Ketamine is now a validated “off-label” treatment for various chronic “treatment-resistant” mental illnesses, pain syndromes, and other conditions. It is classified as a dissociative anesthetic; dissociation means a sense of disconnection from one’s ordinary reality and usual self. You will most likely experience anxiolytic (anxiety-reducing), antidepressant, and psychedelic effects at the dosage level administered to you, potentially leading to a shift in your mindset.

Ketamine has been used safely as an anesthetic agent for several decades with an extensive safety record. Since 1985 it has been included in the WHO Essential Medicine List. It is an essential medicine used on adults and children in analgesia (pain relief) and anesthesia without respiratory depression, the main risk associated with anesthetics.

Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (PAT) is a therapeutic technique used in conjunction with traditional psychotherapy that utilizes psychedelic substances as a healing agent in treating chronic pain and treatment-resistant mental health conditions.

More specifically, psychedelic substances are administered to patients in low to moderate doses under the supervision of trained medical/mental health professionals. Doses are administered over a prescribed period followed by traditional medical or psychotherapy sessions.

When PAT is being administered for mental health conditions, the period following the psychedelic experience is often referred to as Integration. The focus of the Integration period is to help patients make sense of and find meaning in the psychedelic experience.

Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy is a form of Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy (PAT) that utilizes ketamine in a psycho-therapeutic approach to enhance treatment effects. Ketamine can be safely administered in four ways; intramuscular (IM) and intravenous (IV) intranasal, sublingually, or lozenge.

Each method has its own set of pros and cons, but often, the choice of administration hinges on dosage amounts and length of the psychedelic experience.

The goals and therapeutic methods of KAP are the same as PAT focusing on helping patients overcome chronic pain and persistent mental health conditions.

When handled and administered by trained medical professionals in a controlled setting, ketamine is very safe. Like any anesthetic ketamine, when used improperly, can be dangerous as it affects motor functions and pain receptors. Ketamine also raises heart rate and blood pressure, which can increase the risk of stroke, or heart attack. Injuries involving ketamine are typically caused by its recreational use. As a medication, ketamine has been used safely for many years.

Ketamine is an essential medicine used for anesthesia and analgesia (pain relief) in adults and children, having been listed on the WHO Essential Medecines List since 1985.

The purpose of KAP is to create a non-ordinary (“altered”) or transformational state of consciousness to facilitate profound peak experiences that may be beneficial in resolving existential problems, intractable chronic pain, and problematic substance use accelerating psycho-spiritual growth, and potentially leading to a profound personal transformation.

Such change is best facilitated within a structured, supportive psychotherapeutic milieu in connection with therapists who understand your issues, hopes, desires, and struggles. As a byproduct of the experience, evidence suggests an improvement in physical and emotional states and reduced bothersome symptoms, such as pain, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic manifestations.

Patients have reported that they are a bit different after a ketamine experience, and that difference may be liberating, allowing for new mindfulness and new behavior. It is frequently the case that a ketamine experience may promote happiness, empathy, loving-kindness to self and others, and a sense of greater self-acceptance and peacefulness.

A ketamine session can be light, dark, or both. It is frequently the case that patients experience concepts, visions, encounters, and feelings about their death, mortality, and immortality. While some find this experience troubling, generally, patients come through it with a measure of positive change and a sense of having had a profound life-changing experience.

Many factors can affect how an individual experiences ketamine, including; age, weight, dosage, how it is taken, and the setting where it is taken. When it comes to the experiences of PAT/KAP patients, they report a sense of dissociation, the feeling of being disconnected from reality, or a dreamlike state. These sensations are often combined with a feeling of weightlessness or floating and can be accompanied by euphoria. It is common to have intense emotional perceptions brought on by feelings of euphoria or anxiety.

Sometimes for those unfamiliar with psychedelic experiences, ketamine can produce feelings of anxiety or distress when first administered. This is mainly due to inexperience with psychedelics or “out-of-body” states.

Your ketamine treatment session, or Discovery session, will be administered over 90 minutes, with the primary effects lasting for as long as 3 hours. Subtle side effects can be experienced up to 24 hours after the infusion.

All patients will be required to organize a ride and should not operate a motor vehicle for a 24hrs post-treatment.

As coverage ranges widely between health insurance providers, we recommend checking with your provider ahead of time. Veterans Affairs Canada has coverage for police and vets through Blue Cross.

Research has shown important changes in personality, mood, and cognition during treatment, the immediate aftermath, and days and weeks that follow.

The ketamine exploratory session is designed to enable healing wisdom to be accessed. The psychotherapeutic support will aid in making patient experience(s) valuable and understandable. Some effects may be temporarily disorienting, but the integration process may help achieve clarity and understanding.

Some patients report experiencing lasting improvement in their condition within hours. However, the response is not guaranteed. In the treatment of depression and other psychological and physical conditions, there is a chance of relapse back to the initial state, even with repeated dosing over time.

Before participating in ketamine treatment, you will be carefully interviewed to determine whether you are eligible for ketamine therapy, including a review of your medical and psychiatric history and records, administration of brief psychological tests to assess your state of mind, and a physical exam if deemed necessary.