Frequently Asked Questions
Luminous Health is a functional medicine mental health clinic offering personalized, lab-anchored treatment programs for depression, anxiety, trauma, brain fog, and addiction. Our approach combines evidence-based nutritional medicine, IV therapy, targeted supplementation, peptide therapy, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, sequenced according to each patient's unique physiology and laboratory findings.
Traditional psychiatry focuses primarily on symptom management through medication. At Luminous Health, we identify and address the underlying physiologic drivers of psychiatric symptoms, including mitochondrial dysfunction, neuroinflammation, hormonal deficiencies, metabolic instability, and autonomic dysregulation. Treatment is guided by comprehensive laboratory testing, not diagnosis alone.
Our programs are designed for patients who have not found adequate relief through conventional treatment, who want to understand the physiologic roots of their symptoms, or who are seeking a more comprehensive and personalized approach to mental health and recovery. We work with adults across a wide range of presentations and complexity levels.
Luminous Health operates as a private pay practice. We do not bill insurance directly. Upon request, we can provide documentation that some patients use to seek partial reimbursement from their insurer, though this is not guaranteed.
Initial consultations and laboratory reviews can be conducted via secure telehealth. IV therapy, ketamine sessions, and certain clinical assessments are conducted in person. We will discuss the most appropriate format for your care during your initial consultation.
The first step is a comprehensive intake consultation. During this visit we review your history, symptoms, goals, and order the laboratory panel that informs your treatment plan. Click here to contact us to schedule.
General Clinic Questions
Depression
We treat depression as a systems-level neurobiologic disorder rather than a single neurotransmitter deficiency. In each case the underlying drivers are identified and addressed based on the patient's unique physiology and history.
Not necessarily. Many patients continue their existing medications throughout our program. We review all concurrent medications before initiating any protocol and flag interactions where they exist. Some interventions — such as methylene blue — have absolute contraindications with certain antidepressants and will not be used in those cases.
The active treatment phase is structured around an 8-12 week protocol, with a maintenance plan established at the end of that period. Many patients continue with periodic IV therapy and supplement support beyond the initial program.
Anxiety
Yes. Depending on the type and severity of anxiety, many patients respond well to magnesium repletion, autonomic regulation, dietary anchoring, HRV biofeedback, and targeted botanical and peptide support — without requiring pharmaceutical intervention. For patients already on medication, our protocols are designed to complement rather than replace existing treatment.
Rarely, and with significant caution. It may be considered in highly selected cases where severe comorbid depression is present and all other criteria are met.
We treat generalized anxiety, panic disorder, and somatic anxiety presentations. Each maps to a different physiologic module and receives a tailored protocol. We do not treat anxiety in isolation from its physiologic context — autonomic dysregulation, cortisol patterns, thyroid function, and inflammatory load are all assessed as part of the intake process.
Trauma
Our role is to support the underlying biology that can keep trauma symptoms stuck, like nervous system imbalance, stress hormone dysregulation, and inflammation. We work closely with trauma-informed therapists and see our care as complementary to psychotherapy.
Trauma processing — through modalities such as EMDR, somatic experiencing, or IFS — requires a nervous system with sufficient regulatory capacity. Attempting to process traumatic memory before that capacity is established is often retraumatizing rather than therapeutic. Our protocols prioritize safety and stabilization first, creating the neurobiologic conditions in which effective therapy becomes possible.
Ketamine has a limited and carefully defined role within our trauma program. It is considered only in select cases — typically when severe, treatment-resistant depression is present alongside trauma — after physiologic stability has been established. When used, it is done in close coordination with a trauma-informed therapist, with structured preparation and integration before and after each session.
Brain Fog
Brain fog is not a single condition — it is a symptom that can arise from multiple distinct physiologic bottlenecks. At Luminous Health we identify which of three patterns is driving your cognitive symptoms: mitochondrial underpowering and cellular energy failure, dopaminergic underdrive and reward circuit suppression, or neuroimmune and neuroinflammatory activation. Each requires a different treatment approach.
Not necessarily. Brain fog frequently presents independently of mood disorders, and is particularly common following viral illness, in burnout states, and alongside autoimmune and inflammatory conditions. Our program treats brain fog as a primary presenting complaint in its own right.
Ferritin, Free T3, fasting insulin, omega-3 index, homocysteine, hs-CRP, and DHEA-S are among the most clinically informative markers in this program. Low ferritin alone — even within normal reference range — is one of the most commonly missed drivers of cognitive fatigue and motivational deficit. Lab-guided treatment is not optional in our approach; it is foundational.
Addiction
Our program addresses alcohol use disorder, opioid use disorder, stimulant use disorder, cannabis use disorder, benzodiazepine dependence, and compulsive behavioral patterns. Treatment is organized around the dominant neurobiologic driver of the addiction, stress-driven craving, dopamine deficiency and anhedonia, or neuroimmune and trauma-linked compulsion.
