In this episode, I talk to my friend Josh Rhodes about ketamine addiction, its consequences, harm reduction, and the journey to sobriety.
As many people will know ketamine has some heavy consequences when paired up with addiction and excessive usage. If you are interested in this then skip to the end where we also talk about harm reduction. We decided to wait until the end because they can be difficult to talk about.
Josh suffered from "K bladder" (bladder cystitis). The symptoms were severe and would cause him to pass urine and jelly-like substances in his urine. He had multiple operations to address this problem including a cancer scare. He has now managed to start a new life where he only occasionally uses when he goes home to where he suffered the worst with his addiction (around 3 times a year) and his bladder situation has improved considerably.
We also discuss other effects such as K-cramps, the nature of addiction, social, financial, family problems.
Ketamine’s effects when abused. (This is an absolute guess but based on what I have observed. 2+ grams per day consistently can cause these problems. Everyone is different and some manifest symptoms way sooner. Not likely to happen from mild usage and has been proven safe to use in medical and clinical circumstances.)
-bladder walls become thickened and lose elasticity. Potential cystitis, and ulceration.
-urinary tract (urine in the blood)
-extremely painful to pass urine
-back pain -blocked kidneys
-kidneys can become damaged due to increased pressure caused by shrunken bladder
-potential kidney failure -incontinence -bladder cystitis
-shrunken bladder (50ml)
-thickened bladder walls
-scarred bladder
If you stop using most cases show a dramatic improvement within 3 months.
Some of our harm reduction tips are:
-Cook the ket into powder and avoid using it in crystal form.
-Drink plenty of water even before bed. It may seem counterintuitive but it will help your bladder to be less irritated.
-Before bed or even during the day, sniff water before bed to clear out nostrils to prevent damage to your nose.
-Don’t swallow the chemical into the stomach.
-Eat well and try to take care of yourself the best you can.
Most of all make a proactive move towards getting into recovery - don’t stay in the dark.