Experience the life-changing benefits of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy at Caledon Clinic. We integrate intravenous ketamine treatment with psychotherapy, providing a comprehensive solution for those facing treatment-resistant mental health problems. Our dedicated team is committed to empowering you with personalized care, and evidence-based approaches. Discover a transformative path towards healing and well-being with our holistic approach to ketamine treatment.
Why Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy?
Mood disorders such as depression, anxiety and PTSD are complex. It is not just about chemical changes in the brain. It is also about the way experiences, beliefs, and self-concept are affected by psychological, behavioural, and social influences.
Ketamine is effective in providing relief from the complex network of dysfunctions associated with mood disorders.
Research shows an integrative approach combining intravenous ketamine and psychotherapy improves the efficacy of ketamine.
How Does Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy Work?
Neuroplasticity, which refers to the brain’s ability to rewire itself, is enhanced by ketamine treatment, making psychotherapy the most effective when received soon after treatment. By undergoing psychotherapy within 24-48 hours following ketamine treatment, individuals can take advantage of the neural plasticity induced by ketamine. This synergy helps to strengthen and maintain newly formed neural pathways, ultimately consolidating the progress made during treatment.
This is why our clinic recommends scheduling psychotherapy sessions after your ketamine treatment, as it provides an optimal opportunity to maximize the benefits of both interventions.
Our Treatment Process
Consultation & Preparation
We will conduct a comprehensive initial health screening to determine whether ketamine is right for you. You will undergo a general medical assessment and physical exam to ensure there are no contraindications to receiving ketamine treatment. Your medications and health condition will be optimized to promote the best results with ketamine.
Our anesthesiologist and consulting psychiatrist will create a personalized treatment plan for you. The anesthesiologist will explain the treatment plan to you, and we will receive your informed consent.
Psychoeducation Before Your Ketamine Infusion
Our psychotherapist will provide you with tools for self-care before, during, and after treatment. You will receive guidance on creating an optimal mindset for your treatment. You will also receive instructions on setting your treatment intentions to improve outcomes for you.
Ketamine Infusion
The nurse will conduct a readiness assessment on the day of the infusion. During the procedure, you will be lying in a comfortable infusion chair for 45 minutes. We will provide you with a blanket, eye cover, and headphones to listen to music curated for the session. During the infusion, music will be used to relax and orient you. The anesthesiologist and the nurse will closely monitor your vital signs and consciousness throughout the infusion process.
Recovery after your infusion
After the procedure, you will stay in the recovery area for approximately 30 minutes for observation until the recovery nurse is assured you are ready to go home with your designated driver (a family member or friend).
Psychotherapy & Integration
While receiving ketamine infusions, you will be meeting with the clinic psychotherapist. Ketamine therapy will introduce you to new perspectives and insights that the psychotherapist will help you to integrate into your life.
We recommend that you continue psychotherapy after the initial treatment cycle is complete. Psychotherapy post ketamine treatment is analogous to receiving physiotherapy after a surgical knee replacement to restore and improve function.
We will also recommend other integrative practices to improve outcomes and long-lasting remission, for example, calm-abiding meditation, yoga, and journaling.
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy FAQ
Over the years of clinical investigation and routine use in sedation, sub -anesthetic dosages have been found to be most effective at promoting mood recovery while minimizing side effects. The intravenous method also delivers sub-anesthetic dosages more reliably than oral, nasal or intramuscular methods.
The basis of benefit is neuroplasticity, a lasting reprogramming of neural circuits that ketamine promotes. For the beneficial reprogramming effect to be sustained, it is important for the patient to have both sustained exposure to the influence of the medication and to learn new cognitive and behaviour approaches to address negative mood states.
Treatment time may vary depending on the person and the dosage in a session. However, most patients are able to complete the cycle in less than two hours.
During your treatment session, hypertension and a mild dissociative state may occur. The frequency of each of these most common side effects is approximately 30%. Most patients do not require medication for these symptoms and side effects rapidly dissipate, often within 5 minutes after discontinuing the infusion. This is another reason why we prefer the intravenous method.
Cardiovascular conditions such as accelerated hypertension, unstable angina, aortic or cerebrovascular aneurysm may be worsened by the acute effects of ketamine and are considered contraindications for the treatment in professional guidelines and in drug precautions and warnings from the manufacturer.
Guidelines recommend that patients should decrease doses of drugs in the sedative, anxiolytic and hypnotic categories such as lorazepam (Ativan), zopiclone, zolpidem (Imovane, Ambien) as well as medical cannabis.
Although ketamine has been used successfully in some centres for the treatment of alcohol dependency or abuse, best results will be achieved if the person can maintain abstinence from alcohol for at least 40 days.
Dr. Cooper can prescribe medications to support abstinence, but if you are currently alcohol dependent you must have a medically supervised detoxification with the support of your family physician or other practitioner.
Our guidance is to refrain from these activities for at least 24 hours after a treatment session. We recommend that post session you spend the time reflectively and restfully.
The recommended treatment protocol is 6 ketamine infusions and 6 psychotherapy sessions.
Cost of single ketamine infusion: $425
Cost of single psychotherapy session: $200