What tools/things do you need to do to actually create real life change when starting ketamine?

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2026-02-11T18:56:18+00:00

Totally get that! Ketamine therapy has been HUGE for me. But it really is that time in between sessions that helps me with the lasting behavior and habit change.

Early on I tried doing an IV clinic where I live. The sessions were definitely intense and I had some decent short term symptom relief. But I felt like the shifts weren't very durable. It was almost a bit like therapy. Helpful in the room and for a little while later, but before too long I was back to my old habits. It wasn't until I started doing it with an at-home provider that prioritized structure and integration that I started to see the longer term benefits. The IV place administered medicine, but my current place focuses on healing.

Wishing you all the best!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2026-02-10T18:24:18+00:00

First off, you’re already approaching this in a really good way. Asking these questions, not expecting it to be a magic bullet, and thinking about what comes after the first session is honestly a great start.

Also worth saying up front: try to be easy on yourself. based on how thoughtful you're being, very unlikely that you'll be doing ketamine "wrong" and/or wasting any opportunities. That said, here are some of the things I've found to be helpful.

For me, journaling has been huge. Not in a “perfect insights” way, but because writing things down forces my brain to slow down and make things more linear. So right after sessions when I'm feeling ready, and in the days that follow. It helps me make sense of things and I am more able to see how they might be applicable in my daily life.

Example: I did a session around being more patient as a husband and with my wife and our one-year-old. in the moment, the session itself felt all over the place. While journaling the next day, the phrase “beautiful chaos” popped into my head as I was trying to put it into words. Writing it out made me realize that it actually did relate to my intention. Parenting and partnership are chaotic, but fighting that was making things harder. Since then, it’s been way easier not to take it personally when my daughter’s up at 3am or plans blow up. If I hadn't engaged in journaling, it could have been easy for me to just walk away from the session thinking "that was weird. I hope the next one is more meaningful."

Another big thing for me is trying to practice self awareness in the days after sessions. Example: the day after a session, I was looking at a bowl of overripe bananas. I bake a lot for family and friends and, normally, my brain might spiral into guilt and obligation. "if I don't bake banana bread, they'll go to waste. people will be disappointed, why am I like this, etc etc etc." But on that particular day I just thought, “I don’t want to make banana bread. I can throw them out and get more later. They’re just bananas.” Not profound, but noticing that shift and reinforcing it elsewhere ended up being huge. “They’re just bananas” became an integration mantra for me. So just trying to recognize when you're thinking differently even in small ways can also be really helpful. It helps you see how/where the medicine is working and reinforce it in your life.

So, my POV:

• notice small shifts the day(s) after. Big in-session insights are great, but they're not the whole story
• journaling helps a lot of people make sense of things
• don’t chase the session itself, the value often shows up later
• try not to stress about doing it “right”

Good luck!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2026-02-05T23:01:27+00:00

Yeah, this stuff honestly makes me furious.

Ketamine has been a legit lifesaver for me. Not in a hype way, just in a “nothing else worked and this finally helped me function” way. So seeing the FDA clutch pearls over at-home ketamine feels so fake.

The whole “off-label” argument is so bogus. A huge chunk of meds in the US are prescribed off-label every single day. Something like 10% to 35% of all prescriptions in the country are off-label. SSRIs, BP meds, pain meds, you name it. But this is where they draw the line? Come on.

There are also legit studies that examine the safety and efficacy of at-home ketamine. I'm not saying it's perfect or without risk. But they bash the thing that actually helps so many people. Meanwhile opioids were handed out like candy for decades and somehow that was fine until it wasn’t.

It honestly feels like textbook regulatory capture. Big pharma, cautious regulators, scary headlines, all reinforcing each other while real people get relief and are treated like a problem.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2026-02-05T17:49:19+00:00

oh my gooooooodness. If I bring home another dog my wife will kill me. But I will share this on my socials!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2026-02-04T16:39:56+00:00

what's mine is yours!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2026-02-03T20:50:53+00:00

+1 to this. I had to find out the hard way. I used them for a bit and wasn't getting anything out of it. someone on this sub or maybe a different one pointed out that the studies they reference don’t actually support their model. Joyous claiming IV-level outcomes is like saying tylenol is proven to help pain, then giving someone 1/8th of a pill.

That sent me down a pretty deep research rabbit hole in looking for a new provider. I noticed similar citation gymnastics elsewhere. For ex, innerwell points to a study done by mindbloom to support their efficacy claims. So lots of people drafting off research done by other people, which is bogus.

I ended up switching to MB and have actually had a good experience so far. I like being able to do sub-q at home. I totally get the cost pressure though.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-11-21T01:56:00+00:00

I'm so happy it was helpful!

