Latest news with #DeborahCasserly
Straits Times
27-06-2025
- Health
- Straits Times
Ketamine ‘epidemic' among Britain's youth raises alarm
Ms Deborah Casserly looking at pictures of her late son Barney Casserly, who was addicted to ketamine and died in April 2018. PHOTO: AFP LONDON – The first time Mr Barney Casserly used ketamine at a British music festival, he thought he had found 'nirvana'. Five years later, he died in agony, leaving behind devastated parents and friends. 'I would never, ever have imagined that this would happen to us as a family,' said his mother, Ms Deborah Casserly, still grieving for Barney who died in April 2018, aged 21. Ketamine, an affordable recreational drug that induces a sense of detachment from reality, has reached unprecedented levels of popularity among young people in Britain, with some experts even calling it an 'epidemic'. The extent of the crisis prompted the government in January to seek advice from an official advisory body on whether to reclassify ketamine as a Class A substance. That would bring it in line with other drugs such as heroin, cocaine and ecstasy, meaning supplying ketamine could carry terms of up to life imprisonment. In the consulting room of Dr Niall Campbell, a leading specialist in addiction treatment at Priory Hospital, Roehampton, Ms Casserly, 64, showed pictures of her son – a smiling young man with dark hair and bright eyes. Tearfully, she recalled how her son's life fell apart as his ketamine addiction took hold. Barney was just 16 when he went to the Reading music festival in southern England and used ketamine for the first time, writing about it in ecstatic terms in his journal. But he swiftly became addicted to the drug, a white crystalline powder that is crushed and then sniffed. Alternatively, it can be swallowed in liquid form. 'Excruciating pain' 'His usage moved from being used in a party context to being used at home alone… a tragic, sad, desperately lonely experience,' said his mother. His family sent him to private rehabs but he relapsed, would use it every day, and was in an 'excruciating amount of pain'. 'He would spend long parts of the day in the bath, in hot water… because the cramps were so bad. He was not able to sleep properly at night because he was constantly getting up to urinate,' said his mother. Barney suffered from ulcerative cystitis, also known as 'ketamine bladder', which is when 'the breakdown products of ketamine basically cause the bladder to rot', said Dr Campbell. 'Mum, if this is living, I don't want it,' said Barney on April 7, 2018. The next morning, his mother found him dead in his bed. Ms Deborah Casserly looks at a photo of her late son Barney who died by suicide after struggling with ketamine addiction. PHOTO: AFP An anaesthetic drug invented in 1962, ketamine is used for both human and veterinary medicine often as a horse tranquilliser. 'Some people love that dissociative, detached from reality, kind of effect' the drug brings, said Dr Campbell. Users 'go right down into what we call a K hole, which is just to the point of collapsing and being unconscious'. In the year ending March 2024, an estimated 269,000 people aged 16 to 59 had reported using ketamine, a government minister said. And among young people aged 16 to 24 'the misuse of ketamine… has grown in the last decade' by 231 per cent, said Junior Interior Minister Diana Johnson, in her letter asking for advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. There were 53 deaths in England and Wales in 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics. Highly addictive 'It's really commonplace now. It's everywhere,' said Laiden, a London drug dealer using an assumed name. 'It's a cheap drug with a strong effect on people, and people aren't concerned about selling it to youngsters,' added Laiden. Ketamine costs between £20 (S$35) and £30 a gram, while cocaine, which remains his top seller, is around £100 a gram, he said. 'This epidemic is having a huge effect on the nation,' said Dr Campbell. A staff at a wellness centre shows a lozenge form of ketamine used for depression and anxiety. PHOTO: AFP Ketamine is very addictive and 'by the time they get to see us, the party's over. They're not out in the nightclubs. They're sitting on their own at home, secretly doing this stuff, killing themselves', he added. But others argue that ketamine can have healing benefits. Married therapists Lucy and Alex da Silva run a psychedelic therapy wellness centre in London, and use ketamine prescribed by doctors in lozenge form to treat depression and trauma. 'We want people to see what the healing benefits of ketamine, when it's controlled in the right way, can do,' said Dr Lucy da Silva. But she agreed there was 'a need for education around the dangers of street ketamine and the lives that it's taking'. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Al Arabiya
