If you’re living with treatment-resistant depression, or major depression with suicidal thoughts or actions, there is hope. Spravato®, a prescription nasal spray approved by the FDA in 2019, can help you feel better and get your life back.
Mental health and wellness specialists Ginni Orava, MSN, FNP-C, and Kamee Witts, RN, BSN, at Renew Infusions of Gilbert, Arizona, offer innovative and cutting-edge treatments for chronic pain, addiction, anxiety, and depression.
For the 17 million adults affected by depression, each day can feel like a never-ending struggle. While traditional antidepressant medications ease symptoms of depression in many people, they don’t work for everyone.
For people whose depression is severe or persists despite treatment with conventional medicine, it may seem as if there’s nowhere to turn. Spravato is a new kind of medication that works differently than conventional antidepressant medications. It’s shown to ease symptoms in adults with treatment-resistant depression.
What is Spravato?
Spravato contains the drug esketamine, a chemical relative of ketamine. It’s a treatment option when you have depression that fails to improve after treatment with at least two traditional antidepressants.
Spravato is available only at certified clinics and is unlike conventional antidepressants. It comes as a nasal spray and acts on the glutamatergic system in the brain. As an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, Spravato puts the breaks on excitatory amino acids in the brain and increases dopamine, a mood-regulating brain chemical.
Eases symptoms after just one dose
Unlike traditional antidepressants that take several weeks to start working, Spravato is shown to effectively relieve the symptoms of treatment-resistant depression after the first dose. The rapid onset means you start to feel better quickly after beginning treatment. This is a breakthrough in depression treatment.
During the introduction phase, Spravato is administered twice a week for four weeks, followed by once a week for four weeks. After that, your provider will determine a maintenance dose. The typical maintenance dose is once a week or once every two weeks.
Combination treatment
Spravato is approved for use in combination with an oral antidepressant. In clinical studies, patients who experienced improvements in depressive symptoms took Spravato along with at least one conventional antidepressant medication. Spravato is administered under the supervision of a health care provider.
Comprehensive treatment program
Spravato works best as part of a comprehensive treatment program. Patients who experience the most relief take Spravato as part of a treatment regimen that includes an oral antidepressant and talk therapy.
It’s important to know that Spravato isn’t meant to be a stand-alone treatment where you take it and then you’re fine. However, as part of a comprehensive treatment plan, Spravato can help quickly ease major depressive symptoms so you feel and function better.
Hope for treatment-resistant depression
Spravato rapidly reverses symptoms of treatment-resistant depression, giving hope to people with major depression that hasn’t responded to other medications. If you’re struggling with depression despite treatment with conventional antidepressants, Spravato may be an option for you.
To learn more, call our office to schedule an appointment. Prospective and existing patients can also book an appointment online. We’re standing by to help you reclaim your happiness.