Nitrous oxide is an NMDA receptor antagonist, it creates a ‘journey’ during treatment, it appears to work in a similar way to ketamine, and it may be useful for treatment-resistant depression and anxiety.
Clinical use of nitrous oxide inhalation treatments for mental health is pretty rare, although it has been studied for more than a decade. The research is limited but promising and supports what we know about the way nitrous oxide works. The data from research, and our clinical experience, appear to show that nitrous oxide treatments are effective for addressing treatment-resistant depression.
Many patients discover nitrous oxide after going to a dentist for a procedure and feeling significant relief from their symptoms of depression and anxiety that persists after the procedure. Others come to nitrous oxide because they are interested in ketamine treatments but prefer some aspects of the nitrous treatments.
