If you’ve considered using ketamine, it is important to first get answers to a number of important questions. For example, what does ketamine do to your brain, can it cause irreversible harm, and how can you use it safely?
So What Does Ketamine Do to Your Brain?
Ketamine is sometimes referred to as a dissociative anesthetic, because its sedative and painkilling properties can be accompanied by effects such as distorted perceptions and a sense of detachment from one’s mind and body. These dissociative effects have made ketamine popular as a recreational “club drug.”
So, what does ketamine do to your brain to cause these effects? Experts don’t yet have a full understanding of what happens in your brain when you take ketamine, but several studies have shed light on how the drug works.
For example, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine found that ketamine alters neural activity by “switching off” certain nerve cells and activating others.
The Penn research team found that ketamine inhibits the functioning of:
- N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, which are involved in learning and forming memories
- Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels, which influence the excitability of neurons
When NDMA receptors and HCN channels are subdued, this allows other neurons to become more active, the Penn researchers believe.
“It’s possible that this new network induced by ketamine enables dreams, hypnosis, or some type of unconscious state,” the study’s co-lead author, Joseph Chicon, MD, PhD, said in a press release about his team’s findings. “And if that is determined to be true, this could also signal that it is the place where ketamine’s therapeutic effects take place.”
In 2023, a team from Columbia University determined that ketamine use leads to structural and functional changes in several areas of the brain. As reported in a news release on the school’s website, the Columbia team’s findings included:
- Ketamine use decreases levels of dopamine in parts of the midbrain that are associated with mood. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that influences emotions such as pleasure, satisfaction, and motivation.
- Ketamine increases dopamine in the hypothalamus, which is responsible for maintaining balanced hormone levels throughout the central nervous system.
- Ketamine reduces the density of nerve fibers in brain areas that are involved with sight and vision, while increasing nerve fiber density in areas that play a role in cognition.
“The restructuring of the brain’s dopamine system that we see after repeated ketamine use may be linked to cognitive behavioral changes over time,” co-author Malika Datta, PhD, said in the news release.
Can Ketamine Cause Brain Damage?
As the two studies in the previous section indicated, ketamine use can cause both functional and structural changes in the brain.
Could any of these changes be destructive enough to qualify as brain damage? For people who abuse the drug for an extended period, they definitely could.
A 2013 study from the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to assess the impact of long-term ketamine use on the brain. This study involved 21 adult participants, including 19 who used ketamine every day and two who used the drug two or three times per week.
The CUHK teams findings included:
- After one year of compulsive ketamine use, the first sign of brain damage is typically a slight degeneration of white matter in the cortex (the layer of nerve cells on the outside of the brain).
- By the third year of regular ketamine abuse, the damage will likely have spread to the internal capsule, which facilitates communication between the cerebral cortex and other brain regions.
- As a person’s ketamine abuse continues, damage becomes noticeable in several additional regions, including the prefrontal, parietal, occipital, limbic, brainstem, and corpus striatum. This damage affects both gray matter and white matter.
- Participants who had been abusing ketamine for more than four years displayed evidence of memory deficits, anxiety, and depression.
- Those who had been abusing ketamine for five to seven years had diminished muscle control, while those whose history of ketamine abuse was greater than seven years had dyskinesia (which can include tics, tremors, and other involuntary movements).
“We now have clear and unequivocal proof of damages in the [central nervous system] upon chronic use of ketamine in humans,” the researchers wrote.
How to Safely Take Ketamine
While ketamine can be quite dangerous when abused, it can be safe and beneficial when used for legitimate medical or mental health purposes.
The only way to safely use ketamine is to take the medication as directed by (and under the supervision of) a qualified healthcare provider:
- Patients who take Spravato, the nasal spray that contains esketamine, are permitted to self-administer the medication only in a doctor’s office or at another approved location. Patients are not allowed to take the medication home with them or use it in an unsupervised environment.
- Those who receive ketamine infusions should only undergo this procedure in a medical facility that is staffed by experienced professionals. Ketamine infusion sessions, during which the medication is administered via intravenous (IV) injections, usually last about 45-60 minutes, with patients typically receiving three to six infusions over the course of a few weeks.
Before receiving esketamine or ketamine, patients should complete thorough assessments and discuss both the benefits and potential drawbacks of these meds with a member of their treatment team. When these and other appropriate steps are taken, ketamine therapy can be a safe experience that leads to substantial improvements in mental health and overall quality of life.
Contact Conscious Health About Our Safe Ketamine Treatment
Conscious Health is a trusted provider of safe ketamine therapy and other services to help adults who have been living with mental health concerns such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, and OCD.
At Conscious Health, you will work in close collaboration with a small group of highly skilled professionals. We will take the time to get to know you as a unique and valuable individual, so that we can develop the customized treatment plan that best aligns with your needs and goals.
To learn more about ketamine therapy or any other aspect of our programming, or to schedule a free assessment, please visit our Contact page or call us today.
