It's Been a Minute Why do people use ketamine to party?
Oct 3, 2025
In this insightful conversation, journalist P.E. Moskowitz, author of *Breaking Awake*, explores the rising popularity of ketamine as a party drug. They discuss how low doses can alleviate social anxiety, making it appealing in club settings. P.E. and historian Benjamin Breen reveal the cultural shift in ketamine’s image from a solitary experience to a social, therapeutic one. They also address the growing recreational use, potential health risks, and why some are opting for ketamine over alcohol, painting a complex picture of modern mental health strategies.
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Dose Determines Ketamine's Effects
- Ketamine is a dissociative with dose-dependent effects from mild sociability to full unconsciousness.
- Low doses can loosen social anxiety while high doses induce the K-hole and deep dissociation.
Therapeutic Promise, Real Risks
- Ketamine shows both clinical promise for depression and risks like addiction and urological damage.
- Short-term fatality is rare but real; medical context and dosing matter greatly.
Quieting The Inner Critic
- Low-dose ketamine can quiet the hypervigilant inner critic that fuels social anxiety.
- That dissociation can make people feel freer to talk, dance, and connect in person.
