Depression casts heavy shadows on every part of your life, stealing your ability to function & experience joy. Rapid relief of depression is vital.
Overhead Sun signifies when the sun is directly overhead, there is no shadow.
We aim to quickly remove the shadow of depression from your life to lift you up to your fullest potential with the FDA-approved prescription nasal medication, SPRAVATO®.
What is Spravato®?
About 33% of patients with depression fail to achieve remission despite treatment with multiple oral antidepressants
SPRAVATO® is the only FDA-approved treatment used that can be taken with or without an oral antidepressant for adults with treatment-resistant depression (TRD).
It is also prescribed for depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) with suicidal thoughts or behaviors.
SPRAVATO® works differently because it affects the glutamate pathway, the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter, in your brain by blocking certain receptors to help improve depression symptoms.
Rapid Relief of Symptoms
Because SPRAVATO® is a nasal (nose) spray the medication is absorbed very quickly. This rapid onset provides improvement of depression symptoms in as early as 24-hours with continued relief up to 28 days.
At Week 4 in a 2019 clinical study, 52.5% of patients receiving SPRAVATO® + oral antidepressant (AD) achieved remission vs 31.0% with placebo + oral AD.
In addition, 70% will have over 50% reduction in symptoms in the first 4 weeks and those rates continue to improve over time.
Clinical research was on very high acuity patient populations, but you don’t have to wait until depression is severe to get superior improvement; anyone who has tried a couple orals medications will usually qualify under insurance. By the time you try your third oral antidepressant, you only have 14% chance of responding. You deserve better odds!
SPRAVATO® does not cause weight gain or decreased sexual arousal associated with oral antidepressants.
How we are different
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APPOINTMENT AVAILABILITY
We know that 2 hours is a commitment when seeking treatment. We try to work with you to offer some early morning, evening, and/or weekend hours.
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WE ACCEPT MEDI-CAL
Our credentialing service works quickly to procure individualized contracts so you can start treatment.
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TIMELY INSURANCE VERIFICATION
When you are depressed, a day can feel like a month. Years ago it took numerous months to receive authorization for treatment. That should not be the norm today.
Our verification department contacts your insurance for quick authorization.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Racemic Ketamine (“R”-type) is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to be used as an IV anesthetic. Ketamine treatments for Depression are not covered by insurance because it’s experimental and not FDA approved for depression.
Esketamine is the “S-type” of Ketamine administered as a nasal spray. In 2019, the FDA approved the use of SPRAVATO® (esketamine) in adults for the treatment of TRD and MDD with suicidal ideation when used in conjunction with an oral antidepressant.
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The safety and efficacy of esketamine (Spravato) is supported by many short-term and long term studies. Long-term, 5-year studies show data with a strong safety profile.
A 2020 study by Papakostas studied the use of esketamine in 774 people who were involved in 5 trials and showed that patients with MDD or MDSI who received SPRAVATO® treatments had a better outcome than those who received placebo.
Conventional antidepressants like SSRIs may increase suicidal thoughts at the beginning of treatment, especially in young adults. SPRAVATO® has been proven to decrease suicidal thoughts.
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SPRAVATO® is usually covered by insurance, including Medi-Cal and Medicare, because it is FDA-approved and well-studied to be effective and safe, providing rapid relief. It may be paid under your medical or your pharmacy benefit, depending on your plan.
The SPRAVATO®withMe plan offers patients to pay as little as $10 per treatment for your SPRAVATO® medication.
If insurance doesn’t cover all of your costs, or if you have no insurance, the SPRAVATO®withMe plan can provide information about other cost support options.
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If these side effects occur, they usually happen right after taking SPRAVATO® and go away the same day. Studies show that only 2.7% of patients have discontinued treatment due to side effects.
The most common side effects of include are reported as mild over long-term, 5-year studies: • feeling disconnected from yourself, your thoughts, feelings and things around you • dizziness • nausea • feeling sleepy • spinning sensation • decreased feeling of sensitivity (numbness) • feeling anxious • lack of energy • increased blood pressure • vomiting • feeling drunk • headache • feeling very happy or excited
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No. SPRAVATO® works differently because it affects the glutamate system in your brain, blocking certain receptors to help improve depression symptoms.
Glutamate is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, facilitating communication between nerve cells. Glutamate is involved in mood regulation, learning, and cognition.
SSRIs do not affect the glutamate system.
SPRAVATO® does not cause weight gain or decreased sexual arousal associated with oral antidepressants.
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How often do I need treatmentPatients can start with 56 mg or 84 mg, alone or in combination with an oral AD, and an individualized dosing schedule over 3 phases.
Induction Phase: Weeks 1 to 4, usually (2) two treatments per week.
Optimization Phase: Weeks 5 to 8, (1) one treatment per week.
Ongoing Maintenance Phase: Once per week or once every two weeks. Other patients feel well enough to receive treatments as needed.
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SPRAVATO® must be under the supervision of a healthcare provider in a healthcare setting.
Your healthcare provider will take your vital signs prior to starting treatment, 40 minutes into the treatment session, and before you leave.
You will take the nasal spray yourself.
