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Discover how low-dose ketamine is transforming mental health care for anxiety, depression, PTSD, and more. Backed by science, supported by daily check-ins, and designed for at-home use—this treatment is helping patients feel better, faster.
Ketamine therapy is changing the way we approach mental health treatment, offering hope and measurable results for people living with depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Unlike conventional medications that can take weeks to work—or never work at all—ketamine treatment is known for its ability to create meaningful change much faster, often within days.
Originally developed as a dissociative anesthetic, ketamine is now being used in therapeutic protocols to safely promote neuroplasticity and emotional resilience. With a growing body of clinical evidence supporting its use, ketamine is becoming a trusted tool in both psychiatry and integrative mental health care.
In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at how ketamine therapy works, what it can treat, and what the latest peer-reviewed research reveals about its effectiveness and long-term safety.
Ketamine therapy, or treatment, involves the medical use of ketamine to address mental health disorders including anxiety, depression, OCD, and PTSD. Unlike SSRIs or other traditional antidepressants that may take weeks to begin working, ketamine treatment often delivers relief within hours or days. This fast-acting mechanism has made it a revolutionary treatment, especially for individuals facing suicidal ideation or treatment-resistant depression.
Ketamine can be administered in several forms, depending on clinical preference, treatment approach, and patient needs:
While IV and nasal spray formats are more common in clinical settings, low-dose oral ketamine therapy has emerged as a convenient, safe, and effective option for at-home treatment.
The mechanism of action behind ketamine’s therapeutic effect differs significantly from traditional antidepressants. Ketamine acts as an NMDA receptor antagonist, which increases glutamate release—the brain’s most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter. The NMDA receptor plays a key role in emotional regulation and communication pathways in the brain. This process supports neuroplasticity and synaptogenesis, helping to "rewire" dysfunctional pathways in the brain that are often linked to mental health disorders.
A landmark study by Duman and Aghajanian (2016) found that ketamine stimulates the formation of new neuronal connections in the prefrontal cortex—a region of the brain deeply involved in mood regulation, decision-making, and emotional resilience. This ability to enhance synaptic connectivity, often within hours, is thought to be a key reason why ketamine can produce such rapid improvements in depressive and anxious symptoms, especially in individuals whose brains have become "stuck" in maladaptive patterns. Interestingly, ketamine’s mechanism of action is distinct enough that it can often be used alongside traditional antidepressants like SSRIs without interference. (If you’re wondering: can you take ketamine on antidepressants? In many cases, yes—with proper clinical oversight to ensure safety and effectiveness.)
For some individuals, the relief they experience with ketamine treatment leads to a desire to reduce or discontinue other medications. In fact, many patients choose to gradually taper off their antidepressants during the course of ketamine treatment—under the guidance of their prescribing provider. While this isn’t the right choice for everyone, it reflects ketamine’s potential to help people regain stability and autonomy in their mental health journey.
Ketamine is perhaps best known for its impact on treatment-resistant depression. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study by Zarate et al. (2006) found that a single low-dose ketamine infusion produced rapid antidepressant effects within hours, with some patients experiencing relief for several days. This breakthrough helped shift the psychiatric paradigm toward fast-acting treatments.
PTSD remains difficult to treat with conventional therapies. However, clinical trials suggest that ketamine may help by modulating traumatic memory processing and promoting emotional flexibility. Feder et al. (2014) found that PTSD patients receiving ketamine experienced notable symptom improvement within 24 hours, supporting its use as a rapid intervention.
One of ketamine’s most impactful effects in trauma work is its ability to create a sense of space between the individual and their traumatic memories. Rather than becoming overwhelmed or emotionally flooded, patients often describe being able to observe their experiences with greater clarity and detachment. This shift can make it easier to engage with therapy, revisit painful memories, and begin to process them without feeling consumed by them. In this way, ketamine can serve as a powerful catalyst for deeper healing in PTSD treatment, particularly when inegrated with supportive psychotherapy or trauma-informed care.
To further support this integration, Joyous has launched Joyous for Therapists—a training program designed to help therapists incorporate psycholytic (low-dose) ketamine into their work. This initiative empowers clinicians to better support patients using ketamine treatment, while enhancing therapeutic outcomes. For patients, more information is available at care.joyous.team/ketamine-therapy.
There’s growing interest in low dose ketamine for anxiety, especially for individuals who haven’t responded to benzodiazepines or SSRIs. A 2020 review by Glue et al. found that ketamine produced rapid, sustained anxiety reduction across several small trials. Daily low-dose protocols, in particular, show promise for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and social anxiety, helping to gradually rebalance emotional processing without heavy sedation or dependency.
In a low-dose daily ketamine protocol, patients typically take a psycholytic dose once per day using a lozenge that dissolves in the gum region. These doses are designed to provide therapeutic effects without inducing dissociation or perceptual changes, allowing patients to go about their daily routines.
The goal of daily microdosing is to encourage subtle but cumulative improvements in mood, anxiety, and mental clarity. Many patients begin to notice shifts in emotional regulation and cognitive flexibility within the first 1–2 weeks of consistent use. In fact, at Joyous, over 89% of patients report meaningful relief within their first month of treatment, highlighting the effectiveness of low-dose ketamine therapy when personalized and monitored with care.
At Joyous, treatment is monitored remotely by licensed providers, with ongoing check-ins to tailor dosing and ensure safety. This model provides a safe, effective, and highly accessible approach to at-home care. And if you’re wondering about affordability, our care model is designed to be transparent and accessible—making the at-home ketamine treatment cost significantly lower than in-clinic infusions or nasal spray options.
What truly sets Joyous apart is our level of care. Unlike traditional treatment models—where you might get a prescription and wait weeks for a follow-up—Joyous offers daily check-ins and real-time support. You’ll share brief daily updates, and in response, your provider can make personalized adjustments to your medication as needed. It’s a dynamic, responsive approach that’s virtually unheard of in mental health care, giving you the kind of close, adaptive support that helps healing happen faster—and more effectively.
When used responsibly and within a well-structured treatment protocol, ketamine has an excellent safety profile. Like many medications, its effects depend greatly on how it's administered and at what dose. While high-dose psychedelic experiences may be appropriate in clinical settings with anesthesiologists, low-dose ketamine protocols are designed to deliver therapeutic benefits without inducing hallucinations or dissociation—making them more suitable for daily use and long-term care.
Ketamine is a schedule III non-narcotic controlled medication, meaning it has the same addiction potential as testosterone or steroids. Its risk for addiction is low when used as prescribed, but it’s important to note that recreational misuse or improper dosing can pose risks. That’s why following clinical guidelines and working with experienced providers is essential. At Joyous, treatment is based on carefully researched, medically supervised protocols, ensuring patients experience the full potential of ketamine’s healing properties—safely, and with lasting impact. Many people have changed their lives with ketamine therapy, but those outcomes have been achieved through intentional, supportive environments and evidence-based care.
Ketamine therapy represents a major evolution in how we treat mental health disorders. For those who’ve exhausted traditional options or are looking for a more personalized approach, low-dose, at-home ketamine protocols offer a promising alternative.
With its fast onset, ability to enhance brain connectivity, and increasing support from clinical studies, ketamine is no longer a fringe intervention—it’s becoming a cornerstone of modern mental health care.
Curious if microdose ketamine treatment is right for you? Connect with a licensed medical provider at Joyous for a free consultation: Start your journey here. Many patients begin feeling relief from anxiety and depression within just a few weeks—real progress may be closer than you think.
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