Author: Michelle Levins, NP

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What it’s Like to Experience a Ketamine Infusion

Launching the Ketamine Program  at Blum Center for Health with Dr. Danielle Greenman has been one of the most profound and exciting moments in my career as a Nurse Practitioner. When Dr. Greenman brought up the idea of bringing ketamine to Blum Center, I instantly became excited because I knew how life-changing ketamine can be.

We have seen some incredible results in our patients and overwhelmingly people have had a positive or productive experience. Ketamine is a wonderful option for so many reasons:

 

  1. Rapid Onset of Action: Ketamine is known for its rapid onset of action, often providing relief from symptoms such as anxiety, depression, rumination, low self-esteem etc. within hours or days, as opposed to weeks or months it can take for traditional antidepressants to become effective.
  2. Different mechanism of action: Ketamine acts on the glutamate system in the brain, which is different from the mechanisms of action of most other antidepressants (which primarily affect serotonin and norepinephrine). This unique action makes ketamine a great alternative or add-on for those who do not feel optimized on their current treatment.
  3. Neuroplasticity: Ketamine enhances neuroplasticity, which is the brain’s ability to adapt and reorganize itself. This can help people form new, more adaptive neural pathways and thought patterns.
  4. Greater mind body connection: The altered state of consciousness during the infusion leads to a heightened sense of introspection and self-awareness. This leads to a deeper connection to thoughts and emotions. Ketamine opens the door to the unconscious mind and allows people to explore what is lying beneath the surface. Emotions, thoughts, or memories that are difficult to reach in everyday life or an ordinary state we often don’t connect to are easier to grasp and process during a ketamine infusion. This can facilitate a deeper understanding of your emotional or past experiences and promote a more profound connection between your emotional and physical states. Ketamine can create a deeper self-awareness of thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations that contributes to a stronger mind-body connection and a deeper sense of self.
  5. Reduction of suicidal thoughts: Ketamine has demonstrated the ability to rapidly reduce suicidal ideation. This could potentially be life-saving for those at high risk of self-harm or suicide.

 

It truly has been an honor to administer the ketamine infusions and walk alongside people on their journeys–a task that I do not take lightly. It is my mission to create as comfortable of an environment as possible to give people the safety they need to feel vulnerable and open to embrace anything that comes up in a non-ordinary state of consciousness similar to that of a deep meditation or hypnosis.

Before each infusion, I take a moment to set the intention of the experience with gentle reminders to start the journey off in a good headspace, where you are anchored to your body and have guidance for navigating the experience. Everyone is different and has different needs during the infusion and I honor whatever those needs may be. I take the time before someone starts their ketamine journey to make sure I understand how to best support them. 

There are things you can do to prepare to have the best experience during a ketamine infusion. 

How to prepare for a Ketamine Infusion at Blum Center for Health: 

  • Use the bathroom before you start the infusion
  • Wear comfortable clothes
  • Eat a light meal before
  • Bring an eye mask and blanket
  • Curate a playlist (we have a playlist for you if you need)
  • Communicate all needs 

Many people fear a “bad trip”. Dr. Greenman would say there is no such thing as a bad trip but rather our experience is shining a light on an area of the psyche that needs attention. What feels scary or dark to one may be exciting for another. That being said, when uncomfortable experiences present during a session either Dr. Greenman or myself will support you and help you find safety. Oftentimes what may have felt scary at first becomes enlightening. That being said, most people have joyous and happy experiences and do not experience anything uncomfortable at all. I am always amazed by the profound insights that people share at the end of the infusion and notice positive shifts in energy from when they first came in.

Every single person has dealt with something challenging in their lives and those are things we usually carry with us, whether we realize it or not. Ketamine leads to a greater understanding and connection to ourselves. We all have an organic inner healing intelligence and throughout the process, ketamine can help create a deeper sense of connection and understanding of this part of ourselves.  

