What Exactly Is Ketamine Therapy?
Ketamine is a drug that’s usually used as medication in various parts of the world for centuries. Doctors often use it during operations to help patients not feel any pain.
Ketamine is a type of therapy that involves making patients reach a state where they feel like their minds are floating away from their bodies.
This sense of detachment is essential for people who suffer from substance abuse, anxiety, or any depressive disorder like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
It is also known for being able to reduce the symptoms of treatment-resistant depression.
But, saying that everyone is a good candidate for ketamine infusion therapy would be incorrect. Let’s explore which people ketamine therapy is right for in the next section.
People Who Aren’t Good Candidates for Ketamine Therapy
As I mentioned earlier, ketamine treatment might not be for everyone. Here are some people who should probably stay away from this procedure.
People With Heart Issues
People with a history of cardiac issues should refrain from using Ketamine. Some of these include angina, cardiomyopathy, and heart attacks.
This drug has the potential to make your heart race. This adds extra strain on your heart, which could lead to complications.
People With Low or High Blood Pressure
As I said earlier, the heart works faster when a person is on Ketamine. This could also cause high blood pressure levels. Needless to say, this isn’t great for people who already have this issue.
People With Mental Health Issues
Any drug has the ability to affect your mind. Ketamine has been known to cause hallucinations. This means it can make you see or hear things that aren’t really there.
This can be terrible for those with mental health conditions like psychosis or schizophrenia. If your brain already can’t tell what’s real and what’s not, Ketamine might make this problem worse.
People Who Are On Medications
If you’re taking certain medications, it’s best to stay away from Ketamine. This is because the drug can clash with them. This exacerbates issues, causing more problems than solutions.
Here is a list of medications that tend to interfere with the effects of ketamine therapy:
Benzodiazepines: Used to sedate, hypnotize, and relieve muscle spasms.
Lamotrigine: Used to stabilize bipolar disorder and treat epilepsy.
Memantine: Used to slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease
Alprazolam: Used to manage and resolve anxiety issues.
Older Adults
Adults who are on the older side may not be good candidates for this therapy. This is because they could end up being quite sensitive to its effects.
They may have stronger reactions, such as feeling detached from reality or having unusual thoughts. These experiences can be frightening, especially since older people’s bodies might not handle the drug as well as younger adults.
Pregnant Women
If you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, you shouldn’t try ketamine therapy. This is because the drug could enter the unborn child’s bloodstream and negatively impact the development of their brain.
Think of this as another one of the precautions you should take to ensure you give birth to a healthy young child.
Young Kids and Adolescents
Kids and teenagers with underdeveloped bodies and brains should also avoid Ketamine.
This is because the drug could interfere with their brain and inhibit its development. Kids who are really young may also get traumatized and frightened by the lost sense of time and reality that Ketamine is known to provide.
In any of these cases, it’s important to find an alternative treatment option.
Lifestyle Changes You Must Make After You Try Ketamine Therapy
If you have already received ketamine therapy, you may need to alter your lifestyle quite a bit. This helps ensure that you enjoy as many benefits of the treatment as possible. Here are a few things you should remember to do.
Regular Visits to the Doctor
Make sure to prepare a schedule or use one that your doctor has provided. Juggling work, school, and therapy can be a challenge, but will yield long term benefits. So, remember to make time for and attend every Ketamine therapy session.
Support After Treatment
After you’ve been treated, it’s crucial that you keep someone to monitor you at all times. This could be a family member, friend, or caregiver. The more supportive the conditions are the better you’ll feel once it’s all over.
So, Are You Eligible for Ketamine Treatment?
That brings us to the end of this comprehensive guide to this antidepressant therapy. However, it’s important to make sure that you fit the criteria of someone who can opt for this therapy.
Ultimately, the safety and effectiveness of ketamine therapy are what truly make it so brilliant. It can cure anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders. Just make sure that you don’t belong to any of the groups of people mentioned earlier. Moreover, don’t forget to consider ketamine therapy as a liable mental health treatment option and watch as you change your life for the better!