No. Active withdrawal from alcohol, benzodiazepines, or opioids requires medical detoxification, which must be completed before our program can begin. We can coordinate referrals to appropriate detox providers and will initiate our protocol once medical stabilization is confirmed.
No. Medication-assisted treatment with buprenorphine or methadone is managed by addiction medicine specialists. Patients already on these medications are welcome in our program — however, certain interventions, including low-dose naltrexone, are absolutely contraindicated while these medications are active.
We do not impose a single recovery model. Abstinence, harm reduction, and moderation goals are defined collaboratively with the patient at intake and inform the structure of the treatment plan. Our role is to restore the neurobiologic conditions that make the patient's chosen recovery path sustainable.
Ketamine-Assisted Therapy
Ketamine is an FDA-approved anesthetic used at Luminous Health in an off-label capacity as a neuroplasticity tool. At sub-anesthetic doses, it temporarily disrupts rigid attractor states in the brain, opening a window of enhanced neuroplasticity during which lasting change becomes more accessible. It is used adjunctively, never as a standalone treatment, and always in conjunction with integration support.
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change, adapt, and rewire itself over time. Every experience, thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and environments, strengthens certain neural pathways while allowing others to weaken. This process is how we learn, form habits, and recover from injury or stress. In the context of mental health, neuroplasticity is what allows the brain to move out of rigid, maladaptive patterns and develop healthier, more resilient ones.
Ketamine is often reserved for patients with severe or treatment-resistant depression, dominant anhedonia unresponsive to foundational interventions, or active suicidal ideation without exclusion criteria. Prerequisites include physiologic stability, at least partial sleep restoration, no active substance misuse without a documented harm-reduction plan, and integration support in place before the first session.
A standard series consists of six sessions, administered in a monitored clinical environment with supportive presence throughout. Each session is preceded by intention setting and integration within 24–72 hours. Repeat dosing after the initial series is determined by response, not by a fixed schedule.
Yes. Ketamine is contraindicated in panic-predominant anxiety, uncontrolled hypertension, history of dangerous arrhythmia, liver failure, active psychosis or mania, active stimulant or dissociative drug misuse, and pregnancy. A thorough medical and psychiatric evaluation is completed before any session is scheduled.
Ketamine is not inherently addictive but does have the potential for misuse and dependence, which is one reason our protocols are conservative and time-limited. We do not offer take-home ketamine, do not use maintenance dosing as a default, and maintain a hard stop for any patient with a history of ketamine use disorder.
Palliative & End-of-Life Ketamine
Luminous Health offers ketamine-assisted psychotherapy specifically designed for patients navigating a life-limiting illness. The program is not curative and does not aim to alter the course of the underlying condition. Its purpose is to support psychological and existential wellbeing — reducing fear, facilitating meaning-making, and supporting the patient's capacity to be present in whatever time remains.
This program is for patients with a confirmed life-limiting diagnosis who are experiencing existential distress, fear of death, unresolved grief, or a sense of disconnection from meaning and relationship. It is not appropriate for patients in active medical crisis or those requiring acute psychiatric stabilization.
Sessions are conducted under direct physician supervision in coordination with a trained therapist who provides both preparation and integration. The number of sessions is individualized. Where applicable, we coordinate closely with the patient's palliative care or oncology team.
IV Therapy
Our IV protocols include magnesium sulfate, NAD+, phosphatidylcholine, glutathione, vitamin C, methylcobalamin, acetyl-L-carnitine, zinc, and taurine. Specific infusions are selected based on the patient's module assignment, laboratory findings, and clinical presentation — not as a general wellness menu.
All IV therapy at Luminous Health is administered under supervision following a medical evaluation. Pre-screening for relevant contraindications is conducted prior to first administration. Infusion rates are carefully controlled to minimize adverse reactions.
This varies by program and module but IV sessions typically range from 1 - 5 during the course of the program. IVs are tools within a broader protocol — not the primary treatment.
Peptide Therapy
Peptides are short chains of amino acids that act as signaling molecules in the body. Several peptides have demonstrated therapeutic potential in preclinical and early clinical research for neuroinflammation, gut-brain repair, cognitive enhancement, immune modulation, and autonomic regulation.
The peptides used at Luminous Health — including BPC-157, Selank, Semax, KPV, and Thymosin alpha-1 — are research compounds available through licensed compounding pharmacies. They are not FDA-approved for the indications for which they are used, and their use is off-label. Explicit informed consent is required before any peptide is initiated, and the current evidence base, known risks, and absence of long-term human safety data are discussed in full.
Current evidence suggests a favorable safety profile at clinical doses, but long-term human safety data are limited for most research peptides. We source exclusively from licensed compounding pharmacies and require informed consent before initiation. Peptides are introduced only after foundational interventions are in place and the patient's clinical status has been assessed.