Menu
Ketamine is an extremely effective and fast-acting antidepressant that can provide dramatic relief from depression and anxiety, sometimes in a matter of hours.
Unlike traditional antidepressants, ketamine can offer fast relief from negative thoughts like shame, fear, and the desire to harm oneself. It does this by inhibiting a part of the brain referred to as the “anti-reward network.” When this self-critical part of the brain is quieted, it becomes easier to break old patterns of thinking and behavior that lead to depression and anxiety.
But ketamine also has the remarkable effect of stimulating the brain to strengthen healthy connections between neurons. When these connections are strengthened, we are better able to manage strong emotions, and can more easily change our behavior in adaptive ways.
Ketamine acts very differently from traditional antidepressants like SSRIs, which can take weeks or months to provide relief, and which often produce unpleasant side effects. Unlike these medications, ketamine does not remain in the body between treatments, so side effects like sexual dysfunction or sleep disturbances do not occur. Rather, ketamine stimulates the brain to make changes on its own by triggering a natural cascade of neurological growth and connection.
For many people, the benefits of ketamine therapy can last weeks or months, while intermittent booster treatments can help others maintain the benefits over the long term.
Ketamine interacts with multiple aspects of our psychology and physiology. While there is still much to be understood about how ketamine works, research indicates the following factors play an enormous role in ketamine’s healing effects.
Brain Regions and Chemicals to Know
A prominent neurotransmitter in the brain. Glutamate is now strongly associated with mood disorders. It is partly responsible for memory, learning, and mood regulation.
While this glutamate receptor and ion channel has many different roles, researchers have implicated it in mental health issues. Overactive NMDArs are associated with heightened depression and general distress.
This receptor is suspected to be primarily responsible for instigating neural plasticity in excitatory transmission. It is a key region of stimulation regarding ketamine’s healing properties.
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor signals new neural growth in the brain and is released when glutamate stimulates the AMPA receptor.
The mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTOR) is a signaling pathway that regulates new neural growth. Its stimulation is associated with the effects of BDNF.
The lateral habenula is a brain region largely responsible for our interpreting and predicting negative consequences. Those with depression and anxiety show an overactivity of burst firing in the lateral habenula.
As a non-competitive NMDA antagonist, ketamine prevents glutamate from activating the NMDA receptor. Recent evidence points to ketamine’s inhibitory effects on the NMDA receptor in the lateral habenula. The lateral habenula is a brain region largely responsible for encoding negative or anti-reward cause-and-effect relationships. Those with depression and anxiety show an overactivity of burst firing in the lateral habenula.
The inhibition of the NMDA receptor may cause a build-up of free glutamate, which then activates the AMPA receptors. Heightened AMPA receptor activity is associated with the release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a chemical largely responsible for new neural growth. This new growth may reroute the brain from hyperactive areas associated with negative reward signals, thereby providing long-term relief from mental health conditions.
Arrival
Time
Check-in,
verify insurance/payment info
Verify no eating in prior 2 hrs + no liquids in prior 30 min
Set Up & Medicine Administration (20 Min)
Get settled in treatment room
Review Plan for the Session, Q&A
Vitals Check
Intention Setting / Re-presencing
Administer Ketamine
Get Comfortable, Apply Eye Shades & Start Curated Music
Infusion
(-40 Min)
Infusion starts and continues for 40 minutes
Recovery
(0-30+ Min)
10-30 min + sitting, talking with infusion nurse, or listening to music, journaling or meditating
Herbal Tea, Water Available
Departure
Time
No Driving or Operating Heavy Machinery
Medically cleared prior to departure
By submitting you opt-in to sms and email communications from Cambridge Biotherapies.
