What’s Behind the ‘Architectural Digest’ Decor at LA’s Ketamine Clinics?

Andrew Fiouzi
Andrew Fiouzi is an editor at dot.LA. He was previously a features writer at MEL Magazine where he covered masculinity, tech and true crime. His work has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Long Reads and Vice, among other publications.
Antonio Ocana (left) sitting down with another person in the Pasithea clinic.
Courtesy of Pasithea

On the stretch of Sunset Boulevard, where the line between West Hollywood and Beverly Hills becomes faint, inside an eight-story, low-rise medical building, wrapped with a 60-foot poster of J.Lo’s pixel-perfect naked body, the ketamine clinic of the near future is preparing for the clinically depressed.

Pasithea is the latest ketamine center to grace Los Angeles. Inside their state-of-the-art, 1,235 square-foot facility, light oak wood walls, the likes of Scandinavian-themed architecture proliferating throughout the city, welcomes patients with the prospect of chic possibilities.


“Tall doors and tall windows are hardwired to your brain to give you bigger thinking,” says Antonio Ocana, the clinical director of Pasithea’s L.A. office.

The tiny window in the waiting room—a feature typical of the other offices in the Sunset Medical Tower, or so I’m told—has been scrapped in favor of a cascading frosted glass.

“It’s to bring in more natural light,” says Daniela Amador, the 20-something interior designer of the clinic. And the removal of sharp corners in the waiting room in favor of curves, she says, “was a representation of the cycle of life.”

In that sense, the Pasithea clinic feels less like a psychiatric office where they administer intravenous dissociative anesthetics and more like a desert sanctuary.

“There are two types of [ketamine] clinics or two types of vibes so to speak,” says Manuel Hoyer, Pasithea’s VP of Growth and Marketing. “One is a very hippy-esque, mom-and-pop shop that to a degree feels very aligned with the movement around psychedelics that’s not quite super credible for folks seeking out something medically backed. And on the other side of the spectrum you have more dentist-office-like spaces that are not giving away the sense that this is an innovative treatment.”

This distinction is important considering Pasithea is hardly the first ketamine clinic to open brick and mortar in L.A. In fact, it’s not even the fifteenth. Since 2014, when anesthesiologist Steven Mandel, who co-founded Ketamine Clinics Los Angeles, began using ketamine for off-label purposes to treat depression and other mental health disorders, Los Angeles has seen more than 1,000% increase in the number of clinics, based on the current number of ketamine clinics listed on Yelp. The current market size of this industry is estimated at $900 million. It helps too that in 2019, the FDA approved a version of ketamine called esketamine for mental health treatment. Under the brand name Spravato, the antidepressant is administered via nasal spray.

At Pasithea, the price per session for IV ketamine treatment is $700.

“Spravato will be offered as well starting next month,” says Hoyer. They recommend starting with six sessions of IV ketamine that are typically undergone anywhere between one to three weeks. Other ketamine clinics in Los Angeles have a similar protocol but range in price between $400 and $700 per infusion. Which is to say, Pasithea, if anything, is on the higher end of the spectrum.

But such is the price of healing inside a facility that looks less like a medical office and more like a cream-hued fantasy dream. Similar in sensibility, as Hoyer says, to “Santa Monica’s Proper Hotel,” with its sandy palette that alludes to a beach setting.

In recent years or, at least since 2020, much of the reporting on ketamine clinics has, inadvertently, drawn attention to the “vibe” of the facilities. Last year, when reporting on Field Trip, a ketamine clinic in Santa Monica that opened in September 2020, dot LA’s Keerthi Vedantam noted that, “the clinic is outfitted with mid-century furniture, fluffed-up cushions and shaggy rugs, almost like an Architectural Digest spread came to life.”

In her story from 2020 on the mainstreamification of ketamine therapy, the New Yorker’s Emily Witt wrote that the “decorative touches'' of Field Trip’s New York office, “are spa-like: white rugs, fiddle-leaf figs, electric candles inside glass-paned lanterns.” Adding that, “The aesthetic seems based on the assumption that, when a company hopes to take a formerly taboo practice mainstream, a West Elm interior can go a long way.”

Additionally, Field Trip has been described as, “not your average doctor’s office.” The waiting room, writes Sara Spruch-Feiner for Coveteur, “looks more like your chicest friend’s living room, with plenty of natural sunlight, a tactile moss wall, and aesthetically minded furniture.”

All of which is a far cry from the ketamine clinics of yore, which one Redditor described as being “in the back of a [P]olish pharmacy next to a kebab shop,” or “full of incense and pretty psychedelic.”

