Research has shown that treatment with ketamine is beneficial for some people with anxiety, depression, PTSD, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Although biochemical changes in your brain are the leading cause of initial relief, psychological experiences often cause extended remissions. Still, certain patients seem to do better than others. In addition to an ideal environment, planning, and integration, the right mindset is also essential for ketamine therapy. Are you considering Ketamine Therapy in Atlanta? These are the mental aspects that help patients improve with ketamine therapy.

Preparation For The Encounter

Ketamine therapy can induce a state of heightened alertness. It is essential to know that everything you hear, see, and experience during treatment comes from your subconscious mind. Unsurprisingly, being physically and mentally prepared increases the likelihood that you will have a positive experience and experience a lasting change after therapy.

Detoxify Your System

Do your best to start the session with a clean system. Ketamine has an impact on your emotions and thinking. Therefore, try to rid yourself of drugs, behaviors, activities, and products that could negatively impact both. Refrain from depressants and stimulants, as they can interfere with your experience. If you’re taking prescription medications, talk to your doctor before beginning your ketamine session. It would help if you also reduced exposure to stressful, unpleasant, and violent media content and television. Numerous studies have shown that social media use and bad news have harmful consequences. Therefore, pay attention to what you consume, listen to, and learn the day before and after your treatment, as these things can affect your mind and body.

Set Your Goals For Each Infusion Session

Your intentions define beliefs with clear goals that guide your thinking. For some people, the goals correspond to the outcomes they expect from ketamine therapy. These motives can also be statements that commit you to altered states, for example, “gratitude” and “I forgive myself.” If you’re going through a difficult time, take a deep breath and return to your goal for a relaxing effect. During the infusion, it’s best to let go of everything and focus only on the treatment.

Integration Phase: Develop New Understanding, Take New Action

Learn how to turn the intense experiences you had during your ketamine therapy into ongoing improvements so that you continue to get better;

Integration: What Does It Mean?

Integration is a way to process and reflect on your discoveries and sessions during your infusion session. Reflecting on your ketamine therapy allows you to examine what happened and identify the changes you can expect in your daily life. It’s a rich resource that ketamine offers to help you make good long-term improvements. You can write down your thoughts or contact an integration specialist or therapist to guide you. 

Use Neuroplasticity To Your Advantage

It is best to design your new intentions using the lessons you learned immediately after your sessions. Your imagination will be bursting with creative ideas from the revelations of treatment. Studies have shown that ketamine stimulates neuroplasticity in the brain, a physical state in which new neural connections form. New neural circuits, including your thought patterns, have long-term effects on your brain that go far beyond the effects of ketamine. It’s the ideal opportunity to put your creative thoughts into action. Here are some new goals that can help you move forward with integration:

  • “I can let go of the old me.”
  • “I need to take more care of my health.”
  • “I deserve happiness and well-being.”
  • “I will be more appreciative.”

Things To Avoid Doing After Your Infusion

1. You should not interpret your observations literally. Your subconscious experiences after a ketamine infusion are symbolic and abstract, similar to a dream.

2. Shortly after the injection, you should avoid engaging in chores, overstimulation, housework, or other stressors. It will take some time for you to return to ordinary consciousness, and it would also be a missed opportunity for introspection and progress.

3. Patients should not drastically change their lives. After treatment, it is typical to feel inspired and compelled to act immediately. Please prioritize reasonable and measured adjustments. Counterproductive stressors are often the result of dramatic changes.

You will not constantly experience or remember an elevated mood triggered by ketamine. In other cases, you may lose the drive to achieve the desired improvements in the days following therapy, which is OKAY. Be patient and kind to yourself, as it is a healing journey, not a sprint. Over the days following the ketamine infusion, you may gradually gain additional insight into your encounter that was not initially apparent.