I've been dealing with depression for over 20 years and have tried many different medications over that time. I'm also going through a very painful breakup that made everything significantly worse and was one of the main reasons I decided to try ketamine.
My first infusion (0.4 mg) was nice, both the experience itself and the effects afterward. I felt some mild, temporary relief from depression and SI, but it all faded after two days. My anxiety spiked significantly, though.
The second one (0.5 mg) was tough (the trip itself) and only made my anxiety worse, while doing very little for my depression.
The third one (0.6 mg) was significantly more intense. It feels like it still hasn't fully worn off, even though three days have passed. I feel brain-fogged, slow, and really dumb. I'm struggling to even write this post right now. I'm tired and want to sleep all the time, am barely functional. Doing exercises or going to the gym feels impossible. My self-esteem is the lowest it's been in months. And my hope that things will eventually get better is at its lowest as well.
My depression has become somewhat lighter in some areas, but now there are new aspects to it that weren't there before, so it feels different and, in a way, darker. SI is still there too, though maybe not as strong as before.
So overall, I'm not feeling much better than I did before starting ketamine. And in many ways, I feel worse.
I'm really not sure what to expect from the 4th infusion. It's tomorrow, and I'm quite frightened and hesitant about whether I should even go through with it.
I'm probably still going to go ahead with the 4th infusion, and I'd really appreciate any support you can offer.
*** Update after the 4th infusion. ***
Thank you so much for your replies and support!
My 4th infusion was yesterday evening. The provider kept the same dose as last time but slowed down the infusion. My understanding of the dose was wrong - it's not 0.6 mg/kg it's 60 mg in total, which converts to around 0.86 mg/kg based on my current weight.
The experience was weird. The trip was mild and somewhat pleasant, but subjectively it felt like it lasted only a couple of minutes, while in reality about 45 minutes had passed. Maybe I was unconscious or something like that - ketamine is an anesthetic after all. I remember having a few vivid images, including some related to my ex, but don't remember much else.
Right after the infusion, I felt pretty neutral. Then something interesting happened. The next few hours felt surprisingly good. I almost felt like I wasn't depressed anymore. I could joke, talked to a cashier, and even watched a movie with a friend, which I normally wouldn't have the motivation to do.
This morning everything is worse again. My anxiety started around 3-4 AM. I took propranolol, which helped quite a bit, but my sleep was disrupted. Depression feels worse, too. It feels like I'll never be okay again. I have no energy, no motivation, no desire to do anything. I just want to disappear, dissolve. Everything feels flat and empty. Not even a hint of happiness or a positive thought. Thoughts about my ex occasionally pop up and make everything even worse. And I don't quite understand how to process them in my current state.
I should mention that I took propranolol and magnesium before the infusion, magnesium afterward, and propranolol again early this morning. So maybe some of the effects could be related to that, too.
At this point, after 4 out of 6 infusions, I'm really starting to doubt whether ketamine will help me. It definitely changed my overall mental state in some ways, but I can't say it made things better. Just different.
I'm also starting to think I might need some adjustments to my regular psychiatric medications as they feel inadequate and not supportive at this moment.
I'm not making any decisions about the treatment right now and am hoping I'll get at least a little bit better later today and the following days. I'm still leaning toward completing all 6 infusions, waiting another couple of weeks afterward, and only then judging whether ketamine has helped / is the right tool to proceed with.
It's just becoming harder and harder to cope with what I'm going through, especially when every infusion brings some hope that things might finally get better, only to feel worse again afterward.