KETAMINE HYDROCHLORIDE FAQ PAGE
The following is an early draft of a FAQ concerning recreational use
of
Ketamine Hydrochloride. The authors of this FAQ in no way condone
or
suggest the use of Ketamine in anyway contrary to its intended use
nor do
they condone any illegal behaviors. The following was compiled
from
reference information and the anecdotes of those who have used Ketamine
and
is neither considered to be without flaw nor is it intended to be a
guide to
use, and the authors are not responsible in anyway for misinterpretations
or misuse of Ketamine as a result of reading this material.
This
information may be shared as an educational document provided this
disclaimer is included and the contents of the FAQ are delivered intact.
*****WARNING: In the rave and club scene these days, especially in
Europe, a
substance is often sold under the names of Special K or Ketamine.
This
substance more often than not is Ketamine mixed with several other
drugs,
among which may be heroin, coke, or ecstasy. Any combination
of drugs with
ketamine is extremely dangerous and has minimum psychedelic value.
The
following FAQ is concerned only with use of pure Ketamine Hydrochloride
and
any major deviations in experience contrary to this listing often involve
use of mixed substances. It is strongly encouraged that Ketamine
or Speci
al K not be obtained, and especially not used in club settings. *****
Drug: Ketamine Hydrochloride
Street
Names: K, Ket, Ketamine, Special K, Vitamin K
Brief: Ketamine is an anaesthetic used primarily for veterinary
purposes.
Ketamine blocks nerve paths without depressing respiratory and
circulatory functions, and therefore acts as a safe and reliable
anaesthetic. It is commonly injected intramuscularly, but can
also be
taken orally and nasal pharyngealically. Ketamine is only available
to
physicians, and is not commonly sold as an illicit drug, and is
scheduled in several states. The most common trade name for
Ketamine are Ketaset and Ketalar, which are intramuscular
veterinary Ketamine HCls.
Chemistry: 2-(2-Chlorophenyl1)-(methylamino)-cyclohexanone
hydrochloride
M.W. - 274.2 C13H16CINO-HCL
LD50 (IPR-MUS): 400 mg/kg, LD50 (IVN-MUS): 77 mg/kg.
white solid - melting point 266*C - non-flammable.
Solubility: water 20g/100ml
References: Merck Index, 11th Ed., No. 5174
Anis, N.A., Berry, S.C., Burton, N.R., Lodge, D. "The dissociative
anaesthetics, ketmine and phencyclidine, selevtively reduce excitation
of central mammalian neurones by N-methyl aspartate." Br. J.
Pharmacol 79, 565 (1983).
Psychedelic Indications:
Ketamine does not treat music so well. Expect a narrowing
of your
auditory bandwidth. Music will sound neat but not correct and
not
transcending. You will selectively lose frequencies. Use
mellow music with
a psychedelic flavor, and keep the volume less than loud because your
perception of overall volume will increase. Visual hallucinations
are most
notable in low light. Touch is exceptional. Smells and
tastes will be
nulled. Do not expect to talk, although you may. Expect
general reflection
but not exceptional emotionality.
Dosage: Due to its anaesthetic nature, K can produce wide ranging effects
from
different amounts. There seems to be a crucial line where the
patient
will lose grasp of his/her primary senses, and this will be termed
a
Line Dose. A further line exists where the patient will lose
complete
consciousness. In general, boosting is not adequate and it does
not
seem worthwhile to boost the original dose more than ten minutes
after initial dose. General tolerance is appreciable and several
weeks
between uses are required to return to original tolerance. For
most
types, effects are linear with dose, and good experience can be had
at
low dosages.
Oral Dose:
A Line Dose is about 2.0 mg/lb. body mass. Anaesthetic
doses are
above 4.0 mg/lb. A maximum oral dose of 3 mg/lb. should be set
for
adequate recovery. Above line dose, increasing doses yield little
psychedelic advantage except for greater temporary memory loss.
A
good first dose is 300-350 mg for average weight woman, and 350-375
mg for average weight men. A minimum dose of 150-175 mg will
give
a good psychedelic experienxe.
IM Dose:
Intramuscular doses begin at perhaps .4 mg/lb. for a Line Dose.
Anaesthetic doses to IM are about 1 mg/lb. Two injections should
be
made instead of one. Sterility of the bottle and needle are imperative.
100 mg seems to be a good IM dose for everyone. Expect soreness
in
the injection region for several days or weeks.
IV Dose:
I do not recommend IV doses but have read reports of successful
IV
dosing. In the IV case you will probably lose motor control before
you
finish injecting so beware.
Nasal Dose:
Nasal doses are highly unlinear next to oral and IM doses. The
effects
are quite different as well at low doses. At Line Doses, oral
consumption is probably a better bet than nasal doses. A Line
Dose
nasally would again be about 1.8-2.0 mg/lb. A minimum dose nasally
would be about 1 mg/lb, but will be short and much different from a
comparable oral dose. 200 mg would be a good starter for most
weights. Ketamine is relatively comfortable in the nasal region.
Prep: IV and IM require fully sterile Ket bottle and needle.
