Spravato

Hi all!

I have an appointment on December the 9th to see about doing Spravato treatments. My pdoc highly recommended it for my TRD. I'll post on this thread as I experience it because it is so new. I hope it is helpful to others who may be considering trying it as well.

I have had 3 attempts at suicide since May. If I don't do this, I'll die.

I hope this helps you.

3 times since may is quite a lot

I hope it goes well for you and you feel much better, keep us updated on your progress - i might have to try it ?

As of monday, make it 4. I should have gone to the hospital, but I knew it would mess up my starting the Spravato on Dec. 9th, this monday.

By all means, yes! I've learned so much from others here on PC I feel honored to be able to reciprocate for once.

I hope people find my experience both fascinating and educational.

Well, before I got sick I was a teacher. Once a teacher, always a teacher,

WW

Please everyone. Take my poll. I really want to know if there are other brave souls out there.

I am sorry that you are struggling so much

(((hugs))))

Werewomen,

Good luck today and let us know how it goes ?

I saw an ad about Spravato and tried to find somewhere local to try it. So far, no one here is able to do it. There are 2 doctors who are trained in it, but one is not accepting new patients now and the other doesn’t accept insurance at all

Update: sorry it took me so long to get back to this.
I finally did my first treatment on Dec. 30th and am doing my second one today.

First let me explain, I opted for ketamine infusions as opposed to Spravato, so from here on out, that's what I'll be referring to. If I do the Spravato after my infusions, I'll report on that as well.
Spravato is a mirror molecule of ketamine, so they are not the same and are administered differently. The infusions are given by I.V. , Spravato is a nasal spray that you self administer. You can switch from one to the other, but I wouldn't go back and forth between them and I doubt its allowed.
Think of it as a psychedelic experience. Ketamine, is used in miniscule dosages compared to its use during surgery and therefore you are awake the entire time. There honestly is nothing to compare it to. It's not unpleasant like I imagine a LSD trip to be but it's also similar in some ways. I am not comparing it to LSD - I've never dared to try it - but the experience can be similar depending on the dosage. They started me at 25mg/kg. At that dosage, it's considered to be a Empathogenic Experience.
During the infusion, you dont feel anything at first. As I was waiting for it to take effect, the first thing I noticed was I was a bit light-headed, then I noticed gravity. I felt very heavy. I listened to R. Carlos Nakai, a native American flute player. This is not the occasion for rock or dance music. I can't describe the rest of it just yet. Its indescribable. It slowly wears off once the infusion is done and takes about an hour to feel like yourself again. Since then I've noticed I tend to get dizzy if I exert myself and j tend to be off balance, but then i have a hearing implant so that may be contributing.
I am already seeing improvements. For instance, the last several days I have been able to sit and read each day. I haven't been able to sit still long enough for several years.
Overall, I would not call it fun but it's not unpleasant either. Its enjoyable up to a point.
I am off to do another treatment this morning. I will report on it this afternoon.

Thank you for the update Werewomen, hope it gets beter and better for you !

I got home about 20 minutes ago. I can still feel some of the after effects. I'm always cold afterwards. It takes a while to get your sea legs back. I'll probably sleep for most of the day.
Ketamine makes you hyper-aware of EVERYTHING. It's really weird and trippy. It makes you very aware of your brain, too. This time I just kept telling myself to let it go. Let go of all the pain and misery. Time will tell if this works. I'll post again as I notice improvements in my behavior.

WW

This is very kind of you to do this for us !

Let us know how your doing ?

Absolutely! Today I noticed my anxiety wasn't so bad in spite of not taking my meds for it today. I mean, the elephant on my chest is still there but it lost a little weight. Make sense?

I have anxiety so bad that any relief would be welcomed, when is your 3rd infusion ?

Tuesday morning.

I am feeling more fatigue this time. Other than that, so far no changes but I'm told that's pretty normal. Sometimes it takes several infusions before you see a real difference. I also found out Ketamine infusions work on about 70 percent of the people who try it.

I'm really sorry you're in such desperate pain.

This place never ceases to amaze me. The kindness and care I've been shown are exceptional.

This morning I woke up - after a very short sleep of a couple of hours at best - and my mind seems clearer. There's not all the cluttering noise and constant counting. It also makes it clear to me I need to get out of a really bad marriage. No man ever had such a faithful wife, but his jealousy has driven me away. I don't want to live with it anymore.

Thank goodness for a clear day.

No wonder you're hurting, in such a difficult situation.

I hope you don't mind me mentioning this, but my mum was never able to leave my dad and the outcome was disastrous.

Certainly, I understood why she found it too hard. But I really, really, really wish she'd found a way, even if it meant living in a hostel.

Take care.

Yeah, I would have the same wish.
Other than his jealousy, we seem to have a good relationship. He becomes the Green Monster, tho. He holds my bipolar against me too. If the ketamine doesn't work, I think he's going to leave me.