27-06-2025
- Health
- Al Arabiya
Ketamine ‘epidemic' among youth in UK raises alarm
The first time Barney Casserly used ketamine at a UK music festival he thought he had found 'nirvana.' Five years later he died in agony, leaving behind devastated parents and friends. 'I would never, ever have imagined that this would happen to us as a family,' said his mother, Deborah Casserly, still grieving for Barney who died in April 2018, aged 21. Ketamine, an affordable recreational drug that induces a sense of detachment from reality, has reached unprecedented levels of popularity among young people in the UK, with some experts even calling it an 'epidemic.' The extent of the crisis prompted the government in January to seek advice from an official advisory body on whether to reclassify ketamine as a Class A substance. That would bring it in line with other drugs such as heroin, cocaine and ecstasy, meaning supplying ketamine could carry terms of up to life imprisonment. In the consulting room of doctor Niall Campbell, a leading specialist in addiction treatment at Priory Hospital, Roehampton, Casserly, 64, showed pictures of her son -- a smiling young man with dark hair and bright eyes. Tearfully, she recalled how her son's life fell apart as his ketamine addiction took hold. Barney was just 16 when he went to the Reading music festival in southern England and used ketamine for the first time, writing about it in ecstatic terms in his journal. But he swiftly became addicted to the drug, a white crystalline powder that is crushed and then sniffed. Alternatively it can be swallowed in liquid form. 'excruciating pain' 'His usage moved from being used in a party context to being used at home alone... a tragic, sad, desperately lonely experience,' said his mother. His family sent him to private rehabs but he relapsed, would use every day, and was in an 'excruciating amount of pain.' 'He would spend long parts of the day in the bath, in hot water... because the cramps were so bad. He was not able to sleep properly at night because he was constantly getting up to urinate,' said his mother. Barney suffered from ulcerative cystitis, also known as 'ketamine bladder,' which is when 'the breakdown products of ketamine basically cause the bladder to rot,' said Campbell. 'Mum, if this is living, I don't want it,' said Barney on April 7, 2018. The next morning his mother found him dead in his bed. An anesthetic drug invented in 1962, ketamine is used for both human and veterinary medicine often as a horse tranquilizer. 'Some people love that dissociative, detached from reality, kind of effect' the drug brings, said Campbell. Users 'go right down into what we call a K hole, which is just to the point of collapsing and being unconscious.' In the year ending March 2024, an estimated 269,000 people aged 16 to 59 had reported using ketamine, a government minister said. And among young people aged 16-24 'the misuse of ketamine... has grown in the last decade' by 231 percent, said junior interior minister Diana Johnson, in her letter asking for advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. There were 53 deaths in England and Wales in 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics. Highly addictive 'It's really commonplace now, it's everywhere,' said Laiden, a London drug dealer using an assumed name. 'It's a cheap drug with a strong effect on people and people aren't concerned about selling it to youngsters,' added Laiden. Ketamine costs between £20 and £30 ($27.50 and $41) a gram while cocaine, which remains his top seller, is around £100 a gram, he said. 'This epidemic is having a huge effect on the nation,' said Campbell. Ketamine is very addictive and 'by the time they get to see us, the party's over. They're not out in the nightclubs. They're sitting on their own at home, secretly doing this stuff, killing themselves,' he added. But others argue that ketamine can have healing benefits. Married therapists Lucy and Alex da Silva run a psychedelic therapy wellness center in London, and use ketamine prescribed by doctors in lozenge form to treat depression and trauma. 'We want people to see what the healing benefits of ketamine, when it's controlled in the right way, can do,' said Lucy da Silva. But she agreed there was 'a need for education around the dangers of street ketamine and the lives that it's taking.'
