Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP)

What is Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP)?

KAP is a holistic, psychedelic-assisted modality that pairs ketamine treatment with dedicated psychotherapy sessions for deeper therapy, more frequent breakthroughs, and better clinical outcomes. For more information on ketamine and its benefits visit: journeyclinical.com.

What is Ketamine?

Ketamine is a legal, safe and effective medicine used to treat a variety of mental health conditions, including depression, anxiety and PTSD. Ketamine has rapidly-acting antidepressant and mood-enhancing effects, which can begin to take effect within 1-2 hrs. after treatment and last for up to 2 weeks. It works by blocking the brain’s NMDA receptors as well as by stimulating AMPA receptors, which are thought to help form new synaptic connections and boost neural circuits that regulate stress and mood. Ketamine has also been shown to enhance overall neuroplasticity for lasting symptom improvement.

How Does Ketamine Feel?

The effects of ketamine, which most patients find pleasant, last for approximately 45 minutes. These effects can make you feel “far from” your body, and facilitate shifts in perception that can often feel expansive in nature. Your motor and verbal abilities will be reduced, so you’ll be lying down in a comfortable position during the experience. Once these effects subsided, we’ll spend the remainder of our appointment giving you space to process and discuss your experience. While it may feel hard to articulate what happened during the experience, patients feel like the insights gained are none-the-less clear. Studies have shown that the benefits to mood and neurological growth can last up to two weeks after the Ketamine experience.

What Is The Step-By-Step Process?

1. Initial consultation with Journey Clinical
2. Preparation sessions
3. KAP Dosing Session
4. Integration Sessions
5. Follow-up consultations with Journey Clinical

Why Choose KAP?

Altered Brain Chemistry: Ketamine affects neurotransmitter activity, reducing depression and anxiety symptoms.

Dissociative Experience: The altered state can provide new perspectives on entrenched issues.

Therapeutic Enhancement: The dissociative state can make clients more open to therapy.

Integration: Combining the insights gained during the ketamine experience with traditional psychotherapy to support lasting change.

How Do I Sign Up?

If you would like to explore the possibility of working with me on KAP, please e-mail me at [email protected] to discuss eligibility and next steps.

What is Journey Clinical?

Journey Clinical is a platform for licensed psychotherapists to incorporate science-based psychedelic therapies in their practice safely and effectively, starting with Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP). Journey Clinical’s in-house medical team takes on patient eligibility, prescriptions and outcome monitoring, while I take on the therapy. Their collaborative care model is designed to deliver personalized treatment plans to meet your individual needs and improve long-term outcomes.

Who Benefits

Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy shows promise for those with treatment-resistant mental health conditions like depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, and chronic pain. Its rapid antidepressant effects are particularly notable, and it can also aid in addiction treatment and addressing existential distress. Explore if you may be a candidate HERE.

What To Expect

Step 1: Initial consultation with Journey Clinical

You schedule an initial evaluation with a clinician from the Journey Clinical medical team via zoom. They will go over your medical and psychiatric history with you, provide education on the treatment and determine if you are eligible for KAP.
If Journey Clinical’s medical team determines that you are eligible for KAP, they will develop a personalized Ketamine prescription and outcome monitoring plan for you.
Journey Clinical’s medical staff will write a ketamine prescription for you, and a small amount of oral ketamine will be sent to your home, enough for the first 2 KAP sessions. You will be taught to take your vitals and self-administer the ketamine lozenges by Journey Clinical’s medical team in advance of our KAP sessions.

Step 2: Preparation Sessions

Once you receive your ketamine lozenges, we will schedule time together for our KAP preparation, dosing and integration sessions. Preparation session(s) will be scheduled just like regular therapy sessions.
KAP dosing session. The goal of a preparation session(s) is to align on the process and set intentions for our KAP sessions together.

Step 3: KAP Dosing Session

A typical ketamine dosing session lasts between 1-2 hours and can take place either in-person at my office.
During a dosing session, you will self-administer your ketamine lozenge either in my office. You will be in a comfortable, reclining position wearing an eye mask and listening to calming music.
Although a KAP dosing session may be largely an internal experience, I will be present with you the entire time to hold space and provide support as needed.

Step 4: Integration Sessions

After our KAP dosing session, we will meet for multiple integration therapy sessions to review the memories, thoughts & insights that arose during your dosing session, and to prepare for the next dosing session.

Step 5: Follow-up consultations with Journey Clinical

After our first KAP session, Journey Clinical’s medical team schedules regular follow-ups with you to monitor outcomes and prescribe ketamine lozenge refills, as appropriate. The frequency of follow-ups depends on your unique treatment plan, at a minimum of once per quarter.