Have you ever been on a trip or a vacation and the travel is taking a bit too long? You know where you are headed and can’t wait to get there. Usually, planning and traveling are part of the experience, but this time, it was just too much. It’s like you will never get there. Sometimes, mental health treatment can feel like this. There is a lot of work, but the results still feel too far away. Ketamine for mental health may be able to speed the process just enough so the travel doesn’t feel too difficult.

Ketamine has been around for a while. It was used by anesthesiologists in ER rooms. It helps a person in a crazy situation feel a little removed. Where other drugs may put a person under, in the traditional sense, ketamine kept people semi-conscious but disassociated. It worked well enough for battlefields and emergency rooms, but the waves it is making in the mental health world has made its former uses seem quite a bit less.

The key? Rapid relief for mental health concerns like anxiety, depression, and trauma.

Ketamine for Mental Health in Newport Beach

Why does it matter? According to the National Institute of Mental Health, one in five adults in the U.S. experiences mental illness each year (NIMH). And traditional treatment absolutely helps. Counseling, group therapy, and somatic experiencing all of these have proven track records. But sometimes people just feel lost or depressed. Can’t even get out of bed lost. And they need help now.

Ketamine therapy is flipping the script with results sometimes seen in hours, not weeks.

What Is Ketamine?

First off, it’s synthetic. Meaning it is created and not derived from a plant or other natural source. There is a class of drugs it belongs to called dissociative anesthetics. As we said before, this just means it doesn’t knock you out in the hospital room but creates a sense of detachment from reality (dissociation) and gives pain relief and sedation.

But doctors who used it started noticing something: it worked in the ER, but it also helped patients who were depressed or had trauma.

In mental health, two forms of ketamine are commonly used:

• IV Ketamine Therapy: Delivered via IV, it’s used off-label to treat depression and PTSD.
• Spravato (esketamine): An FDA-approved nasal spray for treatment-resistant depression.

One of the reasons ketamine is turning so many heads is its unique ability to enhance brain plasticity. Essentially, brains have the potential to change their neural pathways—in a sense, they are rewired to be freer from mental health issues.

 What Does Ketamine Do for Mental Health?

A staggering seventy percent of patients with treatment-resistant depression experience improvement after just one session (NIH). This means people who have tried and tried medication for depression disorders but could not get relief got better with ketamine. Hope was gone for many of these people, and now they have a brighter day.

But it’s not just depression. Conditions like depression and PTSD often result from rigid, maladaptive neural pathways. Ketamine boosts glutamate, which helps with brain plasticity. In other words, your brain can change those stuck ways of engaging the world and understand things in a new way.

And it works quickly. If you are having a situational crisis (job loss, grief, a real rough patch), ketamine can make a difference, sometimes in a matter of hours. For those with suicidal ideation, it can work within 24 hours, which can be considered a literal lifesaver.

Why Do People Like Ketamine?

The experience itself also plays a role. During ketamine therapy, many people describe a dissociative state—a feeling of detachment from their thoughts and emotions.

While this might sound slightly off-putting to some, the benefits are it allows you to confront deep-seated issues without the weight of their usual mental barriers.

A study published in PubMed found that 50% of patients with treatment-resistant depression experienced lasting improvements for weeks after therapy (PubMed).

It’s no wonder ketamine has been called a “last resort” miracle for those who feel like they’ve tried everything.

What Ketamine Can Help With:

• Treatment-resistant depression
• Suicidal ideation
• PTSD
• Anxiety disorders
• Chronic pain

Looking for Ketamine Treatment in Newport Beach?

At Lido Wellness Center in Orange County, CA, we offer ketamine treatment for various mental health issues, including depression and trauma. Once again, what is particularly helpful about ketamine treatment in Newport Beach is the efficiency. It works quickly, and it helps people who have had trouble finding relief from medication in the past.

Of course, ketamine is not the straw that breaks the back of mental illness. But it is a powerful one. And when it is combined with therapy, an IOP program, or even a mental health transitional living house in Southern California, it can make a big difference.

Do you want to know more about our ketamine options and how they can work in a comprehensive mental health program? Call us today. We would be happy to talk about your options and offer real solutions. Call now: 949-541-8466.