Woman issues serious ‘ketamine bladder’ warning after scarring hers for life
Warning: This article contains discussion of drug addiction which some readers may find distressing
A woman who started taking ketamine at the age of 18 has warned people about the serious side effects associated with the drug.
Seen by many as a party drug, ketamine is a hugely popular substance in the UK, with large numbers of young people taking it on nights out.
One of those people was 23-year-old Ellie Wright.
Advert
Speaking about her addiction in an interview with the BBC, Ellie revealed that she'd started taking ketamine at the age of 18, as it gave her an 'out of body' and 'calm' feeling while high.
The drug was also very cheap, with the Scottish native revealing that she could get a gram of ketamine for around £10 to £20.
But after six months of taking the drug, she began to experience excruciating side effects.
The Aberdeenshire native started developing symptoms of ketamine urinary tract syndrome, a complication known to many as 'ketamine bladder'.
"I started off getting UTIs (urinary tract infections) quite a lot," she recalled. "It's not something I'm really proud of, but when I was 18 years old and I'm sitting in traffic in Aberdeen, and I'm bursting for the toilet and you just physically can't hold it."
Although she is now 10 months clean, Ellie still experiences complications from her ketamine usage, noting that she has 'daily pain' and continued bladder issues.
"A normal bladder should hold about 400 to 500ml [whereas] my bladder only holds from 50 to 100ml," she explained.
What is 'ketamine bladder' – and why does it happen?
Also known as Ketamine-Induced Cystitis, the condition occurs when the drug destroys the bladder lining, causing scarring, inflammation, and pain.
Symptoms of ketamine bladder can include:
- needing to wee more often
- Incontinence
- Pain and discomfort in the bladder and surrounding areas
- blood in the urine
The bladder's ability to heal depends on the amount of ketamine taken by a person, varying between weeks and months.
In severe cases, the damage can be irreversible.
Ellie isn't the only young person to have experimented with ketamine, as 2024 research revealed that usage had increased by 231 percent since March 2013. Meanwhile, recent statistics have suggested that the number of young people entering ketamine rehab treatment is now eight times higher than it was just one decade ago, per UK Addiction Treatment Centres.
Ellie isn't the only person to experience the devastating side effect either, with one former ketamine addict revealing that she was left 'peeing jelly' due to extensive bladder damage.
Meanwhile, another former ketamine addict revealed to LADbible that she was forced to use adult nappies due to the impact the drug had on her bladder.
Revealing that she was weeing as much as '200 times' per day, Amber Currah suffered 'constant agony' due to the impact ketamine had on her body. "Sometimes the pain could be that bad, I wouldn't be able to move for eight hours," she said.
"I got to the point where I was now having to wear nappies all the time. I'd say at my worst, I was weeing 200 times a day."
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
Brenna Cooper