Learn more about Ketamine Therapy and our offerings at Blum Center for Health.  If you’re curious about Ketamine Assisted Therapy and if it ‘s right for you, set up a consultation call with Michelle Levins, NP: call or text 914.652.7800.  

 

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Is NAD+ The Answer to Your Fatigue?

Back in August 2021 after a long COVID year, we relaunched our Infusion Program.  At Blum Center for Health, our goal has always been to bring you the most beneficial and cutting edge treatments that will help you achieve all your health and wellness goals. And now we are excited to once again offer you the Infusions that will help get you there.  We believe that specific IV treatments can work to improve your cellular function at the deepest levels in your body. This will not only help you with energy and cognitive function, but are part of the most cutting edge anti-aging therapeutics that are now hot on the market.

NAD+ is the most exciting addition to our infusion menu because the research showing the benefits of NAD+ infusions has exploded over the past few years. NAD+ is Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide and is a coenzyme found in every cell of your body.  It is essential for hundreds of metabolic processes mainly because it is required for your mitochondria to function well.  Your “mighty-chondria” are the little furnaces inside each and every cell that make energy (ATP) and without NAD+, the mitochondria can’t make ATP.  

Did you know that NAD+ levels can decrease up to 50% by ages 40-60?  This can explain why you can feel so tired even if you have a great diet and live an overall healthy lifestyle. Getting NAD+ intravenously is the best way to increase your levels because it bypasses the GI tract so it is 100% bioavailable to be fully absorbed by your cells.  And receiving your NAD+ drip at Blum Center will ensure you’re benefiting from the highest quality and dosage of infusions. Compared to other centers, our starting dose of NAD+ is at 500 mg, whereas at other centers, that is the highest dose offered.  

Our patients have seen many benefits of NAD+ Infusion Therapy, including:

  • Improved mental clarify 
  • Better mood because NAD+ naturally increases dopamine and serotonin 
  • Improved sleep 
  • Waking up feeling rested with sustained energy all day
  • Boosting metabolism
  • Clearing up of skin issues (hives)
  • Treatment after COVID to prevent long COVID
  • Recovery from long COVID 
  • Recovery from LYME

What to Expect When You Receive NAD+ Infusion Therapy

Although it can take 3-5 hours to infuse, NAD+ is a very well tolerated infusion. We initiate the infusion very slowly and slowly increase the rate every 15-20 minutes to find the speed that works best for you. We do this because infusing NAD+ too quickly can cause GI upset.  It’s different for everyone, but the average is around 3 hours. We block off 5 hours for your first infusion to give us time to tailor the treatment to your needs and comfort level. With our comfortable recliners, WiFi, complimentary drinks & snacks, and privacy, you can make the most of your time at Blum Center so those three hours will fly by!

How many NAD+ drips will you need to see positive effects?  While everyone is different, We recommend starting with an infusion every other week for four infusions and then monthly infusions for maintenance. But even one infusion can make a real difference!

Say goodbye to your fatigue by booking an NAD+ infusion today!

Text or Call 914-652-7800 to schedule an appointment or use our convenient online scheduling platform.  Our Infusion Director, Michelle Levins, NP, is standing by to answer all your questions.

 

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How Infusions Can Protect You from Covid and Post Covid Infections

I’m sure we all know a handful of people who got Covid from this most recent surge. Whether you just had it or have “dodged the bullet” for the last two years,  it’s getting harder and harder to avoid it now.  The good news?  If you are vaccinated and not immunocompromised, you are unlikely to experience a severe illness that will put you in the hospital. Phew! But what this DOES mean, is that we all must focus on keeping our immune systems as healthy and strong – especially post Covid infection. Because COVID is here to stay (something called becoming “endemic”), a healthy and robust immune system is our best defense.  This is true for the flu and other infections too, not just COVID.

