Dr. Rupal Patel has always carried Aiken in her heart. Raised in this community, she knew that one day she wanted to return home, raise her family and give back to the town that helped shape her. Today, as the owner and founder of Integrative Flow Psychiatry, she’s doing exactly that by offering Aiken residents a new path to healing through compassionate, innovative mental health care.
Her journey to becoming Dr. Patel, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC began with her own struggle. In her early adulthood, life brought a series of painful challenges: her mother’s breast cancer diagnosis, the passing of her biological father and a battle with depression that left her feeling lost. She remembers days when she couldn’t find the strength to get out of bed and when the standard medications did little to ease her pain. Searching for answers, she moved to California where she discovered ketamine therapy, a treatment that would transform her life and later become the cornerstone of her career.
Through her own experience, Patel began to understand what so many others endure, the quiet despair of depression and the desperate search for relief. She also learned that her biological father had suffered from mental health issues, and that knowledge, coupled with her own healing, made her feel called by God to pursue a new purpose. She went back to school, completed advanced psychiatric training and obtained three years of experience in interventional psychiatry before returning to Aiken to help others reclaim their lives the same way she had reclaimed hers.
At Integrative Flow Psychiatry, Patel’s practice specializes in interventional psychiatry, a field that uses cutting-edge medical innovations to treat mental health disorders that have not responded to standard therapies. She offers several advanced options, including IV and IM ketamine treatments, Spravato® (intranasal esketamine) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).
Ketamine, the treatment closest to her heart, is often life-changing for those who have battled long-term depression, PTSD, or anxiety without relief. Unlike conventional antidepressants that can take weeks to show results ketamine works on a different pathway in the brain, often bringing noticeable improvement within hours or days. Patients describe the experience as “lifting the fog” or “finding hope again.” Each treatment at Integrative Flow is conducted in a calm, supportive setting where comfort, education and compassion are central. Dr. Patel closely monitors every patient, ensuring the therapy is both safe and effective.
She has seen firsthand how ketamine can restore not only mood but also motivation and clarity. For many, it becomes the spark that helps them re-engage with therapy, relationships and life itself. “I’ve been there,” she often tells her patients. “I know what it feels like to think nothing will work. That’s why I do what I do. Because there is hope.”
In addition to ketamine therapy, Dr. Patel offers Spravato®, a prescription nasal spray derived from ketamine that’s FDA-approved for treatment-resistant depression. It provides similar benefits to IV and IM infusions but in a format some patients find easier to tolerate or maintain.
Another powerful tool available at Integrative Flow is TMS, a non-invasive treatment that uses gentle magnetic pulses to stimulate areas of the brain involved in mood regulation. TMS is particularly effective for those who haven’t responded to medications and prefer a drug-free option. It’s painless, FDA-approved and has given many people new hope for recovery without the side effects of traditional antidepressants.
Every service at Integrative Flow Psychiatry is grounded in Patel’s belief that healing requires both science and soul. Her practice blends the precision of modern medicine with the compassion of human connection. She takes time with every patient, listening deeply and working collaboratively to design a care plan that fits their goals and comfort level. Her gentle presence and personal understanding of suffering make her patients feel truly seen.
Now back in the city that raised her with her husband and daughter by her side, Patel is doing what she was meant to do, helping others find light after darkness. At Integrative Flow Psychiatry, she continues to bring cutting-edge treatments and heartfelt care to Aiken, offering hope, healing and a reminder that no one has to walk their journey alone.
Treatment Options at Integrative Flow Psychiatry
IV Ketamine
IM Ketamine
Spravato®
TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation)