1
|
Optimized Clinical Strategies for Treatment-Resistant Depression: Integrating Ketamine Protocols with Trauma- and Attachment-Informed Psychotherapy. PSYCH 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/psych4010012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Strategically timed trauma- and attachment-informed psychotherapy to address underlying emotional wounds, paired with ketamine administered in precision-calibrated doses to ensure high-entropy brain states, may be key to improving the quality and duration of ketamine’s therapeutic efficacy for treatment-resistant depression. This approach optimizes the opportunities for change created by ketamine’s known effects as a rapid antidepressant that stimulates synaptogenesis, normalizes neural connectivity and coherence, enhances neuroplasticity, reduces inflammation, and induces high-entropy brain states with associated subjective psychedelic experiences. Ketamine, a non-selective N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist is a safe, effective, fast-acting dissociative anesthetic that, as a standalone treatment, also exhibits rapid sustained antidepressant effects, even in many patients with treatment-resistant depression. A prior history of developmental trauma and attachment injuries are known primary factors in the etiology of treatment resistance in depression and other mental disorders. Thus, the adjunct of targeted psychotherapy attuned to trauma and attachment injuries may enhance and prolong ketamine efficacy and provide an opportunity for lasting therapeutic change. Psychotherapy engagement during repeated ketamine sessions for patient safety and integration of altered states, paired with separate individualized psychotherapy-only sessions timed 24–48 h post ketamine induction, takes advantage of peak ketamine-induced dendritic spine growth in the prefrontal cortex and limbic system, and normalized network connectivity across brain structures. This strategically timed paired-session approach also exploits the therapeutic potential created by precision-calibrated ketamine-linked high-entropy brain states and associated psychedelic experiences that are posited to disrupt overly rigid maladaptive thoughts, behaviors, and disturbing memories associated with treatment-resistant depression; paired sessions also support integration of the felt sense of happiness and connectivity associated with psychedelic experiences.
Collapse
|
2
|
Muscat SA, Hartelius G, Crouch CR, Morin KW. An Integrative Approach to Ketamine Therapy May Enhance Multiple Dimensions of Efficacy: Improving Therapeutic Outcomes With Treatment Resistant Depression. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:710338. [PMID: 34899408 PMCID: PMC8653702 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.710338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Research over the last two decades has established ketamine as a safe, effective, fast-acting, and sustained antidepressant that significantly reduces adverse symptoms associated with depression, even in patients who are treatment resistant. Much of this research has evolved within the framework of several independent branches of scientific inquiry: in addition to the study of ketamine is a non-selective NMDAR antagonist with rapid antidepressant effects, it has also been found effective as a psychoplastogen that stimulates synaptogenesis and increases neuroplasticity, as a powerful anti-inflammatory that may improve inflammation-related depressive symptoms, as a substance that induces beneficial high entropy brain states, and as a subjectively impactful psychedelic agent. Each branch of inquiry has generated independent evidence of ketamine's efficacy but has advanced without substantive coordination or communication with other lines of inquiry. Integrative research that considers these branches of research together may lead toward a better understanding of ketamine's effects and improved treatment protocols and clinical outcomes. Such an overview can inform more comprehensive patient care through: (a) informed patient psychoeducation that encompasses all of ketamine's mechanisms of action; (b) calibration of optimal dosage to ensure induction and maintenance of high entropy brain states during each ketamine session utilizing EEG measurement; (c) Improved management of emergence side effects through proper care for set and setting; (d) inclusion of pre-selected appropriate music to enhance the emotional experience; (e) increased monitoring of ketamine effects on cortical activity, inter-hemispheric imbalance, and inflammation-related levels of cytokines to further improvements in ketamine protocols; and (f) appropriate timing of any adjunctive psychotherapy sessions to coincide with peak neurogenesis at 24-48 h post ketamine treatment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sherry-Anne Muscat
- Youth Forensic Psychiatry, Alberta Hospital, Alberta Health Services, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Integral and Transpersonal Psychology, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Glenn Hartelius
- Integral and Transpersonal Psychology, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Courtenay Richards Crouch
- Integral and Transpersonal Psychology, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Kevin W Morin
