The use of ketamine, an anesthetic and also a psychedelic drug, took off during the pandemic in the United States as a self-administered treatment for people with depression, despite skepticism around its effectiveness and unclear long-term risks.
Philip Markle, a 36-year-old New Yorker, has struggled with depression since he was a teenager. He tried psychology, and various drugs, including other psychedelics like LSD.
But he says only ketamine has given him a sense of clarity and the ability to accept himself better, unlike the all-too-brief improvements experienced so far with other treatments – and without the side effects of other substances.
“It seems to me that if there is a drug that can be sent in the mail, if there is a psychedelic that can help you change your life on its own, it is this one.“, indicated this comedian to AFP.
Ketamine was already used in the United States to treat depression, anxiety or chronic pain, but patients had to go to the hospital in person for intravenous injections.
During the pandemic, health restrictions led authorities to allow doctors to prescribe drugs remotely, including this psychotropic drug with a sulphurous reputation.
Companies, some of which were already specialized in clinical treatments, then embarked on the evaluation of potential customers, online, and in sending doses of drugs to people considered to be good candidates.
Mr. Markle thus followed a protocol from home thanks to Mindbloom, one of these start-ups.
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