Ketamine Addiction: Definition, Symptoms, Effects, and Treatment

In preparing to provide ketamine therapy, I am addressing the frequently asked questions about the benefits, use in mental health, and treatment plans available. These effects typically include feelings of euphoria, sedation, and changes in cognition, as well as hallucinations and dissociative experiences. Individuals who use ketamine may believe that it makes them more sociable and more empathetic to other people’s feelings. While taking an antidepressant or going to psychological counseling (psychotherapy) may work for most people, these standard treatments aren’t enough for others. Symptoms may not improve much or at all, or they may improve but keep coming back. Insurance disputes have prevented Winograd from getting a booster, even with the nasal spray, though he and his health care providers feel that he would benefit from it.

The FDA has approved ketamine for general anesthesia only, but the drug has some off-label uses. General anesthesia denotes a sleep-like state, while dissociative refers to the effect of feeling disconnected. Giordano also warned against taking ketamine more than once in one sitting. People may feel tempted, since the effects wear off fairly quickly, but the effects of multiple doses add up. There’s also a chance that ketamine obtained outside medical clinics could be laced with other drugs—there have been reports in Australia of ketamine laced with opioids.

“This may be accompanied by vivid dream-like feelings and out-of-body experiences,” Masand said. That held true until some friends were snorting K in their apartment, and curiosity got the best of me. I told my friend to give me what she deemed a microdose (though I’m unsure of the actual dosage), then cut that in half just to be prudent. But once we started talking, it was like my ego’s defenses eroded and I could see myself from the outside. I analyzed my life as if I were in therapy, suddenly seeing the perspectives of people I was mad at.

Treatment for Ketamine Addiction

With this in mind, they urge doctors to prescribe standard antidepressants before trying ketamine for depression. The drug is a Schedule III non-narcotic that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved for use only as a general anesthetic. However, doctors sometimes prescribe effects of meth on the body what does meth do to your body it for “off-label” uses, such as depression. Off-label means using the drugs to treat conditions the FDA has not approved. Users also might get high blood pressure, which puts them at risk for heart attack, stroke, heart failure, aneurysm, renal failure, vision loss, and dementia.

Before Spravato was approved in 2019, ketamine was prescribed off-label for the treatment of depression. Other off-label uses of ketamine include treating bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as substance use disorder. A 2022 review found that long-term, high dose awareness and health observances observances drug overdose use of recreational ketamine may be linked to brain function-related side effects, mood disorders, and psychotic symptoms. Esketamine (Spravato) is a form of ketamine available as a nasal spray. It’s used along with an antidepressant to treat treatment-resistant depression in adults.

EEG studies have demonstrated that these types of music help organize the brain waves to match those of someone who is in deep meditation, promoting healing from traumatic memories (Wavepaths, 2022). But research shows that within 24 hours of the first dose of medically supervised ketamine, those lost connections start to regrow. The more synapses the patients grow, the better the antidepressant effects of ketamine are for them. Recreationally, ketamine is usually snorted in powder form and occasionally taken as a pill, while in clinical settings, it’s often administered via IV or injections. Some clinics have therapists in the room supervising and talking to patients, while others leave you to yourself, often providing blindfolds or noise-blocking headphones to help you focus.

What Is Ketamine Addiction?

The brain can respond in a few ways, depending on the state it was in to begin with. For example, some people with long-term depression lose some important connections in their brains (called synapses) that let nerve cells communicate. Christa Coulter-Scott says ketamine treatment eased the depression she’s had for most of her life.

Addiction can negatively impact quality of life, physical health, mental well-being, and relationships. If you think you may have a ketamine addiction, reaching out for help is not a weakness. Getting support from friends, family, and professional facilities can assist you in overcoming your addiction and living your life free of substances. While ketamine overdoses are not strongly linked to death, consuming large amounts of this drug can be fatal. There are different ways to identify a person the signs of a potential ketamine addiction. We’ll be examining the symptoms to look out for, and factors that can increase the risk of developing a dependence or addiction to ketamine.

1. It may be an option for people who either haven’t been helped by antidepressant pills or who have major depressive disorder and are suicidal.
2. This means that it produces sedative effects but also produces cognitive effects that include memory loss (amnesia) and feeling as if one is detached from oneself or reality.
3. The antidepressant effects of ketamine wear off in hours, days, or a couple weeks in people who only get a single infusion.
4. Through my research, I found that ketamine therapy in connection with psychotherapy provided patients with a safe psychedelic experience under the care of a trained practitioner.

At his clinic, Stewart only sees patients who have referrals from a doctor who diagnosed them with treatment-resistant depression. He starts patients with a research-based six infusions spaced over 3 weeks. It is important to note that ketamine is no longer safe when individuals take it inappropriately. The danger increases alcohol and aging effects with regular use since it can harm health and other aspects of life. Individuals who take ketamine recreationally report sensations, such as being separated from their body or a pleasant feeling of floating. Some people have an almost complete sensory detachment that they compare to a near-death experience.

In the brains of some people with depression, those nerve cells don’t get so excited by glutamate anymore. It’s as if the glutamate receptors – the catcher’s mitts – are deactivated or weakened. The antidepressant effects of ketamine wear off in hours, days, or a couple weeks in people who only get a single infusion. For treatment-resistant depression, patients usually get the nasal spray twice a week for 1 to 4 weeks; then once a week for weeks 5 to 9; and then once every week or two after that.

Over the past decade or so, legal ketamine clinics have popped up to treat depression, OCD, and other mental health conditions. “It has literally saved lives for people who were ready to give up all hope,» Masand said. No medications have been FDA-approved to treat ketamine addiction, but doctors may prescribe other medications to help treat co-occurring mental health conditions. Hospitalization may sometimes be required to manage serious withdrawal symptoms. As a psychiatrist and lifelong student, I am frequently researching advancements in mental health care and the best possible treatment plans available for my patients.

Receiving Ketamine

These drastically altered states of consciousness are often appealing to certain types of individuals. Dr. Vande Voort is a clinician-researcher whose work spans child, adolescent and adult psychiatry in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Vande Voort completed a research fellowship at the National Institutes of Health, where her work focused on the use of ketamine for treatment-resistant depression. She is the co-medical director of the ketamine clinic at Mayo Clinic. Ketamine is also being studied for other mental health issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and in those with a history of psychosis.

John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine. For over 20 years Dr. Umhau was a senior clinical investigator at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The effects of the drug can vary depending on the dose and form, as well as whether you’re using it illegally.

Ketamine for depression: A unique weapon in the treatment arsenal

However, things are changing and there may be promising news in the future regarding insurance coverage. If the FDA approves ketamine for other conditions based on new research, your insurance plan could cover ketamine in the future for treatment-resistant depression and other conditions. If you or a loved one is living with an addiction to ketamine, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. There’s a thriving community that will support you along your journey to a happier and healthier life. Another form of ketamine called R-ketamine is currently being studied for treatment-resistant depression. One advantage of ketamine over other antidepressant medications is how fast it works.

What is ketamine used for in mental health care?

But there are serious risks linked to ketamine’s use, which is why it should only be given under the supervision of a doctor. The most serious are unconsciousness, high blood pressure, and dangerously slowed breathing. The drug could also cause long-term problems, such as ulcers and pain in the bladder; kidney problems; stomach pain; depression; and poor memory. Ketamine could be fatal for people who abuse alcohol or if you take it while you’re drunk.