Dosing your Ketamine Infusion Treatment is very important to help achieve your desired results in an effective time. Dosing is handled differently depending on what you are aiming to treat, we breakdown the dosing from treating chronic pain vs mental health protocol. All dosing typically begin at 0.5mg/kg and is increased based on symptoms and personal care.
When treating chronic pain disorders such as Fibromyalgia, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), or Arthritis, we typically start at a higher dose over a longer infusion session. However, there is no one-size-fits-all dosing for ketamine patients. During your initial assessment, we will weigh you and this will play a part in calculating your dosing along with the severity and specific pain syndrome we are treating. In addition, we typically ease patients up to a higher dose (if necessary) to test out how sensitive a patient is to ketamine. In general, your experience and safety is our number one priority so we prefer to work up to higher dosing rather than starting at a dose amount that may cause patient nausea.
The dosing for mood disorders typically runs lower than chronic pain patients. This includes depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and other mood conditions. Based on your weight, personal preference, and sensitivity we may start at an even lower dose than normal.
To get the best results and total symptom remission, it is very important we are scheduling these infusions in a timely manner. For mood protocol, we recommend a series of 6 infusions over the course of 2-3 weeks. Typically, patients report symptom remission after completing their treatment plan. We then wait about a month to see how you are feeling and if your symptoms are still minimal. If you are starting to feel your symptoms begin to creep back up, we recommend getting a booster infusion and continuing these every few months. Check out: When Should I Get a Ketamine Booster.
Chronic pain patients also receive six infusions over the course of two-three weeks as well. Afterward, booster infusions may need to be done on a consecutive 2-day basis. Typically, patients go three months without experiencing any pain before needing any booster. Some patients even go six months with no symptoms.
Despite our recommendations, each patient’s needs and goals are factored into choosing your dosing. Following our starting guidelines, the dosing is then decided based on a factor of things customized to you. Each personalized treatment plan is made in the best interest of you so you can feel your best.