A treatment project for war veterans who carry traumas back home

Project Momentum provides a tailored treatment programme for veterans with PTSD at Axonklinikken. The Foundation is also working on research related to the course of treatment.

The problem

1 in 10 struggle after service

Norway has sent more than 100,000 people on international operations since 1947. The Afghanistan Study 2020 (Norwegian Armed Forces Medical Services, published 2021) shows that around 1 in 10 have mental health problems after completing their service.

The problems often appear several years after returning home, and more than seven in ten of those who met the criteria for a mental disorder had not contacted the health services (Johnsen and Bøe, 2016). Many also carry guilt and moral injury after service, issues that many veterans feel the ordinary services do not capture well enough.

Topografisk tegning av forgrenede elvedaler og erosjonslinjer

The treatment

A complete course, not just a medicine

Each veteran receives a structured course of six ketamine-assisted therapy sessions with specialist trauma follow-up. Treatment is provided by Axonklinikken, which holds clinical responsibility, assesses who may be offered treatment and follows up with participants. A doctor is present throughout.

Screening and preparation

Medical and psychological assessment to confirm eligibility. Preparation sessions to build therapeutic rapport and set treatment goals.

Six ketamine sessions

Ketamine administered intramuscularly in a clinical setting under medical supervision. Each two-hour session combines around 40 minutes of psychotherapy with the ketamine experience.

Specialist trauma follow-up

Trauma follow-up in partnership with Psykologvirke at Traumesenteret, so the work on the trauma continues between and after the sessions.

Aftercare

Follow-up once the sessions have finished. No one is sent home alone.

The research

Research on the course of treatment

The Foundation is also working on research related to the course of treatment in Momentum. The research is organised separately from the treatment. No one receives treatment because they take part in research, and no one loses access to treatment by declining.

Participation in research is voluntary.
Questions about the research are handled by Axon Research Foundation. Treatment enquiries are handled by Axonklinikken.

Project Momentum

Interested in treatment?

Leave your contact details and Axonklinikken will contact you to tell you more about the treatment programme and Project Momentum.

The people behind it

Lowan Stewart

Board Member

Specialist in emergency medicine (MD) with more than 20 years of clinical experience. Founder and medical director of Axonklinikken, and a pioneer of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy in the Nordic region.

Akiah Astral Ottesen

Clinical Psychologist, PhD, Senior Researcher at NORMENT

Clinical psychologist specialising in trauma. Senior researcher at NORMENT (University of Oslo / Oslo University Hospital) and clinical head of the Trauma Centre at Psykologvirke.

John Maxfield Steineger

Psychiatrist, Major General (ret.), former Surgeon General of the Norwegian Armed Forces

Physician and psychiatrist, retired major general and former Surgeon General of the Norwegian Armed Forces. Led the Armed Forces’ stress management team for international operations.

Ida Falchenberg

CEO, Axon Research Foundation

CEO of Axon Research Foundation, PhD candidate at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), and assistant professor at the University of Inland Norway (INN). Ida researches psychedelic-assisted therapy, is course coordinator for the continuing education program in psychedelic therapy at INN, and is certified in psychedelic therapy through CIIS, MAPS, and Grof Legacy Training.

Hanne Kristine Haarset

Specialist in Clinical Psychology and EMDR Supervisor

Specialist in clinical psychology with more than 20 years of experience in adult clinical and organisational psychology, specialising in trauma treatment. EMDR supervisor, former section head of veteran treatment at Moss DPS, and affiliated with the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies (NKVTS).

Join us

Three roles a partner can take

Funding partner

Help fund one or more treatment places. One complete course costs NOK 82,047 per veteran. Get in touch if you would like to contribute.

Recruitment partner

Help us reach the veterans who are struggling but do not approach the support system.

Communication partner

Do you arrange relevant meeting places? Feel free to invite us to tell about the project. We are also looking for partners who can tell about the project through audio, photo, video and text.

Project Momentum

Get in touch

If you would like to contribute, become a partner or have questions about the research, get in touch and we will follow up. If you are a veteran and want to know more about the treatment programme, use the “Interested in treatment?” form above. It goes to Axonklinikken.