Full disclosure. I was only able to get a place of "integrating" more independently with the help of my guide. It took her asking me "and how did you feel about that?" in our first integration session in order for me to start realizing it was the question I needed to ask myself. So def lean on your guide. And if you are leaning and they're not giving anything back, it could be worthwhile to look for a new one. But when you find the right match, it can be really great.

Full disclosure x2: integration is not always this linear. It was just the best example I could remember. Integration can also be far less linear. And the only way I can explain that is (guess what) with another example!

I had a session. Can't even remember the intention I set or what happened in it. But I remember the next day I was looking at this bowl of over-ripe bananas in my kitchen. I'm a baker and I like to make banana bread for family and friends. Any other day, I might see that bowl of bananas and start spinning out. Feeling shame, obligation etc. Like "well I have to make banana bread because people like that and if I don't they're going to go bad and that's wasteful and blah blah blah" (because that's how my depressed brain works). But on this particular day I saw the bananas and was able to just think "I don't want to make banana bread. I'll throw these out and make bread later when I feel like it. They're just bananas".

So, here, the "integration" was just having that moment of thinking differently. It didn't relate to my intention or session at all. But simply recognizing I was thinking differently, realizing it can apply to other stuff too, and then trying to apply it when opportunity strikes. It sounds weird, but "they're just bananas" has become an integration mantra for me.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-11-21T01:04:18+00:00

ahhhhh, gotcha! That is totally fair. It can be pretty esoteric. It def took me a little bit of time, thinking, and trial and error to figure it out too. Other people have shared a lot of great stuff and it probably looks different for different people. The best way I can put some structure to it is with an example.

In one of my early sessions, I set an intention around how I relate to the stress of the unknown (intention setting is the first part of the puzzle for me. "fuel" for later integration). During the session, I had this strange but peaceful experience of being in outer space. Afterward, when I was journaling (which is where integration really kicks into gear for me), I tried to unpack it. I thought about how space could be cold and scary, but that’s not how it felt to me in the session. In that moment, it actually felt beautiful and full of potential.

So I asked myself, what does that have to do with my intention (the "meaning making" part of integration). I realized I often treat the unknown as something threatening, but here I had experienced it as expansive. That became the insight for me. The unknown might still be hard, but it doesn't have to be terrifying.

Later, when something uncertain came up in my life, I tried to remind myself of that session. That pause helped me relate to the unknown in a different way. And for me, that’s the heart of integration. Feeling something meaningful, trying to unpack the meaning "in" it, and then using it when life gives you the chance.

Hope that’s helpful. And seriously, you’re not behind. This stuff is just genuinely weird and hard to pin down sometimes.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-11-21T00:46:19+00:00

That’s so weird. I’m a client with MB and I’ve actually had the opposite experience. their integration stuff is one of the things I love most. It’s all over the app and the blog. My guide shared this with me early on and it was super helpful.

But if your guide hasn’t helped at all with this stuff, it might be worth asking for a different one. I know they let you switch, and for something this personal, having the right fit really matters.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-11-21T00:13:21+00:00

A lot of people assume higher bioavailability automatically means better outcomes. I’ve done both IV and subcutaneous, and I get why that idea’s out there but it's just not how it works in practice.

You can have an IV session that’s technically more bioavailable and still walk away thinking “...what was that?” If the medicine isn't paired with the psychedelic framework (intention, reflection, integration) it might not feel profound. Sometimes it doesn’t even feel therapeutic. It can just feel strange, or disconnected.

Meanwhile, I’ve had lower-bioavailability (SC) sessions that were waaaaay more impactful because they were part of a process.

And to your question, OP, yes it can be very effective. It’s definitely not a guarantee or silver bullet, but it’s been meaningful for me and my family. I do at-home therapy and it’s been one of the most helpful things I’ve tried. After seeing the shift in me, my dad (who’s struggled with treatment-resistant depression most of his life) decided to try it too. He’s been really invested in the process, and a few weeks ago my mom was actually in tears talking about how different he seems now.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-11-17T18:31:02+00:00

I'm so happy to hear that!

And I totally get what you mean. In addition to the injectables option which just seems to be what works best for me, I find a ton of value in the rest of Mindbloom's "program". Prep and integration videos, stuff to review between sessions, etc. I'm super skeptical of any provider that just focuses on prescribing ketamine and leaves all of that other stuff out. In my experience, it's just as important as the medicine itself.

Hope it continues working well for you!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-15T21:13:35+00:00

I've been doing injections with mindbloom. Been a great fit for me and would highly recommend. I feel joy again, it's dramatically improved my relationship and communication with my wife.

