Dr. Ben Yudkoff, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer at Lumin Health, hosted a Reddit AMA on r/TherapeuticKetamine community on March 6th, 2026\. The below blog post is a recap of one of the questions presented on that AMA, syndicated to the Lumin Health blog in the event that it answers any questions about ketamine therapy, Spravato treatment, or general concerns you may have about treatment.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/TherapeuticKetamine/comments/1rj2blv/ama\_im\_dr\_ben\_yudkoff\_psychiatrist\_cofounder/](https://www.reddit.com/r/TherapeuticKetamine/comments/1rj2blv/ama_im_dr_ben_yudkoff_psychiatrist_cofounder/)
Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if you’re interested in learning more about ketamine for depression at Lumin Health. Thank you once again to the moderators and community members for facilitating such an engaging discussion.
Captgnarley asks:
Started my ketamine journey with IV in a clinic. Doctors there were shocked at my tolerance and I’ve continued to use ketamine but have switched to IM at home and also have to use a fairly large dose to arrive at the area where I feel work can be accomplished. I understand you can only advise to a certain extent. My dilemma first is that I’d prefer to take less but want to achieve an effective dose. Is there a compound that could be added to make ketamine more effective thus needing less? I’ve tried combining with THC and 2CB on different sessions with no noticeable improvement.
Answer from Dr. Ben Yudkoff, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Lumin Health:
CaptGnarley, thanks for the question. You are touching on so many important points in treatment: to what extent does the dissociative state of ketamine contribute to its efficacy? How do I advocate for myself with my ketamine prescriber while also recognizing that there are limits beyond which a prescriber is uncomfortable? Can ketamine be combined with other medicines to enhance its efficacy? What risks are there in combinations with other medications and other substances? Let’s start first with a statement of caution: I would not recommend combining ketamine with THC or 2CB. Most importantly, there’s no evidence that such an approach is effective and it introduces variables for which the safety is entirely unknown. Let’s follow it up with a question: have you spoke with your providers about why you want to take a lower dose of ketamine? If it is because of side effects, please note that some side effects can be treated. And another: Have you spoken with your providers about what you’re looking for in a ketamine treatment and build a plan around it? There’s no compound to my knowledge that can be added to ketamine to enhance its antidepressant properties. There’s nothing in the literature that confirms evidence suggesting that a particular compound, when combined with ketamine, enhances efficacy. Likewise, there’s nothing coming through in conversation with my patients that would also suggest such a compound. When it comes to these sorts of questions, I rely on some old fashioned, common-sense approaches that might help out: getting a good night sleep the evening prior to treatment is important. Avoiding alcohol (which can interfere with glutamate) or other substances prior to treatment is a good idea. Incorporating a good playlist for the treatment is some good, positive planning. Getting some exercise on the dosing mornings to get the body and mind prepared and relaxed can’t hurt. I don’t know of anything in particular that can help you keep the dose low and still effective, but please consider keeping an open conversation with your providers around your treatment goals and, to the extent possible, keep the treatment days healthy and in a prepared state for the treatment, itself.