Your healthcare provider will show you how to use the SPRAVATO® nasal spray device.
Your healthcare provider will tell you how much SPRAVATO® you will take and when you will take it.
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You should not eat for at least 2 hours before taking SPRAVATO® and not drink liquids at least 30 minutes before taking SPRAVATO®.
We offer medication if you experience nausea and/or vomiting.
You will need to plan for someone or a ride share to drive you home after taking SPRAVATO®.
Your should not drive, operate machinery, or do anything where you need to be completely alert after taking SPRAVATO®. Do not take part in these activities until the next day following a restful sleep.
SPRAVATO® can only be dispensed & administered in healthcare settings.
Patients treated in outpatient settings must be enrolled in the program. (We help enroll you)
It is administered by patients under the direct observation of a healthcare provider.
SPRAVATO® can cause a temporary increase in your blood pressure that may last for about 4 hours after taking a dose. Your healthcare provider will check your blood pressure before taking SPRAVATO® and for at least 2 hours after you take SPRAVATO®.
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Do not take SPRAVATO® if you: • have blood vessel (aneurysmal vascular) disease (including in the brain, chest, abdominal aorta, arms and legs) • have an abnormal connection between your veins and arteries (arteriovenous malformation) • have a history of bleeding in the brain • are allergic to esketamine, ketamine, or any of the other ingredients in SPRAVATO®.
If you are not sure if you have any of the above conditions, talk to your healthcare provider before taking SPRAVATO®.
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Yes, we believe in and support bridging a partnership with your healthcare team. You can sign a release of records and we can provide information to your therapist, psychiatrist, or any other provider you wish to include. You may also retract that decision at any time.
About Us
Depression is debilitating in every aspect of life. Our founders have professionally and personally witnessed how depression can rob patients from enjoying their lives. Basic daily functions and socializing become monumental, if not impossible. If you are able to work, or even attend a social event, it is often akin to just moving the through the motions in a thick fog.
As clinicians, it often takes extensive management to weed through nuances to help patients with depression. As a friend or family member, it becomes personal, sometimes eliciting anger and frustration; it can make your heart explode when you watch the person you care about dwindle to the shell of a person. We understand.
We understand how rapid, caring treatment is urgently needed for patients, particularly those who have already tried 2 oral antidepressants without depression relief.
Raul Lopez, MD
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Dr. Lopez is a board certified with the American Board of Emergency Medicine, working for over 35 years as an emergency room physician, with the past 12 years as the Quality Assurance Director. Additionally, he is a medical expert with the Superior Court of Los Angeles.
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Dr. Lopez pursued his undergraduate degree in Biology at University of California, Santa Cruz while also devoting his summers to health and research fellowship programs at Harvard University, Indiana University, and Cornell. After graduating with his medical degree from UCLA, Dr. Lopez completed his emergency medicine residency at USC.
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Depression and its cruel grip has touched Raul both professionally and personally, witnessing the tedious struggles amongst his patients and some close family members and friends.
People feel stuck and are let down by the mere 14% chance that they will respond to a 3rd oral antidepressant. You may blame yourself, thinking that you aren’t trying hard enough in therapy or that something is wrong with you. Friends and family may shame you, saying that you just want to “be this way”. We know that you don’t, and we want to help you flourish.
We’ve seen patients like you emerge from the heavy clouds of depression with treatment with SPRAVATO®, we support you and your continued therapy.
Hillary Mennella, DNP, FNP-BC
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Dr. Mennella is an ANCC board certified family nurse practitioner with 20+ years of clinical experience in private practice, emergency medicine, and college health.
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Hillary pursued her undergraduate degree in Biology & Community Health at Virginia Tech, moving on to nursing degrees from Johns Hopkins University and California State University, Long Beach. Her past work includes utilization management, hospital auditing and quality assurance, legal compliance consulting, clinical teaching, and over 10 years writing clinical skills and guidelines for an allied health professions international database.
The profound and common mental health issues she encountered in her clinical work and people closest to her led her led her to Duke University for her doctorate degree in an evidence-based quality improvement programming to screen for mental health disorders and explore attitudes about alternative based treatments such as yoga.
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Hillary wants patients to know that depression it isn’t your fault. That feeling like you are “losing” the battle to recovery also isn’t your fault. You have tried, and it is exhausting to just exist in this depressive haze.
About one-third of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) have an inadequate response to antidepressant medications and/or psychotherapy. Research shows that patients with treatment-resistant depression experience significant challenges, with less chance for remission with each successive use of different antidepressants.
In addition to patients, Hillary has witnessed MDD & TRD steal joy from close friends and family. People with MDD & TRD want to experience love, happiness, the ups & downs of relationships; no one wants to be depressed, despite what people say.
It also hurts and scares the people that love them, and at times their friends and families live in fear of suicide. Hillary has seen significant rapid recovery from MDD, TRD, and suicidal ideation and gestures with SPRAVATO® treatment. Patients are able to join their partners, children, and colleagues in life. SPRAVATO® treatment is truly life changing.
We want to get you to that place of joy.
Contact us.
newpatient@overheadsun.com
323-207-0059
4521 E. Chavez Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90022
Located behind Tisu Skin Care