According to Ocana, to be eligible for ketamine therapy inside Pasithea’s lush, contemporary facility, a patient has to have already tried at least two different SSRIs. Which is important considering IV administered ketamine is not currently FDA approved for any psychiatric indication.

“There are a number of FDA-approved medications and evidence-based treatments for depression, including medications, TMS [transcranial magnetic stimulation], ECT [electroconvulsive therapy] and evidence based psychotherapy,” says Charles Nemeroff, the chair of Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Texas in Austin. “Where ketamine should fall in the treatment algorithm is unclear at this time. I see many patients with treatment-resistant depression who are immediately sent to a ketamine clinic before other well-established treatments have been tried.”

To that end, Nemeroff says, only a small minority of the clinics you are referring to adhere to these recommendations.

“Unfortunately, if you have the funds to pay for a treatment, you can easily receive it,” he adds.

Which is exactly the sort of clientele Pasithea hopes to attract with its palatial motif. According to VP of Operations Chirstian Pedrini, their primary demographic is “people between the age of 25 and 45, successful, either corporate or execs, probably tech and working in the entertainment business, basically people working in high stress environments.” Adding that for these types of people, “the thing you always need to take into account with these psychedelic treatments, is setting is really important.” Hence the floor-to-ceiling wall installation in the waiting room, backlit and ornamented with white vases and beach dried palm spears. Or the white leather phlebotomy chairs. Or the vases and wall art sprinkled throughout the facility, that look as though they’ve been picked out of a CB2 catalog.

Such is the inevitable result of ketamine going mainstream and backed by venture capital. In fact, these days, you don’t even have to go looking for ketamine therapy to find it. Per Rolling Stone’s recent report on the telemedicine company Peak, they’re pushing ketamine therapy via TikTok. Pasithea, at least, who does offer at-home ketamine therapy, does require that a medical professional administer the IV.

Ultimately, says Amador, her goal when designing the Pasithea clinic was to redefine what a doctor’s office could be — to demolish that feeling most people get when they arrive inside the typically aseptic waiting area replete with old gossip rags.

“We want the opposite,” she says. “We want the patient to feel at home.”

OpenAI's $6.6B Power Play: The Future of AI Just Got a Massive Boost 💰🚀
Image Source: Open AI - Sam Altman

🔦 Spotlight

OpenAI is making some exciting moves! The company just completed a massive $6.6 billion funding round, pushing its valuation to an impressive $157 billion. Thrive Capital led the charge, with big names like Andreessen Horowitz and Founders Fund also joining in. This investment will allow OpenAI to further scale its operations and advance AI technologies like GPT-4 across various sectors such as healthcare, entertainment, and business.

But that’s not the only exciting news. OpenAI has also secured an additional$1 billion credit facility, giving the company even more financial flexibility to execute its ambitious growth plans. This safety net ensures that OpenAI has the resources to scale safely and effectively while continuing to lead the AI space.

AI is becoming integral to industries worldwide, and OpenAI’s products—like ChatGPT—are seeing rapid adoption. From education to enterprise solutions, the company is driving significant advancements in how AI is integrated into everyday life.

Following Microsoft’s $10 billion investment earlier this year, this latest round underscores the market’s confidence in OpenAI’s potential. With its strong focus on responsible AI deployment and ethical scaling, the company is set to shape the future of AI in a way that benefits a broad range of industries and addresses global challenges.

As AI evolves, OpenAI remains dedicated to pushing boundaries while ensuring that its innovations prioritize safety, scalability, and social impact. Keep an eye on this space—big things are on the horizon!


🤝 Venture Deals

LA Companies

  • Impulse Space, a Redondo Beach-based company specializing in in-space transportation services, raised $150M in Series B funding led by Founders Fund, bringing its total funding to $225M, to expand its team and advance production of its Helios and Mira vehicles. - learn more
  • Nusano has secured over $115M in Series C financing, led by The Wasatch Group, to accelerate the commercialization of its radioisotope production technology, aimed at improving cancer treatment and medical diagnostics. - learn more
  • Future Trash, a multidisciplinary creative studio, has raised a $5M Seed funding round from TIRTA and General Catalyst to develop original intellectual property (IP) within Fortnite, focusing on building unique in-game content and experiences. - learn more
  • XType, the leading software company for multi-instance management on the ServiceNow platform, has raised a $21M Series A funding round led by Norwest Venture Partners to accelerate innovation and expand its platform capabilities on the ServiceNow platform. - learn more
  • 3Laws Robotics, a robotics company focused on building AI-powered platforms to enhance the safety, security, and operational efficiency of robotic systems, has raised a $4.1M Seed funding round led by TenOneTen Ventures. - learn more

