Ketamine TreatmentAtlanta, GA

What is Depression?

Depression is a life-altering mental disorder that can disrupt all aspects of your life that can have very serious negative effects on both your mental and physical well-being. Symptoms may include a depressed mood, low energy levels, feelings of worthlessness, changes in sleeping patterns, poor concentration, decreased interest in activities that previously brought pleasure, reoccurring thoughts of self-harm, a sense of restlessness, and poor eating habits.

According to statistics, a good number of the people living in the Atlanta area suffer from depression. And while the condition is highly treatable, only one-third of the affected people seek professional help. This is an alarmingly low figure considering its negative effects on both the patients and the people around them.

What Causes Depression?

According to medical experts, several factors can lead to clinical depression. They include past traumatic experiences, existing medical conditions, drug use, brain structure, stress, low self-esteem, and family history just to mention a few.

Depression Treatment

Most people experience bouts of depression every once in a while. In most cases, this kind of depression subsides gradually without any form of treatment. But in case of prolonged suffering, seeking the help of a professional is the best way to go.

As with most other ailments, depression has a variety of treatment options. Treating chronic depression can prove to be a slow and frustrating process, especially when one or more treatments that are recommended don’t work.

However, with a little patience, your doctor will guide you through the process of finding a treatment that works for you. Most often than not, two or more treatments might be used together to get the desired results. Below are some of the most common treatments for depression:

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy, simply referred to as therapy or counseling, is a form of treatment that involves talking to a professional therapist/counselor to determine the cause(s) of your depression and device a way to deal with the problem in a different and more effective way. It has several approaches or techniques within its framework. The most commonly used forms of therapy include cognitive analytical therapy, systemic therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and psychodynamic therapy.

Psychotherapy is by far one of the most championed depression treatments as it helps determine and eliminate the root cause of depression. Your therapist can decide to use two or more therapies together to increase their effectiveness. In cases of severe depression, Psychotherapy can be used hand in hand with other forms of treatment like medication for better results.

Holistic Treatment

Holistic therapy is sometimes considered part of psychotherapy. This widely accepted treatment is based on the premise that the whole person must be treated as a whole if a certain disorder or ailment is to be cured. The treatment, therefore, focuses on healing the body, mind, and spirit. Some holistic therapies used to treat depression include acupuncture, aromatherapy, and chiropractic medicine. Biofeedback is also very common in this form of treatment.

Electroconvulsive Therapy

Electroconvulsive therapy is a very controversial treatment for depression. ECT uses electrical waves to restore the chemical imbalance in the brain and provide relief from severe symptoms of different mental disorders. Although ECT is not very common in Atlanta, GA, it is still used sparingly to treat patients with chronic depression.

Dietary Treatments

Dietary treatments include the adjustment of the types of food you eat to see if eating certain foods provides relief. Also, if eating certain foods makes the situation worse, then those foods should completely be eliminated from your diet. According to medical experts, meals with lots of vegetables and fruits can go a long way in alleviating the effects of depression and helping the patient regain a healthy state of mind. As such, it is advisable that you stick to a healthy and balanced diet while undergoing any form of depression treatment to avoid upsetting the recovery process.

Alternative Treatments

Alternative treatments include almost anything that is not considered traditional under western medical standards. Common alternative treatments include regular exercises, yoga, massage, meditation, and the use of chiropractic medicine.

Herbal/Natural Supplements

Herbal Supplements are not new in the medical field. Some ancient cultures are said to have used herbs in rituals, food, and healing. With the increasing popularity of natural remedies today, herbal supplements have taken a more significant role in the fight against mental disorders. Herbal supplements are mixed in particular blends for various health conditions including depression.

Pharmaceutical Treatments

Pharmaceutical treatments typically refer to doctor-prescribed medication. Depression medications include many types of antidepressants and mood stabilizers that work to increase the availability of neurotransmitters in the brain or by changing the sensitivity of the receptors of these chemicals. Modification of these chemicals is believed to help improve emotions.

Antidepressants are the most common drugs used by people suffering from severe mental disorders. They consist of different types of drugs such as tricyclics, SNRIs, SSRIs, and MAOIs. According to mental health experts, antidepressants work for about 60% of patients and only reduce the symptoms of chronic depression by about 50%.

As such, pharmaceutical treatments are often coupled up with treatments like psychotherapy in order to completely eliminate the root cause of the depression. Antidepressants may have some serious side effects or may even prove completely in-effective in some cases. This is where Ketamine treatment comes into play. Although ketamine does not necessarily offer a permanent cure, it is very effective in alleviating chronic pain and symptoms of severe mental disorders like depression for prolonged periods of time.

The History of Ketamine

Ketamine was first introduced into the medical world sometime in the 1960s and has since been used to induce and/or maintain anesthesia in operating rooms throughout the world. However, it was not until the late 1990s that medical researchers discovered its potential as an antidepressant. Initially, the discovery was largely ignored by the medical community. Studies conducted more than half a decade later produced very positive results with up to 80% of the study subjects going into a state of remission after being subjected to ketamine therapy. This has been termed as the greatest breakthrough in the treatment of depression in over half a century.

Ketamine Infusion Therapy

Ketamine infusion therapy is a relatively new depression medication. It involves the administration of low and completely harmless doses of ketamine into the body of patients with treatment-resistant depression through an IV. Apparently, ketamine therapy works by restoring the chemical imbalance caused by mental disorders and fostering healthy nerve connections. It is very effective in cases where therapy and antidepressants have failed to produce significant results. Ketamine has established itself as a safer and more effective alternative to treatments like electroconvulsive therapy which are considered highly risky. Currently, there are several ketamine treatment clinics in Atlanta offering affordable and effective depression treatment to local residents.

Advantages of Ketamine Treatment for Depression

The use of ketamine to treat mood disorders is quickly becoming very common in Atlanta City thanks to the many advantages associated with the medication. For starters, ketamine therapy has a very high success rate of about 80% which is more than you can say for antidepressants. Another factor that has contributed greatly to the growing popularity of ketamine therapy is the fact that ketamine treatment displays little to no side effects: regular antidepressants can have very severe side effects like weight gain, low libido, fatigue, insomnia, dizziness, and impaired vision among others. Another advantage is- ketamine treatments produce almost instant relief (within a few hours) while regular antidepressants can take up to eight weeks to start producing notable results. Last but not least, most patients with chronic depression only require one or two ketamine treatments and an occasional booster while patients on antidepressants usually have to adhere to a very strict medication routine for the treatments to remain effective. This can prove to be a challenge for patients who have nobody to monitor their progress and make sure they have taken their medication.

Is Ketamine The Future of Depression Treatment?

Currently, ketamine infusion therapy is arguably one of the most effective treatments for depression. However, the discovery of its antidepressant capabilities has opened up a whole world of new possibilities as numerous pharmaceutical giants strive to design new depression medications that can replicate the “healing effect” of ketamine.

And while the success of their individual research efforts remains to be seen, significant success has been seen in numerous patients. Invictus Clinic offers the administration of ketamine treatment in Atlanta for those who suffer with a mood disorder or chronic pain and aches..