Ketamine Assisted Sessions
Space to Tell Your Story
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Support to Make Sense of it
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Space to Tell Your Story • Support to Make Sense of it •
Ketamine Assisted Therapy (KAP) is a holistic therapeutic treatment modality that pairs traditional therapy with a psychedelic medicine called Ketamine. KAP can help some people achieve more frequent breakthroughs and sustained improvements to their overall emotional wellness.
What is Ketamine Assisted therapy?
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Ketamine is a legal, safe, and effective medicine known to have antidepressant and mood-enhancing effects. Initial effects can vary in intensity person-to-person, and can be controlled through decisions regarding dosage as well as route of administration (you can choose to administer Ketamine via any number of ways including oral lozenges, IV infusion, intramuscular injection), but a “neuroplasticity window” can last for up to two weeks. Ketamine encourages neuroplasticity, which means that your brain has greater capacity to facilitate personal discovery, growth, and lasting change.
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Research suggests ketamine has neuroregenerative and neuroplastic properties, particularly in reversing damage caused by chronic stress and depression.
It works by stimulating brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), restoring synaptic connections, and repairing neuronal damage. The non-ordinary state of Ketamine allows for defenses to soften. This, combined with prep sessions, integration sessions, and therapeutic support during medicine sessions can help some clients find insight and perspective much faster than with talk therapy alone, and via Ketamine sessions without therapy.
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KAP is not for everyone at any time. There are many factors that differentiate a person from whom KAP will help and not help.
KAP has been shown to be helpful for:
anxiety
depression, as well as treatment resistant depression
substance use disorders
suicidality
“From available KAP publications, it is apparent that combined treatments can, in specific circumstances, initiate and prolong clinically significant reductions in pain, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, while encouraging rapport and treatment engagement, and promoting abstinence in patients addicted to other substances. Despite much variance in how KAP is applied (route of ketamine administration, ketamine dosage/frequency, psychotherapy modality, overall treatment length), these findings suggest psychotherapy, provided before, during, and following ketamine sessions, can maximize and prolong benefits.”
Assessing your nervous system’s readiness prior to, during & after medicine sessions with a somatic experiencing provider such as Stacey is important to maximize benefits.
While your medicine session’s intensity can and will be uniquely chosen (by dosage and route of administration decisions - made through conversations about your interests, needs & goals with Rick Clark, CRNA, APRN of AyaFusion-the process, cost, or novelty of the modality may not be helpful for everyone.
You will see that depending on the number of medicine sessions and routes of administration in each medicine session, the cost varies widely and needs to be considered. Because of this, and since everyone’s financial situation is different, I do offer an anti-oppressive sliding scale fee structure. If you are able, please consider paying the full fee. However, if it would be of help I invite you to review my KAP Investment Guide here.
Fees will always be discussed in prep sessions, prior to any medicine sessions.
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It is so important to first note: schedules for Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy can vary so very much. There are many things to consider - from cost, to schedule, to routes of administration, to location of medicine sessions, and beyond… Please know that if you do feel KAP is a good tool for you, we want you to feel empowered to tailor the journey to your interests, goals, and needs.
This can be a one-time thing, you can have one medical session, then either do or don’t participate in ongoing talk therapy for a year or more/less, then decide another medical session would be helpful (or not).
Or, at the other end of the spectrum, this can be a KAP intensive where you have a medical session each week for 3 weeks (with integration sessions), then repeat that 2 or 3 times…
Or maybe you have interest in an intensive, then your first medical session brings up so much for you that you decide to change the plan to include more prep and integration sessions before you do any more medical sessions.
You can even make decisions on dosing - for example, you can start slow with as small of a dose you want then add a booster in the middle of the medical session (or not!).
Ketamine is a very flexible drug based on routes of administration, and that feature of the medicine is used to the benefit of the client’s comfort. We will meet you where you are at any point along the journey; Your feeling of safety is paramount, so we want you to know that you can always discontinue treatment at any point in the process.
The process varies greatly, and through your medical intake and prep sessions, we will help you make the best decisions for you on where to start.
