As with other hallucinogens, ketamine’s psychological effects are unpredictable, being somewhat dependent on the individual user. The physical effects, however, are quite consistent. Ketamine begins to take effect about four to five minutes after injection or ten to fifteen minutes if swallowed in pill form. Initial effects include increased heart rate, elevated blood pressure, difficulty speaking, and loss of coordination. For all its similarities to other hallucinogens, in one way, ketamine is unique: If a large dose is taken, muscle rigidity, respiratory distress, paralysis, cardiac distress, coma, and even death can result.

These dangerous effects of ketamine are rooted in the fact that the drug was originally developed in the 1960s as an anesthetic for use on small animals. At the time, veterinarians were experiencing a high rate of death among animals on which they were operating. For the most part, this was because available anesthetics often caused the animals to stop breathing. As a consequence, researchers began looking for drugs capable of anesthetizing small animals without impairing their respiratory systems. Ketamine was the product of this research, and in 1962 was introduced to veterinarians with great success.

The success of ketamine in cutting death rates among small animals caught the attention of pediatricians, who saw the same need for an anesthetic that would be safe for children. By 1965, ketamine had been approved for use on small children and was hailed by pediatricians as safe and effective.

Thanks to the drug’s apparent safety, ketamine’s use as an anesthetic continued to expand. During the late stages of the Vietnam War, ketamine became a commonly used anesthetic on the battlefield because it could be administered relatively safely even by nonmedical personnel. This was because an accidental overdose large enough to kill the patient was much less likely to occur than with more potent anesthetics. These wounded soldiers were the first large pool of adults to experience the effects of ketamine, and their stories of hallucinations and mysterious out-of-body experiences caught many medical professionals by surprise.

Word spread of these side effects, and by the 1980s, ketamine’s reputation as a hallucinogen and producer of near-death experiences was becoming known throughout Europe as well as America. As a consequence, its use as a recreational drug grew. Recreational users would go to the veterinarian supply companies and purchase the liquid form of ketamine, which they often injected to produce a stronger reaction than snorting the powder form.

Near-Death Experiences

Research scientists and psychiatrists are intrigued by claims of near-death experiences (NDEs). They have heard many NDE claims in which people have described crossing over into the next life, seeing a white light, and talking to God. Researchers conduct studies to determine the nature of near-death experiences and what occurs in the brain to create them.

Most researchers believe their studies support the conclusion that near-death experiences have no spiritual basis. For example, in England, Dr. Karl Jansen has successfully induced NDEs by administering doses of ketamine to volunteers. Jansen’s research has focused on the connection between NDEs and elevated levels of serotonin, and his experiments have documented significant increases in serotonin while his volunteers are in the midst of their near-death experiences.

Michael A. Persinger, a neuroscientist at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Canada, has induced many of the characteristics of an NDE by electrically stimulating the brain’s right temporal lobe, the area responsible for perception. In March 1997, an article in U.S. News& World Report quoted Persinger as saying that ‘There’s nothing magical about the NDE.”

Sherwin Nuland, author of How We Die, believes near-death experiences are caused by opiatelike compounds known as endorphins, which are released by the brain at times of great stress to deaden pain and alleviate fear. Nuland disagrees with those who view NDEs as a temporary bridge to an afterlife: “I think that the mind is just trying to save itself from the horror of unbelievable trauma.”

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