A woman who spent £1,000 on ketamine every month has revealed the devastating impact it had on her body.
Paige Collins, 25, from Hampshire in the United Kingdom, first tried the drug at the age of 19 while on a night out.
But the occasional use ended up turning into a daily habit, with Paige taking between five and 10 grams every day and spending £1,000 every month.
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After kicking her drug use, Paige is nine months clean from ketamine and hopes to share her experience in a bid to warn others.
Saying her use began as a 'once in a blue moon' encounter with the drug where she tried it, her experience worsened with the drug as the Covid-19 pandemic hit the UK with a worrying downward spiral taking over her life.
"I was 19 when I first tried ketamine. My friend asked me to sort some for a rave we were going to and it started from there," she said.
"It started as a once-in-a-blue-moon thing then it was a weekend thing then [it] started picking up during covid to week days and then every day.
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"Initially I really enjoyed it. It took me three years to realise I was addicted.
"I would start off getting one or two grams a night and then at the start of 2024 I was doing between five and 10 grams a day.
"It was costing me anywhere between £150 to £250 a week."
Paige began to notice some alarming side effects, including excruciating pain and a jelly-like substance when she urinated.
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"I noticed symptoms over time. It started with more frequent toilet trips but it took a little while to start peeing jelly - start peeing the lining of my bladder," she continued.
"I had absolutely no clue this could happen. Even when I knew [and] it was at its worst I still continued to do it. It was awful, I was in pain. I was stuck in a cycle of waking up, doing it, crying, saying 'I'm never going to touch it again' then picking it up again'.
"I was nipping to the loo 50 plus times a day. It was ruining my life. I couldn't go out for four or five months of 2023, I didn't leave the house."
When doctors performed a scan, they found that Paige's ketamine use had shrunk her bladder so it could only hold 30ml, which is around the same amount as a shot glass-worth of liquid.
For reference, the NHS states that a healthy bladder should hold around 400-600mls of urine.
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"When I woke up from having it [the cystoscopy] done the doctor said my bladder was only 30ml. It was really shocking to hear," she said. "I refer to it as just over a shot - a shot is 25ml.
"When they said that to me I felt awful but also felt a bit of relief, because I was really scared of them saying 'you're going to have to have a bag'."
Paige explained that the damage is 'irreversible', but she is having a bladder instillation treatment to help with the pain and to attempt to stretch her bladder.
"There's nothing I can do to make my bladder the way it once was," she said. "Ket was an escape mechanism for me, which I know it also is for lots of other people. I was a party girl. Even now I still like going out dancing, but I don't take ket when I go out.
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"I just want to raise awareness as I know the physical and emotional pain this has caused me and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy."
If you want friendly, confidential advice about drugs, you can talk to FRANK. You can call 0300 123 6600, text 82111 or contact through their website 24/7, or livechat from 2pm-6pm any day of the week.
Lucy Devine