Powder for
nasal use can be gotten from gentle boiling off of solution.
To prepare
an oral dose from a powder, place powder in a cup and pour about 1
cm of hot water (tap should be ok) in it and stir to solution.
Fill
remainder of cup with an acid such as orange juice.
Setting:
As with all anaesthetics, Ketamine will make the patient nauseaous
to
varying degrees, directly related to dosage. Therefore, the patient
should find him/herself in a place where he/she can stay for several
hours, with most ammenities close at hand (any movement will
compound nauseau). A non-Ketting person is a great help, and
will
be fun to talk to, and convenient for changing music, etc. Darkness
will eliminate some very strange visual experiences. Music is
very
powerful. Warmth can also be important, as although your
respiratory system will not be depressed, you may become cold from
inactivity. A blanket is a good idea. Dope should be handy
for
nauseau, and a bucket should be available as a precaution. Vomitting
should be rare, but in the case, it is not a good idea to have to travel
to
the bathroom. You should try to make sure that your co-trippers
start when you do, as it is a rapid starting drug. Nasal doses
can
usually accomodate real scenes, i.e. clubs or company, but expect
things to be very strange.
Timing: Taken intramuscularly, Ketamine will bring you up quickly in
less
than two minutes. Orally, with a medium-full stomach, expect
15-20
minutes, and as little as five minutes on an empty stomach. Nasal
doses allow 5-10 minutes. The acceleration is great but not alarming.
Expect to be semi-unconscious on a Line-Dose for about an hour
intramuscualrly, and slightly longer when taken orally. You will
come
down quickly as well past the first line, and will begin to assimilate
senses over about an half-hour. When taken orally, a soft trip
will
linger for approximately 2-3 hours after that and can be lots of fun.
You will feel light, lanky, and queasy for several hours, and may be
somewhat light-headed, though not incapacable the following day.
Nitrous has had success in bringing Ketamine down quickly, despite
its anaesthetic nature.
The Trip:
Before reaching the first line, fragmentation will occur- the
world will
begin to spin, but it won't be dizzying. Music will become
fragmented. Chaos will ensue. At some point, you will find
yourself
complete removed from your surroundings and your body.
Descriptions of the post-line experience vary substantially, but most
include talk of alternate planes of existence, oneness, past and future
revelations, and strange fabrics of all sorts. It will be very
difficult to
communicate at this point, and you probably will not be able to see
or
hear others in the room. Some revelations will be extremely heavy
and some scary, but that fear does not seem to come back with you
and is therefore difficult to describe as scary. You will probably
find
yourself coming back across the line again visibly, attempting to put
an object in focus or define it. It is at this point that you
will likely
want to get in touch with your co-trippers. This is the "Wow"
period.
It is very important here that you do not try to move for awhile.
The
trip will continue mildly for an hour or so after this, with more
conventional focuses.
Precautions:
An overdose of Ketamine will knock you out as if in an operating
room. This would prove to be a waste of a tripping experience,
and
will probably make you ill to your stomach. The danger dosage
is
much higher however, at 10 mg/lb. Interactively, Ketamine should
not be used with respiratory depressants, primarily alcohol,
barbituates, and Valium. Ketamine has been used with no ill
interactive effects with dope, acid, nitrous, dextromethorphan, and
MDMA, although no combinations are recommended and are highly
unnecessary given the totality of ketamine. It does not have
a build-
on effect with halucinagins and will generally overpower other drugs.
Nitrous in the up and down periods can be effective. Unpracticed
trippers may be overpowered by the awesome revelations of Ketamine
and may be somewhat overwhelmed, although in general fear seems to
be unable to compound here (such as in an LSD trip or with other
drug paranoias) and will probably be only episodic. Food should
not
be consumed within an hour and one-half before the trip, and should
be avoided for longer periods of time if possible. A peculiar
sort of
loneliness can occur over the line, so it is a good idea to stay in
close
quarters with people you are close with, and best to have a sober
monitor or experienced Ketter at hand.
Trips by Dose
Doses that do not push one over the consciousness line can be
very fun
if you get close. In general, a 150 mg minimum would be required
to
realize an effect. Under that amount, you will only feel a very
operable up and down over about an half-hour that will give you no
insight into Ketamine. At higher doses, the up will last longer,
but in
less than linear fashion. In general it seems that oral doses
last longer.
Trips over 450 mg. can be severe on the stomach and have rapidly
diminishing returns over lower doses, and are therefore not
recommended, although 450 mg. itself is a very sound and powerful
trip.
Reports:
A number of sources claim Vitamin K to be a boring drug.
Some
complain that it removes you so completely from your body that it is
difficult to even work with. Others have found Vit K to be very
potent and
shapable, an experience that can be tailormade by dosage and setting.
There
is little question that there is no comparable experience on any other
drugs. Most agree that it has a good to very good recovery with
little
negative effect on the following day and mild hangover. Setting
is agreed
to be crucial. Most agree that Ketamin not be used by inexperienced
trippers unless they want a complete out-of-body experience that is
sure to
change their life.