Touchstones Rehab

Ketamine

At lower doses, ketamine acts a weak stimulant. When dosage increases, ketamine hits users as an intense psychedelic. As a dissociative drug, ketamine causes users to feel painlessness by impeding messages between the brain and body. Ketamine distorts perception and users often experience an effect known as "the K-hole" at high doses, where the reality of a user involves abstracted thought and pseudo-spiritual experiences. In fact, many ketamine users report depersonalization and de-realization, causing out-of-body or near death experiences. While some ketamine users find these dissociative effects pleasant, others experience them as a deep sense of loneliness or emptiness. Hallucinations, both visual and auditory, can also take place during a ketamine trip. Ketamine trips do not tend to lend themselves to social interaction at high doses, but are introspective experiences as users withdraw into themselves. Within 10 to 20 minutes, the effects of ketamine become discernable for users. Muscle paralysis sets in, making it difficult to move. Ketamine users often fall into a "trance" state, finding themselves encountering difficulty speaking and cognitively processing. Ketamine trips are short lived, lasting between 45 minutes and an hour and a half, depending on tolerance. Users often feel drained and exhausted after a ketamine trip and muscle aches often tend to set in as users come down from a ketamine high. Ketamine users experience temporary paralysis of the muscles, loss of physical coordination and become prone to accidental falls and injuries. Research studies indicate that ketamine addiction can lead to brain damage, particularly the formation of vacuoles, also known as "Olney’s lesions." Ketamine use does not usually result in overdoses from self-administered use, largely because unconsciousness sets in before the body reaches the level of overdose. However, if ketamine a user intakes ketamine from a third party, overdose can occur if dosage continues after loss of consciousness.

Metabolic Syndrome and Weight

The metabolic syndrome is a group of risk factors related to obesity for coronary heart disease and diabetes. A person has the metabolic syndrome if he or she has three or more of the following risk factors: A large waistline. For men, this means a waist measurement of 40 inches or more and for women, it means a waist measurement of 35 inches or more; high triglycerides or taking medication to treat high triglycerides. A triglyceride level of 150 mg/dL or higher is high; Low levels of HDL good cholesterol or taking medications to treat low HDL. For men, low HDL cholesterol is below 40 mg/dL. For women, it is below 50 mg/dL; High blood pressure or taking medications to treat high blood pressure. High blood pressure is 130 mm Hg or higher for systolic blood pressure the top number or 85 mm Hg or higher for diastolic blood pressure the bottom number; High fasting blood glucose sugar or taking medications to treat high blood sugar. This means a fasting blood sugar of 100 mg/dL or higher.
A person with metabolic syndrome has approximately twice the risk for coronary heart disease and five times the risk for Type 2 diabetes. It is estimated that 27 percent of American adults have the metabolic syndrome.
The metabolic syndrome relates to obesity, especially abdominal obesity. Other risk factors that affect metabolic syndrome are physical inactivity, insulin resistance, genetics and old age.
Obesity is a risk factor for the metabolic syndrome because it raises blood pressure and triglycerides, lowers good cholesterol and contributes to insulin resistance. Excess fat around the abdomen carries even higher risks.
It may be possible to prevent the metabolic syndrome with weight management and physical activity. For patients who already have the syndrome, losing weight and being physically active may help prevent or delay the development of diabetes, coronary heart disease or other complications.
Individuals who are overweight or obese and who have the metabolic syndrome should aim to lose 10 percent of their body weight and do at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity every day. Doctors also advise that people quit smoking, eat healthfully and take prescription medications for conditions such as high blood pressure or low HDL cholesterol.