Understanding How Ketamine Benefits Cognitive Function and Mood

Ketamine is in the news a lot, and not because it’s a powerful anesthetic — it’s also a promising treatment for mental health conditions. 

Traditionally used as anesthesia during surgery, ketamine is now being researched for its benefits in enhancing cognitive function and improving mood. If you’re curious about the science behind ketamine and its potential applications, you’ve come to the right place. 

At Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions, Dr. Karen Giles, one of the leading interventional psychiatrists in the greater Atlanta area, specializes in IV ketamine and explains how it interacts with the brain and treats mental health issues. 

Ketamine basics

Ketamine interacts with NMDA receptors in the brain, a component of the glutamate system. This interaction increases the growth and connectivity of your neural links. 

In plain English, ketamine promotes the growth of new neurons in your brain. By fostering a healthier, more adaptable brain, ketamine improves mood and cognitive function.

Ketamine is also fast-acting. Unlike traditional psychiatric medications, which often require several weeks to take effect, ketamine can bring about noticeable changes within hours. 

How ketamine improves cognitive function

If you struggle with mental health issues, it may feel as if your brain has a mind of its own. It thinks negative thoughts, fixates on unimportant things, and gets stuck in unhelpful thought patterns even when you know better.

Ketamine can help change those wayward thoughts and behaviors by affecting your brain’s neurons. Here’s what we mean.

Ketamine and neuroplasticity

Your brain relies on neuroplasticity — the ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections — to learn, remember, and recover from injury. By improving neuroplasticity, ketamine enables your brain to adapt more quickly to new situations and challenges and overcome cognitive impairments. 

Ketamine, memory, and learning 

To understand how ketamine improves cognitive function, it helps to review the biology behind it. Every time you learn something new, your nerve cells send signals to one another through junctions called synapses. Each of those countless connections works in unison to help you pick up a new language or remember where you put your car keys.

If your synapses fail, you lose memory and have trouble acquiring new information.

Research shows that ketamine may improve memory and learning capabilities by facilitating the formation of new synapses. It essentially flips a switch in your brain, allowing it to process information more efficiently. Ketamine works quickly and can help you reverse cognitive decline or heal from a brain injury.

Ketamine, focus, and attention

Ketamine's impact on specific neural circuits can also enhance focus and attention. 

If you struggle with concentration due to depression or anxiety, ketamine can help by altering your neurotransmitter activity and enabling you to stay focused on a task longer. 

Ketamine for mental health treatment

Dr. Giles uses IV ketamine for several mental health conditions. 

Treatment-resistant depression

Traditional antidepressants can take weeks, if not months, to become effective, but ketamine is fast-acting. 

It is particularly beneficial for people with treatment-resistant depression who haven’t responded well to other therapies. By rapidly alleviating symptoms, ketamine provides a lifeline for those in critical need of immediate intervention, especially those with suicidal thoughts.

Treatment-resistant anxiety

Ketamine’s effect on your brain’s glutamate system means it can reduce anxiety levels. If you suffer from treatment-resistant generalized anxiety disorder, ketamine could be an effective treatment.

PTSD and OCD 

Traditional treatments for PTSD and OCD can be lengthy and complex, but ketamine’s potential to rapidly alter cognition and perception offers new hope. By changing ingrained neural patterns associated with these disorders, ketamine creates an opportunity for therapeutic breakthroughs.

To learn more about IV ketamine therapy, call Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions in Sandy Springs or Alpharetta, Georgia, or request an appointment online.