
By Kevin Nicholson, COO of Delic and CEO of Ketamine Wellness Centers
Americans spent $225 billion on mental health treatments and services in 2019, but nearly half the people using antidepressants recorded a relapse in symptoms. During that time, ketamine has become an increasingly popular and effective breakthrough mental health treatment.The first clinical studies of ketamine as human anesthesia were published in 1966. Ketamine produced profound analgesic effects, but it could not avoid negative stigmas towards psychedelics created by the War on Drugs. In 1970 psychedelics were classified as a Schedule I substance through the US Controlled Substances Act, which significantly hindered ketamine clinical research and treatments.