The Avesta Blog
New to ketamine care? Read these first
Three guides that answer the questions most patients ask before their first visit.
Guides
What is Ketamine and How Does it Work?
Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic used in surgery and pain management since the 1960s. At clinical doses it is an effective therapy for treatment-resistant depression, PTSD, anxiety and suicidality, and it can relieve chronic pain.
Guides
Is Ketamine Therapy Safe?
The article says ketamine IV infusions for mood disorders and chronic pain are very safe when given by highly trained, board-certified anesthesia providers, and notes the World Health Organization lists ketamine as an essential medicine. The ideal candidate has usually tried other treatments without success.
Pricing
How to Pay for Ketamine Therapy and Reduce Out-of-Pocket Costs
Most patients lower ketamine costs through insurance-based Spravato treatment or IV ketamine supported by reimbursement and other payment tools. Spravato often provides the lowest out-of-pocket cost for patients who qualify.
All articles
Browse by topic
Choose a topic to see every article on it, or scroll for the latest.
News
Meet Integration Coach Naomi: Guiding Ketamine Patients Before, During, and After Infusions
Naomi Prakash, MS, is Avesta's ketamine integration coach. She offers a one-hour prep call before treatment, sitting sessions during infusions and a post-infusion integration session, typically 24 hours later, at the Bethesda, McLean and Washington, DC clinics.
News
Nurse Judy on Empathy, Ketamine, and Finding Her Place at Avesta
Nurse Practitioner Judy Li worked on the hospital front lines during the pandemic before joining Avesta. She explains how she prepares patients for a first infusion, which can feel scary, and why empathy is central to her care.
News
Avesta’s Advocacy for the Breakthrough Therapies Act
On March 13, 2024, Avesta joined the Veteran Mental Health Leadership Coalition and Reason for Hope, with Senators Cory Booker and Rand Paul, to advocate for the Breakthrough Therapies Act. The bill aims to improve access to psychedelic-based therapies.
News
Our Holistic Approach to Mental Health
Avesta supports a holistic approach to mood disorders: a team of mental health practitioners, a healthy diet and exercise, and IV and intramuscular vitamin infusions alongside ketamine treatment.
News
Avesta is an Advocacy Consortium Clinic
Avesta is an Advocacy Consortium Clinic in the Ketamine Taskforce, launched February 1, 2021 to expand access to safe ketamine treatment through insurance coverage. Member clinics contribute de-identified real-world data on how well ketamine works.
News
Should Ketamine be used during police arrests?
Ketamine has a long medical history and is safe when given by a licensed clinical practitioner, at lower managed doses, in a controlled clinical setting. The article explains why that clinical context matters when asking whether police should use it.
The Avesta blog shares general education and is not a substitute for medical advice. Talk to a qualified clinician about your own situation.
Have a question the articles don't answer?
Talk to our team. We check your insurance benefits up front, and no referral is needed.