Ketamine
Effects
DURATION #
Caution : Reactions and experiences may vary dramatically from person to person. [see below]
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EFFECTS LIST #
POSITIVE
- Pleasant mental and/or body high
- Increase in energy
- Euphoria
- Sense of calm and serenity
- Meaningful spiritual experiences
- Enhanced sense of connection with the world (beings or objects)
- Reduced or eliminated acute pain. ^
- Visual, dream-like, visionary, and/or hallucinatory ideations.
NEUTRAL
-
(may be experienced as positive, negative or neutral depending on circumstance)
- Distortion or loss of sensory perceptions (common)
- Closed- and open-eye visuals (common)
- Dissociation of mind from body
- Analgesia, numbness
- Ataxia (loss of motor coordination)
- Significant change in perception of time
- Increase in heart rate
- Slurred speech
- Confusion, disorientation
- Out-of-body experience
- Shifts in perception of reality
- "K-hole"; intense mind-body dissociation, out-of-body experiences, highly realistic visuals
- Complete unconsciouness, sedation at high doses
NEGATIVE
-
(negative side effects increase with higher doses and frequent use)
- Risk of psychological dependency
- Nasal discomfort upon insufflation
- Discomfort, pain or numbness at injection site (with IM)
- Severe confusion, disorganised thinking
- Paranoia and egocentrism (with regular use)
- Nausea, vomiting
- Visual, dream-like, visionary, and/or hallucinatory ideations.
- Frightening or untimely distortion or loss of sensory perception
- Susceptibility to accidents (from uncoordination and change in perception of body and time)
- Severe dissociation, depersonalisation
- Loss of consciousness (dangerous or fatal in wrong circumstances)
- Depression of heart rate and respiration (risk increases with increased dose or when combined with depressants)
- See Ketamine and Health for more information.
DESCRIPTION #
The effects of sub-anaesthetic doses of ketamine are generally reported to be pleasant, though if they are unexpectedly intense, they can be distressing. A well-known effect of ketamine at higher-range doses is the "K-hole", where the user is removed from reality and set adrift in an introspective dream-like world, often involving complete dissociation, immersive visuals and out-of-body experiences. At higher doses, the user can be incapacitated and unresponsive, or uncoordinated and erratic, appearing unwell to the uninitiated eye. Nausea and vomiting may also be present.
While ketamine is not known to be physically addictive, prolonged use could be tolerance-building as well as leading to psychological dependency.
While ketamine is not known to be physically addictive, prolonged use could be tolerance-building as well as leading to psychological dependency.
EXPERIENCE EXCERPTS #
[insufflated, repeated] "[...] it was like I was pushed back a bit out of reality, making everything feel distant and even slightly unreal, typical dissociation. Everything seemed to be in a different angle, including myself. Also a certain unique visual distortion was noted, some grain and especially in the dark things seem to pull / slide in certain directions while never actually truly leaving their place. I often also physically feel this pulling and sliding too, especially if dosage increases, eventually if the dosage is high enough I will slide out of reality entirely, but this time the dose wasn't high enough for that so I would just feel like I floated around a bit, feeling unattached from my body the world and even certain parts of the mind." -- Exp 89492
CAUTION & DISCLAIMER #
Erowid's effects information is a summary of data gathered from users, research, and other resources. This information is intended to describe the range of effects people report experiencing. Effects may vary dramatically from one person to another or one experience to another based on a variety of factors such as body chemistry, age, gender, physical health, dose, form of material, etc.
REFERENCES #
- CESAR. Ketamine. University of Maryland Center for Substance Abuse Research. Accessed Oct 2007.
- Various Authors. Erowid Experience Vaults Ketamine Reports. Accessed Oct 2007.
- Karlow N, Schlaepfer CH, Stoll CRT, Doering M, Carpenter CR, Colditz GA, Motov S, Miller J, Schwarz ES. "A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Ketamine as an Alternative to Opioids for Acute Pain in the Emergency Department" Acad Emerg Med. 2018 Jul 18.