The 5 Reasons Ketamine Therapy Might Not Be Right for You
Exploring ketamine therapy for mental health? In this blog, explore five key reasons you might want to skip getting ketamine treatments.
Before you pursue ketamine therapy, it's vitally important to weigh the pros and cons. Ketamine is great, but it isn’t for everyone.
To Ketamine or Not to Ketamine, that is the question
Have you been considering trying ketamine therapy? Perhaps you’ve read or heard about someone’s life forever changing thanks to this unique treatment. Maybe someone, like a loved one or a healthcare professional, is really excited for you to try it. Navigating the decision whether to undergo this treatment or not can be overwhelming. It’s important that you make an informed choice. So in this blog we’re going to go over 5 reasons you might want to skip ketamine treatments, rather than diving right in!
Reason #1: You don’t want to try ketamine therapy
You know the saying, "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink"? This saying applies here. Sometimes, loved ones with the best of intentions may recommend ketamine therapy. Your significant other, close friend, or trusted healthcare provider has seen you year after year suffer. It breaks their heart to see it and they want you to get better. So they may push for you to try ketamine. But, for it to be truly effective, you have to want it too. Healing and change can only happen if you want it. Plus, ketamine therapy isn’t just taking a pill or getting a shot. As you’ll see in the next reason, it can take you to places you may not want to go.
Reason #2: You aren’t ready for a psychedelic experience
You can experience a psychedelic or non-ordinary state of consciousness during ketamine therapy. Whether you're someone who's familiar with such states or it's all brand new, it's essential that you know it can happen. If you are new to these types of experiences, it can be intimidating, but if you're properly prepared and know what to expect, it can be less so. Make sure you're ready for this part of the therapy, if not we recommend you wait until you are or try a different therapy.
Reason #3: You don’t have social support nor are ready to make some life changes
Shouldn’t just getting the medicine be enough? Nope! Ketamine therapy isn't just about the infusions. For the treatment to genuinely be transformative, often it’s necessary to make lifestyle changes. Whether that is leaving a job or relationship, or adding a new habit like meditation, sometimes you need support to maintain these changes. Depending on where we are on our journey, we may not be ready to make these alterations. Other cases, we may have a very unsupportive group of people around us and that is okay. You may want to consider “hitting” pause on getting treatment until you are ready to change and you have the support. But if you are ready and feel called to this treatment, don’t let not having emotional support hold you back. You can find the supportive voices in the form of integration specialists and perhaps via a vetted online community.
Reason #4: Ketamine has side effects that you don’t want to deal with
Every treatment, no matter how routine, has risks and side effects. Ketamine therapy is no exception. Before diving in, find out what the potential side effects of ketamine are. If you find a side effect or risk you don’t want to experience, then you probably should try something else. Sure, if there is a chance you won’t experience the side effect at all, like cystitis. But if you want to be 100% sure you don’t want to deal with that, then skip it. Something to consider is if you are really focused on the side effects and worried about what bad things could happen, it might mean you really don't want the treatment. Trust your gut.
Reason #5: You’re not financially prepared for ongoing ketamine treatments
Unfortunately, healthcare can come with a price tag and ketamine treatments are no exception. With insurance coverage slowly increasing for this treatment, you must be prepared for costs. Spravato is covered by insurance and you might try that first, but you may be one of those people who aren’t quite responding the way both you and your ketamine specialist hope. So you consider intravenous or intramuscular ketamine but your insurance doesn’t cover it. Or they will only partially cover it but this would still put you into financial hardships. If you feel you aren’t prepared to potentially deal with this or it is already going to be a stretch to pay for treatments, you may want to hold off.
Sometimes you need more time to think and decide if ketamine therapy is for you. Just go ahead and skip it until you’re ready.
Time For Ketamine? If In Doubt, Just Skip It
Are any or all of these reasons resonating with you? If you answer yes, then we encourage you - even as a ketamine clinic - to skip or wait pursuing ketamine treatments. Ketamine therapy offers a unique approach to mental health treatment, but it's important that it aligns with your personal, emotional, and financial situation. Ketamine is a powerful medication that has the potential to really change lives. But similar to how fire can bring warmth and light, it can also burn. If you aren’t ready to wield the fire, or in your case pursue ketamine treatments you can get yourself hurt. Is it time for ketamine? If in doubt, just skip it.
Related Questions:
What exactly is a psychedelic experience like with ketamine?
Ketamine offers a unique psychedelic experience, and can also be known as a “ketamine-induced non-ordinary state of consciousness.” The nature of the experience depends on the dosage (aka how much ketamine you get) and your mindset during treatment. In general, a higher dose can lead to a more dissociative or psychedelic encounter, with possible experiences ranging from feelings of deep empathy and relaxation to more profound out-of-body or even near-death sensations.
What kind of lifestyle changes might be necessary after ketamine treatment?
During the ketamine experience, you may be inspired or motivated to make some changes in your life. Each experience and insights are unique to the person. Changes take the form of either adding or removing something to your everyday life. These changes may be small or large. For some it can look like meditating for 2 minutes a day or quitting a job. If these changes are huge or drastic, emotional support such as positive friends and family or a mental health professional or integration specialist is key.
If you enjoyed this blog, check out these too!
Why Ketamine isn't for Everyone?
During ketamine treatments you might experience things that they've been holding and repressing for so many years. You might be ready for this, so ketamine might not be for you. Explore more in this blog.
7 Reasons People Don't Respond To Ketamine Treatments
You might have heard about how amazing ketamine therapy is from someone, but after you receive treatments you feel only a little better or even worse! Why is that? Find out seven reasons this may be the case in this blog.
The 7 Types of People Who Should NOT Get Ketamine
Ketamine is a very effective therapy for treating many mood and pain disorders, but it isn't for everyone. Find out at our blog about the 7 types of people who should not get ketamine!
Exploring ketamine therapy for mental health? In this blog, explore five key reasons you might want to skip getting ketamine treatments.