The ball has dropped, the confetti has settled, and the sun is rising on a new year. How are your New Year’s resolutions going? Did you know that only 20% of our resolutions will make it to Groundhog Day? Of all the goals we set, those involving mental health are the resolutions that should stick. So much is at stake. Your mental health affects everything you do in your family, your work, and your neighborhood, and strongly affects your overall happiness. If you struggled with anxiety, depression, PTSD, or any other mental health challenge in 2019, let 2020 be the year that you find solutions and relief. Add ketamine infusion therapy to your toolbox as you set goals and look forward to each new day.
According to a recent Deseret News editorial, the best, most sustainable goals are simple and directional and connected to lessons learned or insights gained from previous experience. ¹ Here are a few goals that directly impact mental health.
Goal #1: Do Hard Things
Get comfortable with uncomfortable conversations about mental health topics like anxiety, depression, addiction, and domestic violence. Having those conversations now is better than dealing with the consequences later. Ignoring problems as they develop is never a good idea. Don’t be afraid to speak up and ask for help. It takes strength of character to realize you have a problem and courage to get the help you need. Every moment of delay increases the danger of negative consequences. Reach out now.
Goal #2: Beware of Instant Certainty
Drawing quick conclusions jeopardizes truth and can undermine trust. Take time to study the issues you face and think carefully through opinions and options. Seek out knowledgeable experts and others who have walked the path you are on. Learn to suspend judgment, especially in emotionally-charged situations. The things you stress about today, you may laugh about tomorrow. Try to act and not react to new situations.
Goal #3: Build Bridges Instead of Walls
Anyone can drive a wedge, but it takes a true leader to build a bridge. Don’t allow the divisiveness of the current political climate, or the stresses of work and school to seep into your interactions with family and friends. Have meaningful conversations with those you care about. Never underestimate the power of having a strong network of people around you. And as Cinderella’s mother advised, “Have courage and be kind.”
Goal #4: Be Present
In our technologically-driven world we have become captive to every buzz, beep, tweet, ding, or ring from our electronic devices. We are becoming less connected as we become more digitally intertwined. Constant distractions and incessant interruptions take a toll on mental health and overall productivity. Be in charge of your digital consumption. Take time to disconnect, even for one hour a day. Focus on the things that matter most during the time you are disconnected from technology.
Goal #5: Dare to Dream
Sometimes the best goals begin as crazy ideas. Pick one big, exciting, soul-stirring goal. Realize it won’t be accomplished by the end of the week, but keep it on the back burner. Maybe you want to feel better, be healthier, or restore a damaged relationship. Keep that goal in the back of your mind and when you have ideas, jot them down. Even a small step in the direction of your goal will make a big difference. And you’ll find joy in the journey.
At Therapy Reset we invite you to set goals for a healthy, happy new year by evaluating your mental health and the mental health of those you love. Have you experienced setbacks in your treatment for anxiety, depression, PTSD, or other mental health issues? Has your medication stopped working? Do you find that, while helpful, talk therapy doesn’t makes you feel better? Do you struggle to get out of bed in the morning because you just don’t have the strength? If your symptoms are treatment resistant, as is the case with 10-30% of those suffering from mental health challenges, ² consider ketamine infusion as a way to restore balance to your brain and get you on the fast track to healing and happiness.
How Ketamine Therapy Resets Your Brain
Unlike traditional antidepressants, ketamine therapy can actually repair damaged neural pathways rather than dulling the signals. When people experience depression, anxiety, pain, and other forms of stress, the brain’s communication system for memory, learning, and higher-order thinking can be damaged. Ketamine is thought to repair this damage on several levels.
Ketamine acts as an N-Methyl D-Aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, meaning that it inhibits the transfer of electric signals between neurons in the brain and the spinal column. This is why ketamine has traditionally been used as a very safe and effective anesthetic in medical and surgical situations for children, adults, and animals for more than 50 years. Because of this effect, ketamine can help train chronic pain without the addictive qualities of opioids.
Ketamine also acts as a glutamate receptor antagonist. Glutamate regulates large regions of the nervous system and is the most prominent neurotransmitters in the brain. When glutamate receptors are overactivated, a person may experience long-term depression. Ketamine works by blocking these glutamine receptors.
Studies have also shown that ketamine enhances the brain’s structural plasticity, or its ability to change its physical structure as a result of learning. If the mind is injured or damaged by disease or stress, neuroplasticity allows it to reset and recover by reorganizing its physical structure. ³
Depression, anxiety, pain, and other types of stress can damage the communication system between the areas of the brain responsible for memory, learning, and higher-order thinking. Unlike antidepressants, which work by shifting the balance of brain chemicals like serotonin and dopamine, ketamine stimulates neuron growth and helps your brain cells communicate better with each other.
Is Ketamine Safe?
Ketamine has traditionally been used as a very safe and effective anesthetic in medical and surgical situations for children, adults, and animals for more than 50 years. Because of its history, ketamine can help train chronic pain without the addictive qualities of opioids. More recently, ketamine has been a valuable and highly effective treatment for patients with depression, suicidal ideations, anxiety, certain pain disorders, and other afflictions. It is on the World Health Organization’s list of essential medicines.
When administered in a controlled medical setting by a properly trained physician using established methods, such as at Therapy Reset, ketamine is very safe.
What conditions respond well to ketamine therapy?
Ketamine therapy can help treat a broad spectrum of conditions such as anxiety, bipolar disorder, complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), fibromyalgia, major depression, mood disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), nerve-related pain, pain syndromes, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), postpartum depression, suicidal ideation, and reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD) among others. Ketamine can help patients who have not experienced full relief of depression, pain or other conditions from traditional medications and therapies.
Clinics such as Therapy Reset focus on ketamine therapy for depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mood disorders. Our anesthesiologists and pain management specialists have extensive experience with ketamine and know how to perform infusions.
Is there a ketamine clinic near me?
Therapy Reset is conveniently located in South Ogden, Utah and serves patients from all of Northern Utah and the western United States. We are currently helping patients from Salt Lake City, Ogden, Kaysville, Layton, Morgan and surrounding areas.
What is the cost of ketamine infusion therapy?
Therapy Reset offers very competitive pricing for ketamine infusion therapy. Our fees cover the full patient journey, including long-term monitoring, clean private infusion rooms, and any additional medicines needed for comfort during your treatments. We offer personalized payment plans and discounts for veterans and first responders. Please contact us at our office in South Ogden, Utah to learn more about the affordable cost of this transformative therapy.
How can I get more information about ketamine?
At Therapy Reset, we have many processes and standards in place to guarantee the best experience for our patients as they receive their ketamine therapy. Your experience with us begins with a free, no-obligation call with our skilled clinicians who can answer all your questions about our clinic and ketamine therapy. Before your first treatment at Therapy Reset, we will conduct a full medical, symptomatic and diagnostic review, evaluation, and consultation to determine how you might to respond low-dose ketamine therapy infusions.
While receiving ketamine therapy at Therapy Reset, you can enjoy a friendly and inviting atmosphere. We prioritize your peace of mind, comfort, health, and safety with private rooms, luxury lounge chairs, ongoing monitoring, and advanced IV technologies.
After your treatment, our caring, compassionate, and experienced team will monitor your journey and conduct post-treatment evaluations and consultations.
Call or visit Therapy Reset in South Ogden today for a free, no-obligation visit to explore how ketamine can help reset your brain and your life.