At Nushama, we are dedicated to providing innovative therapies that profoundly impact our members’ lives. Today, we share a compelling Q&A session with a member whose journey through ketamine therapy illustrates the transformative power of personalized care and advanced treatments.
Diagnosed with stage-three colon cancer during the pandemic, her struggle extended beyond physical health, plunging into the depths of depression, anxiety, and PTSD amidst the isolating backdrop of hospital walls and personal loss. Her journey through ketamine therapy at Nushama not only improved her emotional landscape but also redefined her engagement with life itself.
Thank you do this dear member for sharing her story! It’s in sharing that we can inspire other and reduce the stigma around mental health.
Q: What was your emotional state before coming to Nushama?
A: Before Nushama, my emotional state was really bad due to stage-three colon cancer and the associated treatments. Being in a hospital environment during the pandemic, surrounded by suffering and loss, left me with depression, anxiety, and PTSD. After being declared cancer-free, I expected to feel better, but instead, my mental health worsened, leaving me paralyzed by depression and unable to perform basic tasks.
My roommate was told she was terminal during COVID, so, at first, no one could come to visit. Starting my fight and then hearing the news of others who would not make it was horrible. Eventually, I was only allowed one visitor per day for three hours, but I was there by myself the rest of the time. Also, I lost both my grandmothers during this period. I had another roommate who fell in the night and broke her head open. HIPAA prohibited the medical staff from telling me what happened, but I’m pretty sure she died, and for me, it was traumatic to see.
I came out of that experience with depression, anxiety, and PTSD. After my treatment, I was cancer-free, so I thought the darkness would lift at that point. However, the news made it worse because, prior, I had only been focused on my treatment. I then started to feel all the sadness that transpired—my depression and anxiety became paralyzing, and I couldn’t do the most basic things like getting out of bed or bathing. I couldn’t process the idea of living anymore. I contacted my psychiatrist, therapist, and Dr. Steven Radowitz at Nushama.
Medications were not working as I was too far gone, and I got really scared. Dr. Radowitz recommended I try a ketamine infusion. He said he couldn’t promise it would help, but research showed it made a big difference in cases like mine. I figured I had nothing to lose. I came out of cancer, which I thought would take my life away, but I was still fighting for my life because of my mental health.
Q: Before you came here, what did you do to manage these symptoms?
I tried two different kinds of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medication, but they were not working. I was not responding to anything, and I had no emotions as I was indifferent. I had a paralyzing feeling that didn’t allow me to process any thoughts. My bed was my safest space and the only place I wanted to be.
Q: What did you feel like after your first ketamine experience?
I had never tried any kind of drug before, so I was bewildered by the experience at first. Right after the first treatment, I remember feeling more cheery. I wanted to go out and have ice cream suddenly—even something small like this was a huge change from the emotional state I had been in before.
Q: Now that you’ve completed a few journeys, how do you feel?
I feel a lot better! The ketamine helped me get to a point where I was in control of my depression (vs. my depression controlling me). I started exercising, returning to being healthy, visiting my sister, going back to work, and reconnecting with friends—the push I needed to be strong enough to do these things on my own again.
The treatment also gave me the strength for this inner work, taking me outside of myself to wonder and question things—I suddenly felt I had the power to move forward. Each session was very different, but they allowed me to go through different emotions. I am in contact with my doctors and therapists. With integration and therapy, I do a lot of work independently to take charge of my life, make changes, and get to a better place, which is eventually what happened.
Q: During your treatments, did you experience feelings that made you “wake up”?
The treatments allow you to go deep into yourself—you experience a higher self behind the layers of who you are. This self is deeply wise, and you feel so much love. I didn’t know how to describe it at first. I knew it was me who felt 100% okay—it made me realize I can be that person, and that’s what I want. The level of love you feel is like the world loves you, and you love it back, and it’s all connected somehow.
Q: Has your life changed and been different in any other ways?
I came out of my treatment from cancer feeling so terrible. Cancer had made me lose weight and gain weight, so my eating habits were unstable, and I lost hair. Facing the world again was challenging as I had been super-fit and well put together in the past. After treatment, I got back into my gym routine, which seemed impossible at one point. I started to be confident in my skin, take supplements, and make progress again. Even my doctors, when I see them, tell me I look like a different person. Once again, I eat healthily, feel fit, embrace the day, look good, and do my job 100%.
I did a complete 180—I attribute that to the ketamine and Nushama entirely!
Q: Is there anything else you would like to share about your transformation?
I’m sharing my story because I know people are suffering like I was, and I don’t want them to go through what I did. Many people do not understand depression and think of it simply as being sad, but it’s such an awful feeling. If there is anything I can do to help others, it would mean a lot to me.
This treatment helps rediscover the joy within you. Journeys bring you back to who you are and the feelings you deserve—feelings you forgot because you haven’t felt them in so long. The experience is so wonderful, like pure love.
This heartfelt narrative from our member not only highlights the effectiveness of ketamine therapy but also underscores the importance of compassionate care and a supportive treatment environment. At Nushama, we believe in the power of ketamine to not only treat but transform lives, providing a path back to one’s true self.
We encourage anyone feeling overwhelmed by mental health challenges to reach out and explore how ketamine therapy could potentially reshape their life. Every journey is a step towards healing, and at Nushama, you are not alone on this path.
