8 Benefits of Ketamine Infusion Therapy in Managing Symptoms of OCD
Have you tried using traditional OCD treatments with little improvement? What if I told you there was a better treatment method that is effective for treating OCD? Ketamine Infusion therapy is a highly sensitive treatment method that is often used by patients who have tried using traditional OCD treatment methods without much change.
Ketamine Infusion therapy is administered with the help of a qualified medical practitioner and helps you to get relief from repetitive behaviors, anxiety, and intrusive thoughts. This blog will look into the benefits of ketamine infusion therapy, and also help you to know whether ketamine-assisted psychotherapy is right for your condition. So, grab a cup of tea and read through.
What is Ketamine Infusion Therapy?
If you have been struggling to treat OCD, I am sure by now, you are considering giving ketamine infusion therapy a try. But before you make any major life choices, let us first get a deeper look at what ketamine infusion is.
Ketamine treatment uses Ketamine whose main aim for development was as an anesthetic. Over the years, ketamine showed great results when it came to treating depression, anxiety, and other bipolar disorders.
To receive the ketamine infusion for anxiety treatment, you will first need to be diagnosed by a doctor who has majored in biological psychiatry. This ensures that you, as a patient, will receive the right medication for your condition. You will need a qualified medical professional to be present during the Ketamine treatment, which is given in small doses. The treatment is given using an intravenous and may take from 40 minutes to an hour to administer.
For your safety, a medic observes you and keeps watch in case of any extreme side effects. These are rare as the highest number of patients claim to experience a calming effect during the treatment session.
The benefits of Ketamine Infusion Therapy in managing OCD symptoms
If you are looking forward to trying out Ketamine infusion therapy to manage OCD symptoms, here are some of the benefits that are attached to ketamine treatment.
1. Quick symptom relief:
Unlike other traditional methods used to manage OCD symptoms, Ketamine biotherapy treatment offers relief within hours or a few days. If you are experiencing a severe OCD case, this treatment will be a discovery into a new world where severe distress isa thing of the past.
2. Treatment-resistant cases:
Have you tried other conventional treatments forOCD and none worked for you? The Ketamine treatment is an ideal treatment option for patients who have been resistant to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). You should however, get a qualified medical practitioner’s opinion before switching between OCD symptom treatments.
3. Offers Temporary relief when adjusting medication:
If you are switching between two treatments, ketamine treatment can be useful in helping you find temporary relief. The ketamine treatment helps in relieving withdrawal symptoms therefore making your transitioning journey easier and manageable.
4. Enhanced neuroplasticity:
Ketamine treatment helps you to manage your thinking patterns and behavior by breaking patterns which cause OCD. This happens when the brain forms new neural connections and promotes neuroplasticity.
5. Reduces depressive symptoms:
If you experience depression every once in a while, the ketamine treatment helps you to manage depression symptoms. This means that you reduce the risk of self harm and also provide a safe space for personal growth.
6. Potential for sustained benefits:
Ketamine treatment is used as a management treatment for OCD and is administered over a set period of time. The continuous use of ketamine results in improved OCD symptoms over time. This means that even after stopping the use of ketamine, you will be able to experience the benefits of the treatment.
7. Non-invasive nature:
The ketamine treatment is a painless procedure which means that you will not have to undergo surgery during the biological therapies period. This also means that you will not require long rest periods from your daily life activities, as the case with invasive procedures.
8. Safety and tolerability:
Considering that ketamine therapy doesn’t require any major medical procedure such as surgery, it is safe to say that procedure is tolerable. Once you undergo Ketamine infusion therapy under the care of a qualified medical practitioner, your safety is promised. You should however note that some mild side effects such as hallucinations may be experienced but fade away quickly.
Is Ketamine Infusion Therapy right for you?
With the benefits of ketamine infusion therapy clearly stated out for you, how do you know whether the treatment is right for you? It is first important to understand that the ketamine therapy for anxiety is given in small doses to the patient over a stated period of time. This means that it will not be a one time type of treatment method.
Just like other medications out there, ketamine-assisted psychotherapy may cause some side effects to you. These differ from person to person, with most patients claiming not to have experienced any side effects.
It is therefore important for you to get in touch with a qualified ketamine infusion specialist. During consultation, it is important for you to outline any previous and underlying medical issues you may have. This helps in decision making of whether or not the medical procedure is right for you. The specialist will also look at your mental health records and carry out any additional tests which will confirm your eligibility to the treatment therapy. Before making the final decision you should factor in your goals, your budget and also the availability of a qualified ketamine psychiatrist.
How Often Are Ketamine Infusions Administered?
Many patients often ask how often the ketamine infusion for anxiety intravenous infusions are made. As previously discussed, the treatment is not a one time exercise. The frequency of administering ketamine infusions differs from one patient to another. The frequency is determined by factors such as how the patient is responding to the treatment, and how bad the OCD symptoms being treated are.
For instance, if you are a patient who has previously been resistant to other forms of treatments, therefore developing resistance, the administration will be done as frequently as twice a week. With frequent ketamine treatments,the doctors can tell how well you are responding to this new treatment. With improvement, the frequency of infusion is reduced to once a week or once every two weeks!
The doctor keeps track of your recovery throughout the treatment period and in a few cases, may advise the patient to take up maintenance ketamine infusions once you are done with the treatment. The maintenance infusion helps you to sustain the positive treatment effects. The maintenance dose is normally given every once a month.
Does ketamine therapy get you high
Ketamine is a drug that is used in the medical field to initiate anesthesia when given in a large quantity. It is however given in small quantities when treating OCD which means that as a patient you will fully awake and active during the full treatment.
Ketamine has different effects on individuals however, it is important to note that the main goal of ketamine treatment for bipolar is to manage mood disorders such as OCD. With that said, there are some patients who have reported feeling euphoria and also a sense of relaxation during the ketamine treatment and shortly after.
How do you choose the right treatment facility?
Choosing the right facility is a vital decision if you are thinking of choosing ketamine infusion therapy as a treatment method for you. To find the right facility, you can start by checking the reviews left behind by previous clients. This gives you an idea of the ketamine services offered by the facility and also, other people’s experiences.
You can also take your time and visit treatment facilities, check their services as well as their licenses for practice.
Conclusion
Ketamine therapy infusion is a treatment method that is ideal for OCD patients who have previously experienced resistance with other treatments. With benefits such as random Ocd symptoms relief and enhanced neuroplasticity, ketamine infusion therapy is a treatment worth a try.
