The Ketamine therapy procedure in our clinic involves a combination of Ketamine infusions with other treatments. Thus we obtain results in a short time that are more durable and long lasting than therapies that are based just on Ketamine infusions.

Ketamin therapy procedure

Diagnostics

The first step in our Ketamine therapy procedure is the diagnostics. Before administering a Ketamin infusion, we hold a detailed preliminary discussion in which we get a picture of your personal situation. It is also important that we know about the results of previous attempts at treatment, what medicines you are taking, and any existing illnesses and those you have suffered in the past.  

The detailed medical history is supplemented by a psychological diagnostic test and a quantitative EEG, which provides information on the brain function.   

This is followed by a medical examination, including a blood pressure measurement, and possibly also an EKG and an HRV (heart rate variability) measurement. Depending on the symptoms and questions, a mobile sleep laboratory will be set up for the first night.  

If you have any preliminary findings, please bring these with you! This allows us to avoid duplicating examinations.

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Therapy planning

Next step in the Ketamin therapy procedure is planning the therapy. We will plan the therapy together with the patient, based on the results we have come up with and the preliminary findings. We are the first clinic to offer a unique and much more effective treatment than just Ketamine infusions. In our clinic, we always combine Ketamine infusions with modern complementary procedures, like for example rTMS and neurofeedback. The additional procedures are geared towards your clinical picture and the current findings. Our aim in this is to ensure the success of the therapy in the long term. 

Every therapy plan is, of course, provisional. Each therapy can be modified by agreement at any time during the treatment.  

In addition to Ketamine therapy we also apply:

• hypnosis
• behaviour therapy, including virtual reality
• EMDR (eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing) trauma therapy
• psychodynamic psychotherapy
• neurofeedback
• HRV biofeedback and peripheral biofeedback
• repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)
• transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS)
• autogenic training, progressive muscle relaxation, yoga
• sports therapy
• equine therapy

Ketamine infusions

The main part of the Ketamine therapy procedure is of course the Ketamine infusion itself.
After inserting a venous cannula, an infusion solution containing a small amount of Ketamine is connected. The infusion takes about 40 minutes. During this time you will lie comfortably on a couch. Your therapist will sit beside you and monitor you. You are never left alone!

During the infusion many patients experience a slight feeling of dizziness, as if slightly drunk; other patients suddenly remember events that they had totally forgotten, while others go on a dream journey or have mild hallucinations. It is important to know that if you start to experience unpleasant sensations the therapist can stop them immediately by reducing the speed of the infusion.

After the infusion most patients feel a little giddy and are barely able to walk. In rare cases nausea or vomiting may occur. All these side-effects disappear in a short time. After 15 minutes’ rest, most patients can walk normally again and they feel fine. For safety reasons, however, we recommend that they stay in our clinic for a minimum of an hour. Patients may not drive a car or ride a motorbike again on the day of the treatment.  

Some patients find that a single treatment is enough to achieve a long-lasting effect. Normally, however, we administer between three and a maximum of eight infusions, each one or two days apart.

The most important complementary procedures for our Ketamine therapy

After the main Ketamine therapy procedure, i.e. the infusions, we work with other procedures to enhance and prolong the effect of the Ketamine infusions.
Ketamine improves neuroplasticity; this means that the brain becomes more efficient and new neural connections can be created. This is the ideal condition for intensive psychotherapy.

• Hypnosis in particular utilises the effect of Ketamine therapy. The state of trance produced by hypnotism and the dissociative effect of ketamine complement each other. Memories of previous events come to the surface and can be used. Suggestions sink in deeper and can change feelings permanently.
  When Ketamine therapy is combined with hypnosis treatment it starts with a preliminary discussion with the hypnotherapist, who is then present when the infusion takes place and, once the infusion has finished, continues the therapeutic process. You need to allow about three hours for this type of treatment session.

• In behaviour therapy the brain’s greater capacity to learn is utilised in order to overwrite the addiction memory or to induce confrontations with situations that create fear – partly in virtual reality.  We generally work in a two-hour session per day in the time between Ketamine infusions.

• EMDR is a procedure used particularly to treat the results of trauma, and also addictive disorders. Patients are placed in a safe environment and asked to remember certain situations, then their emotional blockage can be modified through rapid eye movement. This procedure is scientifically proven and is considered the standard technique for treating post-traumatic stress disorders. Significant improvements are generally seen after only a few sessions. EMDR is nowadays also used to treat addictive disorders, depression and anxiety disorders. The improved neuroplasticity that results from ketamine is also advantageous for this procedure.

• Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) uses strong, pulsating magnetic fields to either stimulate or curb activity in dysfunctional areas of the brain. The procedure is authorised for the treatment of depression and severe compulsions, and is scientifically well-founded. It is specifically indicated as a therapeutic option in medical guidelines in Germany and the USA. Neuroplasticity is also improved with this procedure, so it is recommended in combination with psychotherapy. The additional combination with Ketamine in cases of severe depression and compulsions, as well as for addictive disorders, can be of extra benefit.      

First of all, the place on the head where stimulation for the existing symptoms is appropriate is located and marked. Then our patients receive two sessions of stimulation per day, each lasting around twenty minutes. About 20 to 30 sessions of stimulation are needed to achieve long-lasting therapeutic effect.  

Therapeutic process and further treatment

Treatment lasts from one to a maximum of three weeks, depending on the clinical picture and the extent of the impairments, as well as the therapy modules used. At the end of the treatment there will be a final discussion, and renewed psychological tests will be carried out in order to evaluate the results of the therapy.

At this stage plans will also be made together to decide whether and how any further treatment might be carried out. In general there is always the option to return to us for short stays after a few weeks or months to carry out fractional therapy in order to maintain the stability of the result achieved by the therapy. Most of our patients, however, are still so stable even years after their therapy that no further treatment is necessary.

Contact us now and one of our therapists will get in touch with you shortly to find the best possible therapy for you

 

FAQ´s Ketamine therapy