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Acute Adult Psychiatry, Alberta Hospital, Alberta Health Services, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Swift TC, Belser AB, Agin-Liebes G, Devenot N, Terrana S, Friedman HL, Guss J, Bossis AP, Ross S. Cancer at the Dinner Table: Experiences of Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy for the Treatment of Cancer-Related Distress. JOURNAL OF HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY 2017. [DOI: 10.1177/0022167817715966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Recent randomized controlled trials of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for patients with cancer suggest that this treatment results in large-magnitude reductions in anxiety and depression as well as improvements in attitudes toward disease progression and death, quality of life, and spirituality. To better understand these findings, we sought to identify psychological mechanisms of action using qualitative methods to study patient experiences in psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 13 adult participants with clinically elevated anxiety associated with a cancer diagnosis who received a single dose of psilocybin under close clinical supervision. Transcribed interviews were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis, which resulted in 10 themes, focused specifically on cancer, death and dying, and healing narratives. Participants spoke to the anxiety and trauma related to cancer, and perceived lack of available emotional support. Participants described the immersive and distressing effects of the psilocybin session, which led to reconciliations with death, an acknowledgment of cancer’s place in life, and emotional uncoupling from cancer. Participants made spiritual or religious interpretations of their experience, and the psilocybin therapy helped facilitate a felt reconnection to life, a reclaiming of presence, and greater confidence in the face of cancer recurrence. Implications for theory and clinical treatment are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Harris L. Friedman
- Goddard College, Plainfield, VT, USA
- University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Jeffrey Guss
- New York University, New York, NY, USA
- New York University School of Medicine, NY, USA
| | - Anthony P. Bossis
- New York University, New York, NY, USA
- New York University School of Medicine, NY, USA
| | - Stephen Ross
- New York University, New York, NY, USA
- New York University School of Medicine, NY, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Belser AB, Agin-Liebes G, Swift TC, Terrana S, Devenot N, Friedman HL, Guss J, Bossis A, Ross S. Patient Experiences of Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. JOURNAL OF HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY 2017. [DOI: 10.1177/0022167817706884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The psychological mechanisms of action involved in psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy are not yet well understood. Despite a resurgence of quantitative research regarding psilocybin, the current study is the first qualitative study of participant experiences in psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy. Semistructured interviews were carried out with 13 adult participants aged 22 to 69 years ( M = 50 years) with clinically elevated anxiety associated with a cancer diagnosis. Participants received a moderate dose of psilocybin and adjunctive psychotherapy with an emphasis on the process of meaning-making. Verbatim transcribed interviews were analyzed by a five-member research team using interpretative phenomenological analysis. General themes found in all or nearly all transcripts included relational embeddedness, emotional range, the role of music as conveyor of experience, meaningful visual phenomena, wisdom lessons, revised life priorities, and a desire to repeat the psilocybin experience. Typical themes found in the majority of transcripts included the following: exalted feelings of joy, bliss, and love; embodiment; ineffability; alterations to identity; a movement from feelings of separateness to interconnectedness; experiences of transient psychological distress; the appearance of loved ones as guiding spirits; and sharing the experience with loved ones posttreatment. Variant themes found in a minority of participant transcripts include lasting changes to sense of identity, synesthesia experiences, catharsis of powerful emotion, improved relationships after treatment, surrender or “letting go,” forgiveness, and a continued struggle to integrate experience. The findings support the conclusion that psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy may provide an effective treatment for psychological distress in cancer patients. Implications for theory and treatment are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - T. Cody Swift
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Neşe Devenot
- University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Harris L. Friedman
- Goddard College, Plainfield, VT, USA
- University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Jeffrey Guss
- New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Anthony Bossis
- New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Stephen Ross
- New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Stewart AM, Kalueff AV. The behavioral effects of acute Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol and heroin (diacetylmorphine) exposure in adult zebrafish. Brain Res 2013; 1543:109-19. [PMID: 24216135 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2013.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2013] [Revised: 10/31/2013] [Accepted: 11/01/2013] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