The pieces that remain constant:
all KAP clients do need to have a medical intake
we will have at least 2 preparation sessions before your first medical session
We will have an integration session within 24-72 hours after any one medical session. At least 2 integration sessions are recommended for most medical sessions, although integration from any one session can truly last a lifetime.
Importantly - the prescriber and client decide the dosing details. It is not up to your therapist, Stacey Seibold, to help decide dosing details.
These points are all requirements in order to maximize therapeutic benefits.
The KAP Process
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You will meet with the prescriber, Richard Clark, CRNA, APRN who will check your eligibility for KAP and fill your ketamine prescription.
Separately, you will also complete intake sessions with your therapist, Stacey Seibold, LCSW.
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To maximize therapeutic benefits offered via KAP, we take time to create a supportive ‘set’ and ‘setting.’ Prep sessions with Stacey can be done virtually or in person.
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Your medicine session will take place in the Ayafusion office. In addition to Stacey, Richard Clark, CRNA, APRN will be present to administer the medication as well as throughout your medicine session to observe your vitals and assist if any medical needs arise.
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For several days following each KAP session your mind is in an open, neuroplastic state. The brain is able to make new connections and rewrite old thought patterns.
You and Stacey can together review the memories, thoughts & insights that arose during or from your medicine sessions. We will explore how to integrate your experience and breakthroughs into your daily life, and help prevent relapses.
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You can repeat the above as many or as few times as you wish. Integration work can be ongoing, on & off, with your own therapist or with Stacey. You will meet with Rick Clark, CRNA APRN for prescription refills, as necessary.
Stacey Seibold, LCSW is honored to partner with Richard Clark, CRNA, APRN of AyaFusion to provide a safe and supportive container for deep healing with in-person (River North) or virtual (depending on medical recommendations) Ketamine-Assisted therapy
Meet Your Provider
Richard Clark, Board Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), APRN
Rick takes a holistic integrative approach to health, wellness, life and patient care with all of his clients. His passion is assisting people to take a more integrative approach to health and wellness which includes diet, mindfulness, exercise, meditation and more targeted strategies like KAP for mood disorders and chronic pain.
He is continually inspired by the people who have been able to change the direction of their lives after years of suffering by using KAP and mindfulness practices to step out of the darkness of depression, pain and despair. Please check out Rick’s full menu of services he offers at AyaFusion.
What does KAP cost?
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Provided by Richard Clark, CRNA, APRN
Intake:
$150Medical Sessions: $150 intake (noted above) + $400 per 2-hour long IV session
(no sliding scale fee option for your medical costs, although AyaFusion does offer financing through CareCredit. Speak with Rick in your intake if this is something you are interested in)
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provided by Stacey Seibold, LCSW
Fees are dependent upon the following decisions:
Intake, Preparation & Integration sessions:
Will you be utilizing insurance?
If yes: The intake, prep sessions and integration sessions are all billable to insurance, so your cost will be your insurance plan’s copay or deductible amount for these sessions, just like any talk therapy session (see below for fees for Stacey’s services in medical sessions)
If no: Do you plan to utilize the sliding scale fee structure?
>If yes: Since everyone’s financial situation is different, we provide KAP at several different fee tiers. We invite you to review our Sliding Scale fee structure here.
>If no, and you are happy & able to pay out of pocket the full fee, not billing insurance: $180 per hour for individuals, $225 per hour for couples for intake, prep & integrations sessions
Medical Sessions
Do you plan to utilize the sliding scale fee structure?
If yes: Since everyone’s financial situation is different, we provide KAP at several different fee tiers. We invite you to review our sliding scale fee structure here.
