Three years ago, Catherine Oxenberg, 61, overcame pain using the hallucinogenic tranquilizer ketamine.
… in early 2020 [Oxenberg]… found herself bedridden and overcome with pain: stabbing, radiating, excruciating pain that moved around her body seemingly at random. Her hands swelled, her feet went numb, her spine ached.
Unable to sleep, drive or even hold a toothbrush, she [made appointments with] …rheumatologists, neurologists and psychologists.
Doctors offered up a string of misdiagnoses — inflammatory arthritis, fibromyalgia, peripheral neuropathy, and pre-autoimmune disease, among others — and prescriptions for antidepressants and opioids that provided no relief.
“The thing with pain is that your life gets small really fast. It becomes part of your identity without you even realizing,” says Oxenberg, 61. “Everything is filtered through it. One doctor told me, ‘This becomes chronic pain after three months. Once the brain is wired, it can’t be unwired.’ It was like getting a death sentence.”
Then one doctor at UCLA “made a lifesaving connection between her past trauma and current agony.”
As Oxenberg remembers: “She told me, ‘For somebody who’s had the experiences you’ve had, you are a poster child for late-onset pain.’ ”
The theory — that a part of the brain will create physical discomfort in response to fear and repressed trauma as a coping mechanism and a “safer” alternative to addressing a more insidious mental or emotional threat — led Oxenberg to a second breakthrough, this time in November 2020 at the Bioreset clinic in Northern California.
Catherine took an intravenous dose of ketamine, an anesthetic with psychedelic properties, used by veterinarians for decades.
When humans use it, it induces a trance-like state, hallucinations, and pain relief.
It has been used as an illegal street drug for years, with names such as Special K, Donkey Dust, and Vitamin K – a single dose costing about $25 and lasting about an hour.
In recent years, medical doctors have been prescribing injections of ketamine for humans to treat depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) through intravenous infusion or nasal spray.
It is said to “rewire the brain” or, as doctors say, it encourages “neural plasticity,” so patients can address painful memories without triggering the brain’s fight-or-flight response.
Oxenberg described her experience after she had an injection:
“What I felt was the depth of relaxation, that every cell in my body just let go,” Oxenberg said. She also heard a voice from within herself who spoke to her:
“It said only I could heal myself because only I could connect all the dots of my experience — and I got it. And I never went back to despair.”
Catherine Oxenberg
Psychiatrist John Krystal said that “a single dose [of ketamine] can produce a lasting reduction in the brain of that traumatic memory [and] a weakening of the ability of that memory to produce distress.”
Oxenberg has had six intravenous treatments in the past two years, and periodically uses prescription ketamine lozenges.
Oxenberg, along with her daughter, India, 32, and Vicky Dulai, 47, has launched Healix 180.
Dulai is listed on the website as the Interim Executive Director. She is described as an independent psychedelic philanthropic consultant.
Vicky Dulai
Healix 180 is conducting 11-day retreats, called HEALIX IMMERSION, to “facilitate somatic release of trauma in the body” for “survivors of sexual trauma.”
The main feature of the retreats is that retreatants will get an injection of ketamine.
India at the first Healix 180 immersion
They will also be provided with methylation-support, NAD+, [nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), vitamin/mineral IV infusions, equine therapy, sound therapy, art therapy, biopsycho-social healing, yoga, and bodywork.
The 11-day retreat will be followed by six months of monitored group aftercare, which will provide ketamine lozenges to self-administer at home twice a week, provided that individuals attend group therapy twice a month.
Prospective candidates for the Immersion retreat will be tested:
The Adverse Child Experiences [ACE] survey, which is a set of questions about adverse experiences a person had during childhood, including physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, neglect, witnessing domestic violence or substance abuse, or having a family member incarcerated.
ACE will be followed up with:
Beck Depression Inventory, a self-report 21 multiple choice question test to assess depressive symptoms.
PTSD checklist, a self-report for symptoms such as intrusive thoughts, nightmares, avoidance behaviors, hyperarousal, and negative mood.
Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, which assesses symptoms of anxiety, such as tension, anxious mood, fears, and insomnia.
The Post Traumatic Growth Inventory, a self-report questionnaire that assesses:
Personal Strength: Increased personal strength, self-confidence, and a sense of empowerment.
Appreciation of Life: A greater appreciation for life and a focus on the present moment.
Relating to Others: Improved relationships and a deeper sense of connection with others.
New Possibilities: Recognition of new opportunities, possibilities, and a sense of personal growth.
Spiritual Change: Enhanced spiritual beliefs, a sense of meaning or purpose, and a deeper connection to something greater than oneself.
Mystical States Inventory, a self-report to assess:
Unity/Interconnectedness: Feelings of interconnectedness with others, nature, or the universe.
Transcendence of Time and Space: Experiences of timelessness and a sense of being outside of normal space.
Ineffability: Difficulty expressing the experience in words due to its profound nature.
Positive Mood: Heightened positive emotions, such as joy, peace, and awe.
Paradoxicality: Encountering contradictions or paradoxes that challenge ordinary logic.
Sacredness: Perception of the experience as sacred or deeply meaningful.
Noetic Quality: Sense of receiving deep insights or profound knowledge.
Walter Pahnke and Raymond D. Richards developed the Mystical Statea inventory in the 1960s as part of their research on the effects of psilocybin, a hallucinogenic compound found in certain mushrooms.
Catherine is one of 300 keynote speakers at the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies in Denver.
Catherine Oxenberg at the Healix 180 immersion
Catherine also plans to marry banker Ellis Jones in October.
For more info on the Catherine Oxenberg Foundation
Important Note:
It is always wise to use caution when dealing with psychedelics. Ketamine is a mind-altering drug that can cause vomiting, a panicked reaction, disorientation, or loss of mobility. Overdoses can be fatal and interactions with other drugs increase the risk tenfold.
Anyone prescribed ketamine at home should do so under the supervision of a therapist or sitter to ensure their safety, and that person should not also take ketamine at the same time.
