Health
Elon Musk reveals why he takes ketamine, denies abusing the drug: ‘I should keep taking it’
Elon Musk uses ketamine to boost his mental health, the billionaire said in a video interview that was streamed on YouTube on Monday.
When asked about drug use, Musk — the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX — answered, “There are times when I have sort of … a negative chemical state in my brain, like depression, I guess.”
He noted that he uses a “small amount once every other week.”
KETAMINE THERAPY SHOWN EFFECTIVE IN TREATING SEVERE DEPRESSION IN VETERANS, STUDY FINDS
“Ketamine is useful for getting one out of a negative frame of mind,” Musk went on, referring to his depression as “chemical tides” and saying it wasn’t “negative news.”
Musk also implied in the interview with former CNN anchor Don Lemon that his ketamine use is beneficial to his businesses.
Elon Musk uses ketamine to boost his mental health, the billionaire said in a video interview that was streamed on YouTube on Monday. (Getty Images/iStock)
He said that “from the standpoint of Wall Street, what matters is execution … From [the] investors’ standpoint, if there is something I’m taking, I should keep taking it.”
The owner of social media platform X added that he has posted about his ketamine use in the hope of helping people.
Musk also said that he obtains the ketamine via prescription from a medical doctor and that he does not abuse the drug.
WHAT IS KETAMINE, THE DRUG THAT KILLED MATTHEW PERRY?
“If you use too much ketamine, you can’t really get work done, and I have a lot of work,” he said.
This isn’t the first time Musk has discussed ketamine use.
In a post on X in June 2023, the entrepreneur stated, “From what I’ve seen with friends, ketamine taken occasionally is a better option.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Musk for further comment about his widely reported interview on Monday.
What to know about ketamine
Ketamine, a hallucinogenic anesthetic drug, was first approved in 1970 as an anesthetic for use by medical doctors and veterinarians.
Since then, ketamine has been shown to have powerful effects on the brain, particularly for people suffering from depression, according to Dr. William Prueitt, director of the Ketamine Treatment Program at Silver Hill Hospital in Connecticut.
The owner of the social media platform X added that he posted about his ketamine use in the hope of helping people. (Getty Images)
“There’s growing evidence that ketamine can be very effective for patients with depression who have not responded to other treatments,” Prueitt told Fox News Digital.
Ketamine is best suited for patients with moderate to severe depression who haven’t responded to other types of treatments or therapy, the doctor said.
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“These patients have what we call treatment-resistant depression, meaning they’ve tried at least two antidepressants (at sufficient doses and durations) that just haven’t worked,” he said.
Ketamine works differently from traditional antidepressants — it targets different neurotransmitters in the brain, Prueitt noted.
“There’s growing evidence that ketamine can be very effective for patients with depression who have not responded to other treatments.”
“That is one proposed reason why it’s often successful where other medications are not,” he said.
The drug can be administered in multiple ways, but the primary methods are by nasal spray (esketamine) or IV infusions (ketamine).
The drug can be administered in multiple ways, but the primary methods are by nasal spray (esketamine) or IV infusions (ketamine). (iStock)
“Ketamine provides rapid relief of symptoms, sometimes in as little as a few weeks,” said Prueitt.
“Patients can experience improved mood, renewed optimism and reduced negative thoughts.”
When administered in an “appropriate treatment setting” with an experienced medical team, ketamine is generally “very safe,” according to Prueitt.
There can be risks, however, when it’s given in unsupervised circumstances.
“Patients should not self-medicate and should only receive ketamine treatments after an appropriate psychiatric evaluation and medical screening,” he added.
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Rudy Giuliani reveals he had ‘spiritual experience’ while in pneumonia-related coma
Gabe Poirot says he ‘met Jesus’ during an 18-day coma
Kayleigh McEnany interviews Gabe Poirot, who shares his extraordinary near-death experience during an 18-day coma in October 2021. Poirot describes leaving his body, encountering Jesus, and witnessing how heaven is a person rather than a place. He also discusses his book, ’18 Days in Heaven,’ detailing his spiritual journey and message of hope.
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Rudy Giuliani, 81, is recovering from a severe case of viral pneumonia that led him into a coma in early May.
The former New York City mayor returned to his online talk show “America’s Mayor Live!” on May 13 and opened up about his health status.
“I feel like I’ve recovered 100%,” he said. “I’ve been home a few days and doing really, really well.”
RUDY GIULIANI OUT OF ICU, CONTINUING TO RECOVER IN HOSPITAL: ‘HE’S WINNING THIS FIGHT’
Giuliani reflected on his time in the hospital, revealing that he had a “very significant spiritual experience” while he was in a “state of out of it.”
“I would equate it to a dream of being on line headed for — I can’t say headed for heaven — headed for a trial with St. Peter,” he described.
Rudy Giuliani attends the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York City in September 2024. The former New York City mayor, 81, is recovering from a severe case of viral pneumonia that led him into a coma in early May. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
“And there was a very, very significant intervention by my Peter. I have my own Peter, Peter Powers. Peter J. Powers, my friend of my lifetime.”
During this dream state, Peter said some “very significant words,” which Giuliani made sure to repeat and have others record when he woke up, he shared.
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“As soon as I could, I wrote it out so that I wouldn’t forget it, and it’s meant a lot to me, and I’ve been reflecting on it quite a bit,” he added.
Giuliani was able to discuss his experience with a priest — and plans to share more at a different time.
“I don’t want to embellish it,” he said. “I don’t want to deny what was there.”
Powers and Giuliani reportedly became friends in high school. Powers later served as Giuliani’s campaign manager and his first deputy mayor. He died in 2016 at 72 years old from complications with lung cancer, according to multiple news outlets.
Giuliani was hospitalized in critical but stable condition on Sunday, May 3, due to severe breathing issues.
Giuliani’s doctor, Maria Ryan, told Fox News correspondent Danamarie McNicholl that the former mayor began feeling ill after returning from a trip to Paris, with his breathing deteriorating to the point that he was placed on a ventilator.
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Ryan said his condition turned critical, prompting a priest to be called to his bedside to perform last rites. But by Tuesday, Giuliani’s condition had improved enough for doctors to remove him from the ventilator.
According to political strategist Ted Goodman, Giuliani’s response and exposure to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks later led to a diagnosis of restrictive airway disease.
New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani stands with Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik and Emergency Management Director Richard Scheirer before dedicating a public viewing platform overlooking the World Trade Center attack site in New York on Dec. 29, 2001. (Kathy Willens/AP)
Although Giuliani and his doctors have not confirmed that he had a “near-death experience,” similar encounters are often reported by people emerging from critical medical situations.
In a 2023 review published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, researchers analyzed more than four decades of reports of near-death experiences, involving more than 2,000 studies and nearly 500 individuals.
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Near-death events were categorized into four types of experiences: emotional, cognitive, spiritual/religious and supernatural.
The research identified common traits in these reports – especially having out-of-body experiences, passing through a tunnel, having heightened senses, seeing deceased people or religious figures, encountering a bright light and reviewing life events.
A detailed view of the 19th century statue of Saint Peter the Apostle holding a gold key, symbolizing the key to heaven, located in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City, Rome. (iStock)
Although these experiences can differ by interpretation, the researchers concluded that the heightened senses and improved consciousness indicate that “these experiences are neither dreams nor sleep, nor the disorders caused.”
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“This phenomenon is medically inexplicable,” they wrote, adding that the research points to a consistent pattern that “supports the clarity and authenticity of near-death experiences.”
Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion contributed reporting.
Health
Micro-Walking Plan for Weight Loss: Harvard Doctor Calls It a ‘Wonder Drug’
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