Arab News
27-06-2025
- Health
- Arab News
Ketamine ‘epidemic' among UK youth raises alarm
LONDON: The first time Barney Casserly used ketamine at a UK music festival he thought he had found 'nirvana.' Five years later he died in agony, leaving behind devastated parents and friends. 'I would never, ever have imagined that this would happen to us as a family,' said his mother, Deborah Casserly, still grieving for Barney who died in April 2018, aged 21. Ketamine, an affordable recreational drug that induces a sense of detachment from reality, has reached unprecedented levels of popularity among young people in the UK, with some experts even calling it an 'epidemic.' The extent of the crisis prompted the government in January to seek advice from an official advisory body on whether to reclassify ketamine as a Class A substance. That would bring it in line with other drugs such as heroin, cocaine and ecstasy, meaning supplying ketamine could carry terms of up to life imprisonment. In the consulting room of doctor Niall Campbell, a leading specialist in addiction treatment at Priory Hospital, Roehampton, Casserly, 64, showed pictures of her son — a smiling young man with dark hair and bright eyes. Tearfully, she recalled how her son's life fell apart as his ketamine addiction took hold. Barney was just 16 when he went to the Reading music festival in southern England and used ketamine for the first time, writing about it in ecstatic terms in his journal. But he swiftly became addicted to the drug, a white crystalline powder that is crushed and then sniffed. Alternatively it can be swallowed in liquid form. 'His usage moved from being used in a party context to being used at home alone... a tragic, sad, desperately lonely experience,' said his mother. His family sent him to private rehabs but he relapsed, would use every day, and was in an 'excruciating amount of pain.' 'He would spend long parts of the day in the bath, in hot water... because the cramps were so bad. He was not able to sleep properly at night because he was constantly getting up to urinate,' said his mother. Barney suffered from ulcerative cystitis, also known as 'ketamine bladder,' which is when 'the breakdown products of ketamine basically cause the bladder to rot,' said Campbell. 'Mum, if this is living, I don't want it,' said Barney on April 7, 2018. The next morning his mother found him dead in his bed. An anaesthetic drug invented in 1962, ketamine is used for both human and veterinary medicine often as a horse tranquillizer. 'Some people love that dissociative, detached from reality, kind of effect' the drug brings, said Campbell. Users 'go right down into what we call a K hole, which is just to the point of collapsing and being unconscious.' In the year ending March 2024, an estimated 269,000 people aged 16 to 59 had reported using ketamine, a government minister said. And among young people aged 16-24 'the misuse of ketamine... has grown in the last decade' by 231 percent, said junior interior minister Diana Johnson, in her letter asking for advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. There were 53 deaths in England and Wales in 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics. 'It's really commonplace now, it's everywhere,' said Laiden, a London drug dealer using an assumed name. 'It's a cheap drug with a strong effect on people and people aren't concerned about selling it to youngsters,' added Laiden. Ketamine costs between £20 and £30 ($27.50 and $41) a gram while cocaine, which remains his top seller, is around £100 a gram, he said. 'This epidemic is having a huge effect on the nation,' said Campbell. Ketamine is very addictive and 'by the time they get to see us, the party's over. They're not out in the nightclubs. They're sitting on their own at home, secretly doing this stuff, killing themselves,' he added. But others argue that ketamine can have healing benefits. Married therapists Lucy and Alex da Silva run a psychedelic therapy wellness center in London, and use ketamine prescribed by doctors in lozenge form to treat depression and trauma. 'We want people to see what the healing benefits of ketamine, when it's controlled in the right way, can do,' said Lucy da Silva. But she agreed there was 'a need for education around the dangers of street ketamine and the lives that it's taking.'
Daily Mail
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Barney took ketamine aged 16 to celebrate the end of GCSEs. A year later he was addicted. At 21 he was dead. Now his despairing mother reveals the true horror of drug so many are taking
When Deborah Casserly's son Barney started primary school, she and several other mums set up a book club. Discussions of the latest bestseller were often relegated in favour of debate about their daily lives. As their children grew, the women supported each other through everything from divorce to illness via food fads and the first throes of teenage love.
The Independent
19-04-2025
- Health
- The Independent
‘My son killed himself after ketamine ruined his life – how many lives will this drug destroy?'
The first time Deborah Casserly caught her son using ketamine is a moment she will never forget. Tennis fan Barney was loving, 'desperately funny' and a good student who never got in trouble at school. 'I will never ever forget it – I pushed open the bedroom door and he was just sitting in his bed with this terrible, terrible look in his eyes and he could hardly speak,' she said. 'The bedside table was covered in powder. My heart was just in my mouth. I remember just scooping it up and pulling the flush on the toilet.' What had begun as a dabble with drugs at Reading Festival at the age of 17 had escalated into a serious problem which was getting out of hand. Even then, as she took him to a psychiatrist to help him stop using the powerful horse tranquilliser and anaesthetic, she had 'no idea of the tsunami that was going to hit us as a family'. Over the years that followed, the family spent every penny they had on sending him to private rehab as he battled with an addiction that left him in crippling pain. Regular ketamine use causes irreversible bladder damage known as 'ketamine bladder' that leads to incontinence and painful symptoms which left Barney using the toilet up to 20 times a night. He knew the only cure was a urostomy bag before he took his own life in April 2018, aged 21, after suffering multiple relapses in his bid to stay clean. Sharing his story after figures last month showed ketamine use has soared by 85 per cent since 2021, according to Home Office wastewater analysis, she told The Independent: 'It's an evil, evil drug. I just fear that we are heading for what the Americans were experiencing with their fentanyl crisis. It's massively available, massively cheap. 