Preparation for KAP Therapy
Before participating in KAP you will have been carefully interviewed by your licensed prescriber to determine if you are eligible for ketamine therapy, including a medical history, review of your medical/psychiatric records, a psychiatric history, a physical exam and in some cases administration of brief psychological tests to assess your state of mind. Dosages and frequency will be determined by your prescriber. Your signature of this consent form indicates that you have undergone these processes, are medically cleared and, have been given approval to participate in KAP by your prescriber. Because of the risk of nausea and vomiting, please refrain from eating and drinking for at least 4 hours preceding the session. On the day of treatment, if you eat prior to the 4-hour fasting period, eat lightly. Hydrate well prior to the 4-hour fasting period. While it can be helpful to form intentions for your KAP session, you may or may not be able to hold on to that intention while journeying therefore, it is helpful to remain open to whatever arises is the course of the session.
Potential Side Effects, Risks, and Contraindications of KAP
You will be asked to lie down during the KAP session because your sense of balance and coordination will be adversely affected until the drug's effect has worn off. Other possibilities of adverse effects include blurred and altered vision, slurred speech, mental confusion, excitability, diminished ability to see things that are actually present, diminished ability to hear or to feel objects accurately including one's own body, anxiety, nausea and in rare cases vomiting. If nausea/vomiting is an issue for you, you can communicate with your prescriber about possible anti-nausea medicines which can be used during the sessions. Visual, tactile and auditory processing are affected by the drug. Familiar music may appear quite different to you, even unrecognizable. Synesthesia, a mingling of the senses, may occur. Ordinary sense of time may become distorted. Anxiety may be experienced, albeit often from a different perspective. Clients are encouraged and supported by their KAP therapist to not resist, but to allow, any difficult experiences to move through. Ketamine generally causes a significant increase in blood pressure and in some cases elevated pulse rate (Tachycardia Agitation and anxiety may occur during the course of a ketamine session. Some clients complain of headaches after the sessions, and Ketamine has in some cases caused/stopped migraines. Diplopia (double vision), nystagmus (rapid eye movements), elevation of intraocular pressure (feeling of pressure in the eyes), and anorexia (loss of appetite) may also occur (These reactions have been observed to occur after rapid intravenous administration of ketamine or intramuscular administration of high doses of ketamine (in a range of greater than 5 mg/kg used for a surgical anesthesia The dose to be used in this sub-anesthetic sub-lingual KAP is much lower (2 mg/kg or less You may experience changes in personality, mood and cognition during treatment, in the aftermath, and in the days and weeks that follow. In terms of psychological risk, ketamine has been shown to worsen certain psychotic symptoms in people who suffer from Schizophrenia or other serious Mental Disorders. It may also worsen underlying psychological problems in people with personality disorders. If you have been or are presently diagnosed with similar severe mental disorders, you may not be a candidate for KAP. Repeated, high dose, chronic use/abuse of ketamine has caused urinary tract symptoms and even permanent bladder dysfunction in individuals abusing the drug. This does not occur within the framework of KAP. Pregnant women and nursing mothers are not eligible because of potential effects on the fetus, or nursing child. The effects of ketamine on pregnancy and the fetus are undetermined, and therefore, it is advisable to protect against pregnancy while exposing yourself to ketamine or in the immediate aftermath of its use. Untreated hypertension is a contra-indication to ketamine use as the substance causes a rise in blood pressure. Similarly, a history of heart disease may make you ineligible to participate. Ketamine should not be taken if you have hyperthyroidism. There have also been reports of some decrease in immune function in patients receiving surgical doses of ketamine. You prescriber will assess you for any medications you are already taking and any possible adverse interactions. You should never discontinue the use of medications that you are already taking, or add any new medications without first consulting with your KAP prescriber. Your KAP therapist is in no way qualified to determine medical readiness for KAP, this happens between you and your prescriber only.