If no, and you are happy & able to pay out of pocket the full fee,
$360 for 2 hours of medical sessions’ therapy
$45 per 15 minutes thereafter
Ketamine Resource List
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Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy: A Systematic Narrative Review of the Literature
“Conclusion
The use of Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) can potentially fulfil the unmet clinical need for an effective treatment for multiple complex and often comorbid pain, psychological, and substance use disorders. Ketamine’s demonstrated ability to produce antidepressant and anxiolytic effects likely interacts with the processes involved in psychotherapy, ideally as a conduit for rapid-change, increasing treatment engagement and adherence, building the therapeutic alliance, and lowering defensiveness by providing reprieves from distressing symptomology while inducing transpersonal experiences at higher doses. Continued engagement in psychotherapy after ketamine administration may prolong the often-transient effects of ketamine and allow for the integration of psychological insights into everyday functioning. While at present there is no standard approach to the application of KAP, it is important to prepare and support the patient during ketamine administration and to offer follow-up psychotherapy sessions to maintain positive effects and delay or eliminate relapse. As KAP research continues to evolve, a focus on increasing the duration of positive effects may lead to effective interventions and maintenance programs, improving KAP such that it becomes an effective, long-lasting treatment for complex, resistant, and chronic conditions for people living with pain, mental health, and substance use disorders.”
Psychedelic Research and Training Institute (PRATI)
“Research suggests that a “neuroplastic window” opens following ketamine treatment, typically beginning within hours and lasting a few days or longer. KAP works to leverage this window of brain adaptability; by engaging in “integration” sessions with a KAP therapist, the client works to make sense of insights from their ketamine experience and is supported in making positive life changes to sustain these benefits. Many KAP therapists follow the model of “the inner healer” as the expert in this process, helping the client access a source of wisdom within to find their own meaning and path towards healing.”
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“A key difference between these two approaches is the appreciation of the neuroplastic state. Ketamine infusion treatment prioritizes the pharmacological benefits of ketamine — namely, its antidepressant effects — as the primary mechanism for healing. This can be a life-saving treatment for people in acute depression or suicidal crisis. However, the post-medicine window of neuroplasticity may be under-utilized without additional support.”
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“By contrast, KAP treatment uses ketamine to assist and catalyze the therapeutic process with a client.”
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“A crucial difference between KAP and ketamine infusion treatments is the attention paid to “set and setting.” Set refers to the psychological state and intention held by both the client and the provider; setting involves the physical environment the treatment takes place in. These factors are widely seen as essential components in psychedelic-assisted therapy and are embraced by KAP providers. KAP sessions are primarily held in the therapist’s office, administering ketamine sublinigually or intramuscularly. KAP therapists partner with a medical professional, who prescribes the ketamine (e.g., lozenges for sublingual doses) and may be on hand to administer for intramuscular or intravenous sessions. KAP therapists work to create a comfortable and supportive set and setting for optimal experiences. Through preparatory and integration sessions, they set the stage for introspective therapeutic work and help clients discover pathways to new patterns of thinking and behavior. They also give thoughtful attention to the setting, creating a safe, inviting space with soft lighting, pillows, decor, music, and eyeshades. KAP also provides the opportunity to integrate ritual into the experience and discuss more existential questions, such as spiritual or mystical experiences catalyzed by psychedelic medicines.
Ketamine infusion clinics, on the other hand, provide intravenous ketamine, which means they must follow regulations for medical facilities providing IV medications, such as sterile environments and medical monitoring devices. It’s not uncommon for infusion clinics to forgo music and eyeshades, and sometimes involve busy treatment rooms with multiple people receiving ketamine simultaneously. These factors may negatively impact the set and setting for the experience, and journeying in an infusion clinic can feel more distant, medicalized, and impersonal.”
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Breaking the Ketamine Code - an easy to read history of Ketamine, and how it was discovered to be useful for TRD:
“While established antidepressants could take over a month to work, intravenous ketamine worked within hours.”
Just ketamine alone is helpful for depression
Ketamine sessions with prep, support during, & integration sessions maximize the benefits
Antidepressant effects of ketamine in depressed patients - first randomized controlled trial of ketamine for depression (not of KAP for depression, just ketamine)
A Randomized Trial of NMDA Antagonist in Treatment Resistant Major Depression
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Ready to get started?
You are taking a very positive step by beginning therapy - you are making space to tell, and make sense of, your story.
Please fill out the contact form and Stacey will reach out to you soon.