'All of the rehabs across the country are all saying the same thing: enquiries about treatment for ketamine are going through the roof. How many young lives are going to be lost and destroyed?' Figures from the Forward Trust show the number of adults entering treatment with ketamine problems is surging, from 1,551 in 2021-22 to 2,211 in 2022-23. By the time Barney first went to rehab, his addiction was so consuming he lied to his mother to pick up drugs for the flight to the treatment centre in Thailand. 'The fact that he would have risked that shows the need and desire to take ketamine was so, so huge,' Ms Casserly, 64, from north London, added. Despite getting clean, he struggled when he was living in secondary residential care after rehab and fell back into drug use. 'I could always tell if he had used in a couple of seconds because his eyes would change completely and he walked up the stairs and I just said 'you have used',' she recalled. By 2018, he had hit rock bottom after losing his job as a van driver. 'He just came here and said 'nothing's worked, I have been rehab and it hasn't worked… You and dad spent all your money that hasn't worked'. 'He had this really awful inner narrative where he said 'everyone's going to laugh at me, everyone's going to think I'm a complete waste because I haven't been able to achieve anything'. 'By this point it was just terrible. He was using every day. Just lying in bed, lying in the bath. I discovered that he was going round different A&Es presenting different tales collecting painkillers.' At times she would sleep on the floor next to his bed, fearing he was so deep in a 'k-hole' he would fall down the stairs and break his neck if he woke in the night. The mother said he would lie in the bath for hours, showering warm water on his stomach to soothe his bladder symptoms. Tragically, Barney turned to ketamine for help with the agonising stomach cramps, which only fuelled the cycle of drug abuse. 'He used to describe it as having the worst case of cystitis you have ever had,' she said. 'He would be in bed and every 20 minutes he would get up because you think you're desperate to pee.' Having exhausted their funds for private care, she turned to the NHS drug and alcohol treatment services and begged for help but was told there was nowhere to send him and he needed to prove he could do well in an outpatient setting. He was offered an appointment the following Tuesday, but did not live long enough to attend. The night he took his own life, he told his mother he was going to a Narcotics Anonymous meeting, but returned having used. 'We sat on the sofa and he said 'mum, if this is living I don't want it',' she said. 'I want to wake up in the morning not craving drugs. He had these terrible side effects from the ketamine. 'I was the last person to see him alive. I went to bed and when I woke up in the morning he had killed himself. 'It was such a waste. He was such a lovely, lovely boy – he was kind, he was funny. He had so many friends.' Some 450 people came to his funeral, including teachers from his school, primary school and friends from his tennis club. Paying tribute to the 'proper little Englishman', who liked nothing more than a home-cooked roast or his favourite M&S chicken pie and used to call his grandmother every night, she said: 'The tragedy is he would have made a great dad because he was so loving and desperately funny.' Seven years on, Barney's mother wants people to understand the risks of ketamine use and more investment in addiction services, adding: 'We were a middle-class London family. The image that you have got when you think about addiction is someone on the street jacking up and it's so much more than that. 'The one thing I can be is his voice, I know he would be up there saying 'mum, tell my story' because sadly the illness just completely took hold of him.' Mike Trace CEO of the Forward Trust, added: 'Ketamine was once seen by many as a 'safe' party drug. Sadly, as we know from families such as Barney's, we are also seeing an increase in long-term health conditions and fatalities caused by the use of ketamine. 'Ketamine abuse is soaring, with young people all over the UK seeking treatment for addiction and irreparable damage to their bladders – it is also known to cause paranoia, muscle paralysis, and liver damage, alongside many other side effects. 'Addiction isn't a marginalised issue in society. It runs deep and spreads wide. People are living with addiction all around us. And yet the stigma, misunderstanding and the fear of judgement is holding people back from getting the help they need. 'Perceptions of addiction need to change. We need to build compassion and understanding around addiction and support people to ask for help without judgement, discrimination or stigma. 'Recovery is possible and with the right support and everyone should have the opportunity to access it before they reach rock bottom.' A Home Office spokesperson said the rise in ketamine use identified in wastewater analysis was 'deeply concerning' and the policing minister Diana Johnson has asked the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to consider reclassifying it as a Class A substance. 'Our thoughts are with Barney's family and friends after his life was cut far too short,' the spokesperson said. 'Ketamine is an extremely dangerous substance and the recent rise in its use, as well as rising cocaine and ecstasy use highlighted by this new analysis, is deeply concerning. 'In January this year, the Minister for Policing and Crime Prevention wrote to the ACMD expressing the government's concern about the growth in the use of ketamine, particularly amongst young people and the damage that it was doing, and asking them to consider whether to reclassify it as a Class A drug. 'We will continue to work across health, policing and wider public services to drive down drug use and stop those who profit from its supply and we will not hesitate to act on the advice of the ACMD when they report back to Minister Johnson.'