LA Venture Funds
  • Watertower Ventures participated in the $8M Series A funding round for DocJuris, a leader in AI-based contract review and negotiation software that automates key tasks to streamline the contract process for enterprise teams and general counsels. - learn more
  • Progression Fund participated in a $3.7M Seed funding round for Permanent, a company focused on advancing sustainable agriculture by developing solutions that improve soil health and productivity. - learn more


LA Exits

  • Loom, an educational community platform that empowers women by providing comprehensive resources on reproductive health, sexual wellness, and parenting education, has been acquired by women's health brand Perelel, marking a significant expansion in the women's health and wellness sector. - learn more

Download the dot.LA App

⚠️📲🌩️ Your Digital Lifeline: Top Tech Apps for Natural Disasters

Living in LA means being ready for anything—quakes, wildfires, crazy weather, you name it. Luckily, there’s a suite of tech apps designed to keep you informed, connected, and safe when disaster strikes. From real-time alerts to staying in touch with loved ones, these apps have you covered. Here’s the ultimate list to help you handle whatever chaos comes your way in LA County.

Get Real-Time Alerts

Image Source: MyRadar

FEMA App
  • What it does: Provides real-time alerts from the National Weather Service, along with shelter and disaster recovery info.
  • Key features: Weather alerts, shelter locator, and preparedness resources.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
MyRadar Weather Radar
  • What it does: Offers real-time, animated radar for tracking severe weather and storms.
  • Key features: Live radar, storm tracking, and severe weather alerts.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
Clime: NOAA Weather Radar
  • What it does: Delivers real-time radar and weather updates, with wildfire and flood tracking.
  • Key features: Customizable weather alerts, disaster tracking.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
American Red Cross Emergency App
  • What it does: Provides real-time alerts for over 35 types of emergencies, plus disaster preparedness tips.
  • Key features: Alerts, safety check-ins, and emergency tips.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
My Earthquake Alerts & Feed
  • What it does: Sends real-time earthquake alerts, with maps and detailed data.
  • Key features: Earthquake alerts, customizable notifications, detailed maps.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
Citizen
  • What it does: Delivers real-time alerts for emergencies, including natural disasters and crime near your location.
  • Key features: Safety alerts, live incident reports, and community updates.
  • Available on:iOS | Android

Stay Connected with Loved Ones

Image Source: Life360

While social media apps like Facebook and X provide real-time updates, additional tools can help with communication and location sharing, ensuring you stay connected and safe.

Nextdoor
  • What it does: Connects neighbors with real-time local updates on emergencies and community events.
  • Key features: Neighborhood alerts, local info, resource sharing.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
WhatsApp
  • What it does: Enables secure messaging, location sharing, and video/voice calls with family and friends.
  • Key features: End-to-end encryption, location sharing, voice/video calls.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
Zello Walkie Talkie
  • What it does: Turns your phone into a push-to-talk walkie-talkie for communication in low-signal areas.
  • Key features: Push-to-talk, works over Wi-Fi/data, group communication.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
Glympse – Share Your Location
  • What it does: Lets users share real-time locations with family and friends without needing an account.
  • Key features: Location sharing, ETA updates, private tracking.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
Life360
  • What it does: Tracks real-time location of family members and provides emergency SOS alerts.
  • Key features: Family location tracking, emergency alerts, crash detection.
  • Available on:iOS | Android

Stay Mobile

Image Source: PlugShare

For navigating road closures and traffic during disasters, Google Maps and Waze are essential tools that offer real-time updates and alternate routes. Along with these go-to options, there are additional apps that can help you stay mobile when it matters most.

GasBuddy
  • What it does: Locates nearby gas stations and provides real-time updates on fuel availability and prices.
  • Key features: Gas station locator, fuel prices, availability checks.
  • Available on:iOS | Android
PlugShare
  • What it does: Provides a comprehensive map of public EV charging stations worldwide. It offers real-time availability, pricing, user reviews, and photos of charging stations, helping you find the best nearby options.
  • Key features: Real-time station availability, detailed station info, user reviews, and trip planning.
  • Available on:iOS | Android

Traditional Preparedness Tips

In addition to these tech apps, it’s crucial to prepare for natural disasters with traditional methods:

  • Build a disaster kit: Gather essential supplies like food, water, first aid supplies, and a flashlight.
  • Develop an evacuation plan: Determine where you will go and how you will get there in case of an emergency.
  • Keep emergency contacts handy: Make a list of important phone numbers.