Which brings us to the next big question. Is there anything more you can be doing? While infusions will not prevent you from getting Covid, our Boost Immunity Infusion can greatly increase the levels of vitamins, minerals and amino acids that you need to help your immune system fight an infection and helps increase the odds that you have a mild illness and recover quickly if you do get sick.  

The Boost Immunity infusion is all about priming the immune system to function optimally. 

It is packed with high doses of nutrients to really make a difference:

B Complex: contains B1, B2, B3, B5, & B6 to help the mitochondria in all your cells function better and make energy.  This of course includes your immune system cells.

Vitamin C: a potent antioxidant, high doses of vitamin C helps your immune system work better and also has direct antiviral activity.  

Zinc: a mineral that boosts the immune system by decreasing the production of inflammatory cytokines, and has direct antiviral activity.

Selenium: powerful antioxidant that decreases inflammatory markers & boosts the immune system by lowering oxidative stress and inflammation.  Also a strong protector of the Thyroid gland.

Magnesium: an electrolyte that is needed to keep your nervous system and muscles functioning properly & keep your body balanced and relaxed. Can also help provide pain relief (headaches) and help with sleep.

B12: essential for all biochemistry and body functions that involve methylation, including production of red blood cells, DNA synthesis, neurotransmitters, liver detox, and maintaining health of the nervous system.  As we age, it is harder to absorb B12 from the gut, another reason to regularly get B12 by infusion.

Lysine: directly inhibits replication of certain viruses from the Herpesvirus family.

The Post Covid Infusion:  

For those of you who are recovering after having COVID, we recommend a series of (4) Post Covid Infusions, once a week.  Dr. Blum created this protocol to help your mitochondria and antioxidant system recover after the battle with the virus.  We believe this infusion is a great idea after being sick, whether or not you have Long Covid symptoms, which most commonly include severe fatigue and brain fog, and persistent inflammation.  This post Covid infusion will help you clear the virus out of your body, calm inflammation, and support your mitochondria, and your immune and antioxidant systems.  If you do have Long Covid, you will probably want to continue until you are fully recovered.

Our newest protocol created by Dr. Blum, includes three infusion bags and an injection.  The protocol was created to target those systems that are damaged from COVID, specifically the mitochondria (little furnace in every cell that makes energy), and severe depletion of antioxidants (which protect the mitochondria, immune system and the functioning of all organs and systems).  All items are available a la carte, but bundled together gives you a 20% discount.

 

  1. Bag #1:  Mito Recovery:  The first IV bag we call our Mito Recovery (Mito for mitochondria), which is the Boost Immunity IV at its core, but with added NAC and Acetyl L-Carnitine.  The mitochondria are often severely damaged after COVID infection.  
    1. N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC): Boosts the immune system, increases Glutathione (antioxidant), decreases viral replication, & reduces inflammation.  
    2. Acetyl L-Carnitine: Boosts mitochondria function and energy production. 
  2. Bag #2:  Alpha Lipoic Acid: Powerful antioxidant to help prevent oxidative-stress related damage to all your cells and mitochondria, especially the brain and nervous system
  3. Bag #3:  Glutathione: Powerful antioxidant that decreases inflammation and clears free radicals caused by oxidative stress, especially important for immune and mitochondria  function.  Powerfully protects the Thyroid and other tissues from damage.  Can help relieve respiratory symptoms by decreasing inflammation and mucus in lungs. Crucial support for liver detoxification and clearing heavy metals.  
  4. Injection: CoQ10: required for optimal functioning of the mitochondria which are damaged from COVID.  Also supports the immune system and decreases the release of inflammatory cytokines. Depleted levels of CoQ10 have been linked to increased susceptibility to infection.

Alpha Lipoic Acid, Glutathione, & CoQ10 can be added on to the Boost Immunity or any other infusion by request. If you have further questions about how our Boost Immunity & Post Covid Infusions can help you through this latest Covid surge, call or text 914-652-7800.  Click here for more information on our Infusion Center at Blum Center for Health.

Stay safe & be well.