What A Patient Watches Can Influence Their Ketamine Treatment Experience

Synopsis: Dive into the importance of why being mindful of media consumption before ketamine therapy sessions matters.

Explore scientific findings that show how what patients watch can significantly impact their treatment experiences. Plus, gain practical advice on how to guide patients in preparing their minds for therapy.

Key takeaway: Mindful media consumption before ketamine therapy is crucial as it can influence the effectiveness and experience of the treatment, highlighting the importance of holistic preparation.

Mindful media consumption is an important step in the preparation phase of a ketamine treatment to ensure effectiveness of the therapy. 

How Does Media Consumption Affect Ketamine Therapy?

Preparing for ketamine therapy involves more than just ensuring medical stability; it also requires mental preparation. Recent research has shown that what patients watch before their sessions can significantly affect their treatment experience. In this blog, we’ll explore the scientific evidence behind this phenomenon and provide practical advice for medical professionals on how to help their patients optimize their media consumption to enhance the effectiveness of their ketamine therapy.

The Science Behind The Impact Of What You Watch Before A Ketamine Session

In July 18, 2023, a scientific article was published in the Frontiers of Human Neuroscience journal which explored the influence of media consumption before ketamine therapy sessions. Titled "Imprinting: expanding the extra-pharmacological model of psychedelic drug action to incorporate delayed influences of sets and settings," this study showed how the media the participant was exposed to prior to a treatment impacted the therapy's effectiveness. 

Why What Your Patient “Consumes” Before Ketamine Therapy Matters

So why should you care? Isn’t it enough to simply make sure the patient stays medically stable during the treatment? No, it’s not. Just like how you would have a patient prepare before a major elective surgery, you want your ketamine patients to also prepare. Let’s use the analogy of the digestive system. Similar to how the food you eat becomes part of your body, the media your patient is exposed to or consumes becomes absorbed and incorporated into the mind. So whatever is planted in their mind prior to the treatment has a possibility of blooming or surfacing during the treatment - for good or bad.

How To Help Your Patient Prepare Their Mind for Ketamine Therapy

While you can’t babysit your patient prior to the treatment, you can encourage them to limit or be mindful of the types of media they consume. In particular, violent or intense media, and that can include the news. From our experience at our clinic, we’ve witnessed patient’s experiences being directly influenced by whatever movie or video games they played prior to their session. 

Enhancing Ketamine Therapy Through Mindful Media Consumption

In conclusion, the media that patients consume before their ketamine therapy sessions plays a pivotal role in shaping their treatment experience. As ketamine clinic owners, we have the ability to enhance therapy outcomes by guiding our patients to be mindful of their media consumption, particularly avoiding violent or intense content. By doing so, patients can enter their sessions with a more positive and conducive mental state, ultimately leading to more effective and transformative therapy sessions.

Scientific article referenced in this blog post:
Garel N, Thibault Lévesque J, Sandra DA, Lessard-Wajcer J, Solomonova E, Lifshitz M, Richard-Devantoy S, Greenway KT. Imprinting: expanding the extra-pharmacological model of psychedelic drug action to incorporate delayed influences of sets and settings. Front Hum Neurosci. 2023 Jul 18;17:1200393. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1200393. PMID: 37533588; PMCID: PMC10390742.

Related Questions:

What types of media should patients avoid before their ketamine sessions?

• Patients should avoid consuming violent or intense media, including news, movies, and video games, before their ketamine sessions. This type of content can negatively influence their treatment experience.

How can I help patients be mindful of their media consumption?

• You can help patients be mindful of their media consumption by encouraging them to limit or carefully select the types of media they engage with prior to treatment. Offering guidance and sharing the importance of this preparation can enhance the overall effectiveness of the therapy.

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This blog dives into the importance of why being mindful of media consumption before ketamine therapy sessions matters. It explores scientific findings that show how what patients watch can significantly impact their treatment experiences, and offers practical advice for medical professionals on how to guide patients in preparing their minds for therapy.

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