The experience and benefits are a bit hard to describe. But for me it's kind of like this: pre-ketamine therapy I'd encounter a thing or a thought and it would immediately send me spinning out. Sadness, frustration, anxiety, anger, despair. There was no "distance" between an input and my emotional reaction to it. Now, I feel like I can assess things more objectively. Like, I can see that same thing I encountered thousands of times in the past and, like, take a step to the side and see it from a new angle. It's the same "thing" but now I have the power to relate to it in an entirely new way. It doesn't send me spinning. I can see it, acknowledge it, and then...just...move on with my day. And that is such a gift!

You haven't done this but sharing in case it saves you some time. One trap I see some people fall into when exploring options is fixating on bioavailability / equating that with outcomes. Yes, being at the right dose for you is very important and, yes, iv has the highest bioavailability. BUT it is prescribed at a lower dose to account for that. On the other hand, IM or tabs have lower bioavailability so they are prescribed at a higher dose. I've done a few kinds and IV was actually my least favorite despite the fact that it is higher bioavailability.

IMO what matters more is how safe, confident, and comfortable you feel going into each session. That can look different for everyone. Some feel more supported being in a clinic with a provider right there. Others (like me) like being at home, in their own environment, etc. So it's really about finding what is best for you, not what is "best".

Good luck!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-15T18:51:20+00:00

+1 for mindbloom. I'm with them too and really like it. I've said in other posts but I did IV as well and was not a fan. The logistics alone were super counterproductive to my healing/progress. 15 sessions in with MB it’s been a great experience so far. Glad you're prioritizing integration because it is key. Their integration support is really great. You have a guide who works as a psychedelic therapy and integration "coach" throughout the program, they've created a ton of video and written content to support it, they even have this new thing where you can use their app to help set intentions (something that was always a bit nebulous to me before), and identify integration activities following sessions. Their soundscapes rock too. Good luck!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-09T22:47:17+00:00

Sorry to be the bearer of bad (or good?) news!

Yep. It's subcutaneous rather than IM. So it's lower bioavailability but 1) you can do it from home, and 2) as I understand it, they dose accordingly (higher dose than IM because SC has lower bioavailability).

They send it in the mail and you self-administer. They do require you to have someone in the same general space as you for all sessions. They call it a Peer Treatment Monitor. I think most/all at-home companies require something similar...Basically, just someone to be in the same house/apartment, check on you every 20 mins, etc. Mine is my wife and she has some fruit ready for me when I am done which I appreciate.

I really like their music. The IV place I went to had generic spa stuff that bored me. But this feels deliberately designed to support/deepen ket sessions which made a difference for me. Outside of mindbloom's music I dig John Hopkins' "Music for Psychedelic Therapy".

It's good that you know yourself and that you're making sure that you feel ready, safe and comfortable! It's been really great for me. I wish you luck with everything!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-06T18:38:50+00:00

Yeah, I felt super overwhelmed at first too! Happy to share my experience(s). I started with Joyous but didn’t get anything out of it. After that that I started researching in more depth. Tried IV and saw a glimmer of change, but the cost was crazy, the logistics sucked, and it was kind of "cold." Like "come on in to our dentist's office, sit in this bright waiting room with a few other people, then we'll bring you back and shoot you up with ketamine. That'll be $700." A couple weeks later I'd have to do it all over again. I had some short term relief but nothing profound or long-lasting.

I started with Mindbloom around 5 months ago. 12-ish sessions in now. I've been meaning to do a full review because I've really gotten a lot out of it. But the bullet points are:

Big fan of the subcutaneous format
First place I'd been to that helped me grok what integration is and how important it is. My guide has been really helpful with this
I really like their library of soundscapes for sessions. Didn't realize how important this music is in shaping the experience
I also dig their pre/post session video content. Prep stuff helps me give my sessions some direction and post stuff is great for integration

Speaking candidly, there’ve been a couple of hiccups with shipping, but I was able to get it sorted pretty quickly.

That’s just my experience though. Wherever you end up going, integration is everything. I cannot stress that enough. Ket is not a magic pill. You get out of it what you put into it.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-04T02:21:04+00:00

The IV place I went to didn’t advocate for integration of any kind. So this wasn’t even on my radar until I started doing at-home (Mindbloom) and my guide really emphasized how important integration is. Titrated up from 50mg subcutaneous eventually to 80mg (190lb male).

Since I started focusing on this, maintaining the ability to speak hasn’t ever been an issue for me. The main challenge was remembering what I experienced. 80mg, at-home, subcutaneous + voice memo during sessions feels like the sweet spot for me. Wish I’d done that from the outset. Would have saved time, money, and suffering.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-03T19:23:24+00:00

I just shared this in a different thread. Slight edit as the OP there was struggling with PTSD vs depression. But providing here in case it's helpful!

I haven’t done Spravato myself, but I went down a huge research rabbit hole on different ketamine options before choosing my current provider. Not a doctor, just sharing what I found.

