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A man who spent £20k on ketamine in an eight-year-long addiction was left needing the loo 40 times a day. Nicholas Koutsandreou Macdonald, 33, says he fell into a bad group aged just 15 after growing up in care. He began taking drugs at illegal raves - including ketamine, which became his go-to to "block out trauma". It spiralled into an eight-year-long addiction which saw him take 12g of the drug per day - costing over £20k in that time. But chronic use of the drug affects the bladder - and Nicholas saw himself needing the toilet up to 40 times a day despite struggling to pass urine. He said the cramps felt "like being stabbed", ketamine cystitis felt like his urethra was "burning" and he had to keep bottles by his bed to wee in at night. Nicholas' turning point came when his young son, five, cried at soft play because his dad had to stay by the toilet and couldn't play with him. But as Nicholas' whole life, and friendships, all revolved around the drug, he had to get away - after doctors warned him he'd be dead in 12 months. He flew to Greece, where his father lives, and is now 50 days into a 90-day detox. Nicholas, from Farnborough, Hampshire, said: "I grew up in foster placements, bounced from pillar to post. Aged 15, I was living with a friend and I went to an illegal rave in the woods. "I tried ketamine and it blocked all my trauma. Over time it went from little bumps to lines, which went from a gram to two - and in the day time too. "At my worst I was doing 12 grams a day, all day every day. "I couldn't go to the toilet - I'd spend hours in the bath to relax my muscles and I'd be in excruciating pain. The evil drug would leave me rolling on the floor screaming in agony but I needed it to function. "My son getting upset was my turning point - I had been floating through life until the bubble popped." Nicholas ended up in the care system aged 11 and went through several foster placements. The instability made him "violent and angry" and he ended up in a young offenders institute for a while due to getting into fights. In 2017, aged 15, he was living with a friend and was taken to an illegal rave where he first tried ketamine, and liked it. The occasional bump or line at a gathering graduated into him taking several grams of the party drug a night, and eventually in the day too. He made lots of drug-taking friends and could get high quantities of ketamine for a low price. He said: "I got to know lots of people who sold it, and I got it on tick so I paid it back slowly. I got a lot pushed onto me. "I was working at the time and I'd spend most of my wages on it after paying child maintenance. My fridge was always empty. "My friends who didn't use drugs washed their hands of me because they felt like they were banging their heads against brick walls, trying to get through to me. "It got to the stage where I lived in the middle of nowhere, and the only people who would come and see me were my dealers." Chronic ketamine usage is known to affect the lining of the bladder, causing it to shrink and become less stretchy. Nicholas said he felt no long-term effects of his drug taking for years, but eventually was impacted by the 12 gram-a-day habit. He began to see his nose change shape from snorting the powder. He began needing the toilet more frequently and using the toilet became "excruciating" due to ketamine-induced cystitis. And despite needing the loo, he'd struggle to pass urine. He said: "I'd spend hours in excruciating pain. I was prescribed meds and none of them touched the sides. "I went to the doctors in 2022 and they said my bladder only had 150ml capacity, when a normal bladder's is about 500ml. "I'd spend hours in the bath, and sometimes I'd be rolling around on the floor pushing, sweating, even being sick. I had to use the loo every 15 minutes and I learnt to live on no sleep - I had to keep bottles by the bed to p*ss in. "If I wanted to go out I had to wear an external catheter. The doctor told me 'the way you're going, you won't be here in 12 months'." The one day a week Nicholas would abstain was when he spent time with his son, although he was restricted by his bladder problems. Nicholas said: "He cried 'daddy you never play with me because you need the toilet all the time'." That day, on August 14 2025, Nicholas vowed to kick the habit and get his life back. On September 14, he was on a flight to Kyllini, Greece, to live with his father while he detoxed, away from his normal ketamine-focused environment. He's been sober ever since and is determined to reach three months clean. He even now runs a Facebook group called 'Ketamine Reality Check' aimed to support people affected by addiction. He said: "The first few days, I tried to keep busy so I didn't think about it. It's now been over a month and I feel amazing. "An addict is an addict, and addiction will always be wired in you, but it's about how to manage it. People see it as a party drug but I've have several friends who have died from this. "It needs to be reclassified as Class A - it is an evil, evil drug." For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here .