Maximize Battery Life and Data During Emergencies

During disasters, power outages and increased network traffic can affect your device's battery life and data usage. Consider the following:

  • Keep your devices charged: Use portable or solar-powered chargers to extend battery life.
  • Conserve data: Use Wi-Fi hotspots when available to avoid excessive data charges.

These apps are your go-to tools for staying informed, connected, and ready for anything in Los Angeles County. Whether you need real-time alerts, navigation assistance, or ways to keep in touch with loved ones, having these apps on hand can make all the difference when it matters most.

Download the dot.LA App

Luxurious Second Home Ownership without the Headache: How Pacaso is Changing the Landscape of Real Estate

🔦 Spotlight

Pacaso addresses the pain points of second home ownership, offering a luxurious, flexible, and financially sound alternative to traditional second homes and ultra-luxury hotels. Co-founded in 2020 by entrepreneur Austin Allison and former Zillow executive and prominent LA tech figure Spencer Rascoff, Pacaso, an unicorn startup, has redefined vacation home ownership with its unique co-ownership model. Rascoff's contributions to the LA tech scene extend beyond real estate; he also founded 75 & Sunny, an LA-based startup studio and venture fund, and co-founded dot.LA, an LA tech news and events company.

LA residents adore Pacaso for its lush vacation destinations that also make for smart investments. Pacaso offers everything from serene weekend getaways in Aspen to sophisticated escapes in Paris. Each residence, valued between $200k to over $2M for 1/8th, boasts meticulous design, high-end furnishings, and premium amenities. Unlike traditional second home ownership, which involves high costs, maintenance, and underutilization, or ultra-luxury hotels, which lack the personal touch and investment potential, Pacaso's co-ownership model offers a superior solution. Co-owners enjoy the benefits of a high-end vacation home without the full financial burden and hassle of sole ownership, making it a smarter and more flexible choice for discerning buyers.


Image Source: Pacaso

Cabo, Mexico

$822,000 (1/8th ownership)

5 bds. l 5 ba. l 4,969 sq ft

View Here


Image Source: Pacaso

Paris, France

$600,000 (1/8th ownership)

2 bds. l 2.5 ba. l 1,410 sq ft

View Here


Image Source: Pacaso

Malibu, California

$750,000 (1/8th ownership)

3 bds. l 3 ba. l 1,880 sq ft

View Here


Image Source: Pacaso

Park City, Utah

$755,000 (1/8th ownership)

4 bds. l 4.5 ba. l 2,584 sq ft

View Here

Head to Pacaso to learn more about its innovative co-ownership model that addresses the common challenges of second home ownership!


🤝 Venture Deals

LA Companies

  • Oak Essentials, the natural skincare brand founded by Jenni Kayne, has raised an undisclosed amount in Series A Funding from Silas Capital and Unilever Ventures. This investment will drive the brand’s expansion, focusing on product development, boosting marketing efforts, and expanding distribution channels. - learn more
  • Playhouse MD, an upcoming children’s healthcare platform that incorporates play to enhance health outcomes, has raised $4M in funding, according to a recent SEC filing. - learn more
  • FluidLogic, a high-performance hydration system provider, raised $15M in a Series A Extension led by Solyco Capital to support product development and innovation for adventure sports and outdoor endurance categories, with consumer products launching in early 2025. - learn more
  • Reflect Orbital, which uses in-space reflectors to direct sunlight to solar farms and large-scale lighting applications after sunset, has raised $6.5M in seed funding led by Sequoia Capital. The funding will help the company develop production vehicles and expand its team as it builds space-based energy infrastructure. - learn more

LA Venture Funds
  • Smash Capital led a €20M Series B round into Vilnius-based Ovoko, an e-commerce platform for buying and selling used car parts across Europe, marking Smash Capital's first investment in Lithuania. The funds will support Ovoko's product development, market expansion, and team growth as it aims to dominate the European market for second-hand automotive components. - learn more
  • M13 led a $9M Series A Funding Round for Zenlytic, the world’s first self-serve business intelligence platform. - learn more



LA Exits

  • Continuum Global Solutions’ healthcare vertical has been acquired by Everise, a customer service management company, enhancing Everise’s capabilities in pharmacy benefit management and expanding its growth prospects in the healthcare sector. - learn more
  • Radical Semiconductor, a company specializing in processing-in-memory technology, has been acquired by BTQ Technologies, a leader in post-quantum cryptography. This acquisition strengthens BTQ’s ability to secure data in the post-quantum era by integrating Radical Semiconductor's advanced technology portfolio. - learn more

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