Psychedelic Therapy in New York

Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) is a holistic, psychedelic modality in which ketamine is used as a complement to psychotherapy to help eligible clients get unstuck and experience long-lasting improvement in symptoms, particularly those with depression and anxiety.

Ketamine is a legal, safe, and effective medicine used to treat various mental health conditions, including depression and anxiety. Ketamine has rapidly-acting antidepressant and mood-enhancing effects, which can begin to take effect within 1-2 hrs after treatment and last for up to 2 weeks. Ketamine helps to form new neural connections, which allow us to create new habits and new ways of thinking, as well as boost the way the brain regulates stress and mood. Ketamine has been shown to increase our brain’s capacity for learning, growing, and reorganizing.

Ketamine can be administered in various ways. However, in our work with Journey Clinical, we only use the sublingual lozenge form.

1. We refer you to Journey Clinical for medical evaluation and to determine if you would be a good fit for KAP (Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy).

2. If Journey Clinical’s medical team determines you are eligible for KAP, they will develop a personalized Ketamine prescription and treatment plan.

3. Once you receive your ketamine lozenges, we will schedule time together for our KAP preparation, dosing, and integration sessions. Preparation sessions will be scheduled just like regular therapy sessions. Preparation sessions aim to clarify your intentions, allow room for questions around the KAP dosing session itself, and prepare your mindset for our KAP dosing session(s) together.

4. We will then schedule your KAP dosing session, which can take place either in our office or at a healing space located in the Mid-Hudson Valley. A typical ketamine dosing session lasts around three hours. During a dosing session, you will self-administer your ketamine lozenge. Although a KAP dosing session may be largely an internal experience, we will be present with you the entire time to hold space and provide support as needed.

5. After our KAP dosing session, we will meet for multiple integration therapy sessions to review anything that arose during your journey, process those insights or experiences, create plans for integrating this experience into your daily life, and utilize the continued neuroplasticity from your KAP session to create new habits or continue moving toward your intentions or goals.

The goal of preparation sessions is to align on the process of and set intentions for our KAP dosing sessions. We also discuss hopes and ideas for activities or ways to use your time of integration mindfully. Preparation is an important part of the process as it allows you to incorporate the idea of set (mindset) into your journey.

KAP dosing sessions typically last three hours in length. This is where you self-administer the Ketamine in the presence of your therapist and experience your KAP journey. We start with ritual, creating sacred space for your journey and reaffirming your intentions before moving into the KAP experience. Your therapist will discuss a music playlist with you ahead of time. We can utilize art, journaling, and discussion after your journey to help start integrating some of your experiences.

After our KAP dosing session, we will meet for multiple integration therapy sessions to review anything that arose during your journey, process those insights or experiences, create plans for integrating this experience into your daily life, and utilize the continued neuroplasticity from your KAP session to create new habits or continue moving toward your intentions or goals.