The use of psychotropic drugs in clinical and translational brain research continues to grow, and the need for novel experimental models and screens is becoming widely recognized. Mounting evidence supports the utility of zebrafish (Danio rerio) for studying various pharmacological manipulations, as an alternative model complementing the existing rodent paradigms in this field. Here, we explore the effects of acute 20-min exposure to two commonly abused psychotropic compounds, Δ(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and heroin, on adult zebrafish behavior in the novel tank test. Overall, THC administration (30 and 50 mg/L) produces an anxiogenic-like reduction of top swimming, paralleled with a slower, continuous bottom swimming. In contrast, heroin exposure (15 and 25 mg/L) evoked a hyperlocomotor response (with rapid bouts of bottom swimming and frequent 'bouncing' motions) without altering anxiety-sensitive top/bottom endpoints. The behavioral effects of these two compounds in zebrafish seem to parallel the respective rodent and human findings. Collectively, this emphasizes the growing significance of novel emerging aquatic models in translational drug abuse research and small molecule screening.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Adam Michael Stewart
- Zebrafish Neuroscience Research Consortium (ZNRC) and ZENEREI Institute, 309 Palmer Court, Slidell 70458, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, A210 Langley Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Allan V Kalueff
- Zebrafish Neuroscience Research Consortium (ZNRC) and ZENEREI Institute, 309 Palmer Court, Slidell 70458, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience Program, Tulane University Medical School, 1430 Tulane Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Kyzar EJ, Collins C, Gaikwad S, Green J, Roth A, Monnig L, El-Ounsi M, Davis A, Freeman A, Capezio N, Stewart AM, Kalueff AV. Effects of hallucinogenic agents mescaline and phencyclidine on zebrafish behavior and physiology. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2012; 37:194-202. [PMID: 22251567 PMCID: PMC3294104 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2012.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2011] [Revised: 12/20/2011] [Accepted: 01/04/2012] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Mescaline and phencyclidine (PCP) are potent hallucinogenic agents affecting human and animal behavior. As their psychotropic effects remain poorly understood, further research is necessary to characterize phenotypes they evoke in various animal models. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are rapidly emerging as a new model organism for neuroscience research. Here, we examine the effects of mescaline (5-20mg/l) and PCP (0.5-3mg/l) in several zebrafish paradigms, including the novel tank, open field and shoaling tests. Mescaline and PCP dose-dependently increased top activity in the novel tank test, also reducing immobility and disrupting the patterning of zebrafish swimming, as assessed by ethograms. PCP, but not mescaline, evoked circling behavior in the open field test. At the highest doses tested, mescaline markedly increased, while PCP did not affect, zebrafish shoaling behavior. Finally, 20mg/l mescaline did not alter, and 3mg/l PCP elevated, whole-body cortisol levels. Overall, our studies indicate high sensitivity of zebrafish models to hallucinogenic compounds with complex behavioral and physiological effects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Allan V. Kalueff
- Corresponding Author: Allan V. Kalueff, PhD, Department of Pharmacology, Room SL-83, Tulane University Medical School, 1430 Tulane Ave., New Orleans, LA 70112, USA. Tel/Fax.: +1 504 988 3354.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Bonner ET, Friedman HL. A conceptual clarification of the experience of awe: An interpretative phenomenological analysis. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011. [DOI: 10.1080/08873267.2011.593372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
|
8
|
Affiliation(s)
- Linda G. Bell
- a Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis , Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Abstract
Between 1959 and 1974, several groups of researchers issued reports on the use of d-Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD) in the treatment of children with autism. This paper reviews that literature to consider how the authors justified these studies, as well as their methods, results, and conclusions. The justification for using LSD was often based on the default logic that other treatment efforts had failed. Several positive outcomes were reported with the use of LSD, but most of these studies lacked proper experimental controls and presented largely narrative/descriptive data. Today there is renewed interest in the use of psychedelic drugs for therapeutic purposes. While this resurgence of research has not yet included children with autism, this review of the LSD studies from the 1960s and 1970s offers important lessons for future efforts to evaluate new or controversial treatments for children with autism.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jeff Sigafoos
- School of Education, University of Tasmania, Australia.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Kolp E, Friedman HL, Young MS, Krupitsky E. Ketamine Enhanced Psychotherapy: Preliminary Clinical Observations on Its Effectiveness in Treating Alcoholism. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2006. [DOI: 10.1207/s15473333thp3404_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
|