Put briefly, it is because the use of ketamine to treat certain mental health conditions under clinically controlled conditions is effective, safe, scientifically sound, and legal.

Ketamine has been commonly used in clinical medicine for decades. Its use in psychiatry is warranted mainly due to its direct anxiolytic and antidepressant effect. In our ketamine-assisted therapy, we also utilize the fact that ketamine induces a state of expanded consciousness, i.e. a state of altered perception, thought, and experience. In the follow-up integration sessions after ketamine treatment, we systematically work with the client’s experience.

In the field of mental health (including our ketamine-assisted therapy), ketamine is currently used off-label, i.e. outside of its primary indications. For this reason, ketamine treatment may only be indicated if the client has had at least one treatment attempt for the current episode of illness (e.g., psychotherapy or relevant alternative and/or pharmacotherapy) before signing up for KAT. Off-label use is legal and legitimate if the scientific evidence points to the safety and effectiveness of a medication in an indication for which it has not yet been officially approved. The aim is to allow doctors to help more patients who may benefit from the medication.