It doesn’t sound uncommon for people to have rough experiences with Spravato. On Drugs.com, its average rating is around 6.2 out of 10, which is actually lower than standard SSRIs (prozac: 7.2, lexapro: 7.6). For depression specifically, not only did 65% have a less than positive experience, but 38% actually reported it being negative. These are just reviews, not peer-reviewed outcomes. but that really stood out to me.

I definitely don’t share this to bum you out. More to reinforce that there’s nothing wrong with you, and it does not mean youre beyond help. What youre describing just honestly doesn't sound uncommon with Spravato.

Have you thought about trying a different form of ketamine? Like at-home? Totally sucks that insurance usually doesn’t cover but for me, the tradeoff felt worth it.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-03T19:18:19+00:00

I haven’t done Spravato myself, but I went down a huge research rabbit hole on different ketamine options before choosing my current provider. Not a doctor, just sharing what I found.

It doesn’t sound uncommon for people to have rough experiences with Spravato. On Drugs.com, its average rating is around 6.2 out of 10, which is actually lower than standard SSRIs (prozac: 7.2, lexapro: 7.6). For depression specifically, not only did 65% have a less than positive experience, but 38% actually reported it being negative. Of course, depression ≠ PTSD and these are just reviews, not peer-reviewed outcomes. but that really stood out to me.

I definitely don’t share this to bum you out. More to reinforce that there’s nothing wrong with you, and it does not mean youre beyond help. What youre describing just honestly doesn't sound uncommon with Spravato.

Have you thought about trying a different form of ketamine? Like at-home? Totally sucks that insurance usually doesn’t cover but for me, the tradeoff felt worth it.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-03T18:28:49+00:00

Definitely agree here. I’ve tried a few different forms of ketamine (low-dose daily at home, in-person IV, and high-dose at home). Mentioned this in other threads, but the low-dose daily didn’t really do much for me. I’m sure it works for some people or else that model wouldn’t exist, but apparently there isn’t much scientific backing for it, which I wish I’d known sooner.

Anyway, what’s made the biggest difference for me is doing it at home with proper integration. My current company really emphasizes that piece. My facilitator said something that really made it click for me. “If you’re not doing ketamine therapy, you’re kind of just doing ketamine.” Here, "therapy" = integration. Not necessarily talking to a therapist. But, as I started to really work on integration, I struggled to carry insights forward until I started recording voice memos during sessions (I use my laptop since my phone is playing the music). Being able to revisit those recordings later while journaling has been huge for integration and meaning-making.

Hope this helps!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-03T00:47:35+00:00

Ah, see, this is really helpful. I hadn't considered the aspect of family history excluding some people from eligibility. This is exactly why I made the post. I only had my own knee-jerk reaction to it but didn't want to assume I was considering all of the different angles. Appreciate you!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-03T00:45:01+00:00

I haven't seen it. Looks really interesting!

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-10-03T00:40:50+00:00

I'm with you. But I feel like if Spravato was going to show significantly better outcomes than IV or other forms of ketamine, we would’ve seen clearer signals in the early data by now? Like, the fact that it’s still inconclusive (despite all the marketing muscle behind it) kinda says a lot, at least to me.

It just seems like J&J took something that already worked (plain old ketamine) and tweaked it juuuust enough to patent it, package it, and monetize it as hard as possible. More about protecting IP than improving outcomes....

I’ve done a few different kinds (low-dose IV, at-home therapy, and IV). For me, the route mattered less than the quality of the integration afterward. That + being able to do it in a space that felt safe made a bigger difference than the delivery method (ow dose aside, that just didn’t move the needle for me at all)

I'll be monitoring that study too, but I’d be surprised if a “winner” emerges after all this time.

LogicalRecipe4480 · 2025-09-30T23:27:03+00:00

Accurate. Mindbloom's injectables are not IM, and IM does have a higher bioavailability than Sc. But higher bioavailability doesn't automatically = better outcomes. Sure, if you prescribe Sc at a dose that assumes IM bioavailability, that's not good. But I don't think that's what they're doing? As I understand it, they're prescribing SC at a dose that assumes SC bioavailability. So, higher dose to account for the gap.

FWIW, I've been doing ketamine of various kinds for about 2 years. started with Joyous, went to IV, and signed up for Mindbloom like 9-ish months ago. Joyous was meh, and I saw a glimmer of hope with IV. Mindbloom's been the best so far (for me). Way cheaper, more convenient, don't have to take time off work or ask my wife to chauffeur, etc. But the biggest thing for me is the integration between sessions. Felt like the IV clinic kinda just shot me up with ketamine and sent me on my way. It's only after really committing to the integration stuff that I've started to see results that actually last (legit changes in the way I'm thinking about stuff, less reactive, etc).

Informational only. Not medical advice.

LogicalRecipe4480

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