Understanding Ketamine Treatment Options in Durham, NC
Ketamine is a medication that is often used as an anesthetic but can also be used for psychological conditions and pain. It is considered an essential medicine by the World Health Organization. Additionally, it is used daily in thousands of surgeries and emergency rooms and more recently in Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy services.
There is a difference between ketamine treatment, sometimes called “ketamine-assisted treatment” or “ketamine therapy” and Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) – both of which are available in North Carolina throughout the Triangle. As a result, it is important to understand what service you or your loved one can receive.
What is Ketamine Treatment?
Medicine Only Sessions
Ketamine treatment usually refers to “medicine only” sessions, often held at a clinic offering ketamine through IV or nasal ketamine with Spravato
Lower Doses of Ketamine
These treatments are usually working with lower doses of ketamine. As a result, they are targeting the purely pharmacological potential and antidepressant effects of the medicine.
Ketamine Treatment Takes Place in a Medical Environment
The treatments take place in a medical environment, sometimes without a mental health professional present (e.g., an anesthesiologist administers the medicine, and nursing staff is on-site).
Limited Preparation
There is usually limited preparation for the process. In addition, it is viewed as a medical procedure.
Furthermore, individuals are usually having the treatment alone in a room, with some time after to assess recovery.
Limited Follow-Up
There is limited follow-up afterward, without attention to how the process of benefiting from the medicine can be incorporated into your life.
Alternative Administration Options
Additionally, the nasal spray allows for an alternative administration for individuals who are uninterested in the injectable or IV form of the medicine.
“Ketamine therapy,” in this case, may involve no therapy at all.
Ketamine medicine-only sessions can be very useful, and life-saving. Some individuals find it beneficial and of great comfort to still engage in preparation and integration services to support their ketamine treatments, which are available with Dr. Tatyana Kholodkov at Project Yes.
What is Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy for Depression, Anxiety, and Trauma
Ketamine treatment that only includes medicine varies greatly from Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy, which includes the following components:
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) explicitly involves a psychotherapy component.
The focus is on more than the medicine itself. It is seeing yourself as the force of your own healing and learning to listen to that part of yourself when the other parts soften.
Intake and Assessments with both a Psychedelic Therapist and Psychedelic Psychiatrist
The process includes completing both a comprehensive intake and associated assessments with a psychedelic-trained therapist, AND a medical evaluation from a psychedelic-trained psychiatrist.
Your “team” in this process includes YOU as the client, your therapist, and the psychiatrist.
The process is guided by integrative treatment planning in which you are an active participant. Additionally, it is collaboratively written with you, reviewed frequently, and revised as needed with input from all three parties.
Preparation and Consent Process for Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy
Before the medicine session, time is spent helping you prepare. There is an in-depth consent process also involved. By the time you are done, you will have worked on habits that support you to gain the most from your medicine session, have tools to help you ground, and be fully aware of what may come up in the medicine work.
Transformation is a process, not an experience.
Thus, it is highly recommended that you are engaged in ongoing psychotherapy. You don’t have to stop seeing your favorite therapist while engaging in KAP, and we can coordinate care with your providers!
Comfortable, safe location for medication sessions during Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy
The medicine sessions are held in a beautiful, modern office with attention to your comfort in mind. We adjust lighting and have furniture that allows for relaxation. As a result, you will feel like you are in a highly professional space with a cozy living room vibe.
Medical monitoring and your safety are our priority
We are there to care for you every step of the way. You are never alone. As a team, we conduct necessary yet non-invasive medical monitoring, therapeutic support, and otherwise help you stay comfortable so you can explore your unconscious mind. The medical provider is also there to assess and treat any adverse reactions should they arise.
We care for you on a basic human level too – making sure you have a tissue or help you sit up if you need it, safely make it to the bathroom, and anything else that may come up.
There is a witness to your experience who has personal experience with the KAP Process.
We carefully note what you may have shared or otherwise expressed As a result, this then becomes part of the psychedelic integration sessions.
You can trust that every professional you interact with in our KAP services has had personal experiences with non-ordinary states of consciousness you are about to walk into, as well as clinical experiences in supporting clients with expanded states of mind.
Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy is Supported by Research
The research supports that the effects of Ketamine therapy are enhanced when offered in environments that support intentionality, and safety, and facilitated by trained professionals. To learn more about what our KAP process entails, read the KAP Process Section!
Begin Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy in Durham, NC Today
If you have been struggling with your mental health and traditional treatments have not worked we can help. Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy is a proven alternative treatment that can address mental health issues that have proven treatment-resistant in the past. At Project Yes, Dr. Kholodkov is trained extensively in the KAP Process and is here to help you on your journey to healing through Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy and beyond. Follow the steps below to get started:
- Fill out our convenient online contact form here.
- Learn more about Dr. Kholodkov.
- Begin your journey to improved mental health and well-being.
Other Services Offered by Project Yes
In addition to Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy, we offer Additional Psychedelic Psychotherapy Services, Psychotherapy Services for Anxiety, Insomnia, Integrative Health, OCD, and Trauma and PTSD as well as Yoga and Meditation Options. We look forward to guiding you on your journey toward optimal physical and mental well-being.
If you want to learn more about Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy and our other services please check out our blog here!