Depression stands as a formidable adversary, affecting millions of lives worldwide. Despite strides in treatment, conventional approaches often fail to provide relief for individuals grappling with treatment-resistant depression. However, amidst this challenge, a ray of hope emerges in the form of ketamine IV therapy.

Episode 341: ketamine therapy

Theo Von invites Dr. Jason Pooler, founder and medical director of the Chattanooga Ketamine Center, to provide his insights between Ketamine Therapy and depression. 

The Guilt

Feelings of guilt often accompany major depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions. That you are having difficulty functioning on a very basic level, while knowing that you “don’t have it that bad” (or, that’s what your *insert family member* is telling you) has you feeling even worse. Your family and friends may not understand what you're going through, and from their perspective, have trouble grasping why you can’t just pick your head up and work through this. You tell yourself, ‘I'm not DYING, for God’s sake…,’ but it doesn’t help a thing. 

When You're Stuck in Your Head

“You know, depression is sort of a selfish feeling,” someone told me last week. “I just sit there, thinking only about myself and my life.” So, when she is able, she volunteers with a local hospice. On the days she volunteers, her depression is not as bad.

Laughing Until We Couldn't...or Could...Breathe

In 2010, following my father’s cancer diagnosis, I accompanied him to MD Anderson for one of his two-day appointments. Interested in the ancillary services they offer to patients and their families, I looked at the Integrative Medicine department’s events calendar when we arrived. Ten o’clock a.m.: Laughing Yoga. How could we pass that up!? My dad reluctantly agreed to participate.

Depression, Substance Abuse & Suicide

On Wednesday, May 17, 2017, the day the world lost talented musician Chris Cornell to suicide, the National Institutes of Health issued a news release: “Study finds tens of millions of Americans drink alcohol at dangerously high levels”.  Researchers from the NIAAA Division of Epidemiology and Prevention Research analyzed data from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC), a national survey conducted in 2001-2002 and 2012-2013. The surveys examined subjects' alcohol use within the previous year, and its co-occurrence with drug use and psychiatric conditions. The results of the survey? Adults in America are engaging in extreme binge drinking now more than they were ten years prior. 

When you hear the word ‘infusion,’ what comes to mind? A hospital gown? Needles? Doctors and nurses hovering over you in a cold hospital room? Sometimes your associations with certain words can deter you altogether from considering new experiences – especially if those associations elicit fear. 

After Doing Yoga, You Might Just Feel Better

What is it about practicing yoga that leaves you feeling relaxed, at peace, and just better? Or, less angry? Less sad? Was it because you were physically separated from your phone for more than 30 minutes during waking hours? Or, that you gave yourself permission to let go of that thing, that person, or that fear you hold onto for dear life, for an hour? Was it the simple act of moving your body while also breathing that left you feeling that good?

Depression: A Global Problem

This year, the World Health Organization launched a global campaign on depression, called “Depression: let’s talk”. According to the WHO website, “The goal of the campaign is that more people with depression, everywhere in the world, both seek and get help. Depression is the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide. More than 300 million people are now living with depression, an increase of more than 18% between 2005 and 2015.” If the World Health Organization is devoting an entire year to educating the public on the importance of talking about depression, it’s a problem!