Living with major depressive disorder is not only an unenviable experience, but also an experience that is nearly impossible to empathize with.
Those who do not carry a diagnosis of clinical depression will never understand the struggle of living with the weight of depression on their shoulders. Patients with severe cases of depression are oftentimes unable to perform simple tasks, such as washing the dishes, taking a shower, or even leaving their beds to use the bathroom.
Perhaps the most concerning statistic about major depressive disorder, however, is that it increases the likelihood that a person will die by suicide by 20 percent. The National Institute of Health (NIH) reports that 7% of men and 1% of women diagnosed with clinical depression will take their own lives.
For decades, researchers have been looking at ketamine therapy as a treatment for suicidal depression. In January 2020, the NIH reported that a single ketamine infusion had a beneficial impact on suicidal thoughts. In April 2022, the American Journal of Psychiatry wrote, “Intravenous ketamine has been shown to produce a rapid reduction in suicidal thinking among some depressed patients after a single infusion, with peak effects coming hours after administration and persisting for up to a week.”
A new study, conducted by MindPeace Clinics, confirms these earlier studies, and suggests that ketamine therapy decreases suicidal ideations by up to 85 percent after 15 infusions. The implication here is that ketamine therapy could be an effective treatment—not only for acute suicidality—but also for chronic suicidality.
Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States, and over 18 million Americans have been diagnosed with major depressive disorder. The availability of ketamine infusions should be seen as a ray of hope for this population. Ketamine improves the symptoms of depression in about 70% of patients, even those struggling with treatment-resistant cases.
Ketamine therapy is not a first-line treatment for clinical depression, but for those who have failed to respond to at least two other depression treatments, it can be a life-changing—or life-saving—treatment.
Contact Vitalitas Denver
At Vitalitas Denver, we have been administering ketamine infusions for several years. Owned and operated by some of Colorado’s leading anesthesiologists, Vitalitas Denver has become one of the most trusted ketamine clinics in the country. If you or a loved one is struggling with depression, anxiety, PTSD, or another psychiatric disorder, please contact us to learn more about ketamine therapy, and to discover whether you are a candidate.
