After using laughing gas, a former receptionist became paralysed.
She claims that her “hippie crack” binges destroyed her spinal cord and made her dependent on her father for round-the-clock care.
In 2017, Kerry Donaldson and her friends began inhaling nitrous oxide, sometimes referred to as laughing gas, through balloons on the weekends.
But the 25-year-old quickly discovered that her use had developed into three-day binges that left her with days of nausea.
Ms. Donaldson, a resident of Newham in Greater London, stopped using balloons in 2020 after numerous trips to the hospital due to numbness in her hands and legs.
The “depressing” news that her habit had caused a disc bulge in her lower back and rendered her unable to walk was delivered to her while she was hospitalised in January 2022.
According to reports, there is a connection between long-term nitrous oxide consumption and spinal cord myelopathy, or injury brought on by a vitamin B12 shortage, which can cause wasting and weakening in the muscles.
Prior to receiving the sad news, Ms. Donaldson worked as a receptionist. She is now totally reliant on her family for care and requires a wheelchair to get around.
Her health issues are shown in videos that have been posted online; one of the videos shows her having trouble standing up without the assistance of her brother.
Six months after receiving her diagnosis, Ms. Donaldson is now sharing her experience in an effort to spread the word about the risks associated with nitrous oxide consumption.
I’ve been using nitrous oxide for around four to five years now, she claimed.
I was occasionally engaging in it, generally on the weekends. Everyone was doing it because it was a social activity.
“I didn’t truly comprehend the harm it may do.” I didn’t believe it would hurt me; I just thought it was a little fun. I knew little about the matter.
I soon began to experience numbness in my hands and legs. When I visited the hospital, I was completely open with the medical staff regarding my use of nitrous oxide.
Because of my low B12 levels, I was started on B12 injections.
It is known that using laughing gas frequently can prevent the body from properly absorbing vitamin B12, which can harm the spinal cord.
According to Prof. Gino Martini, head scientist at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, “we think what happens is that persistent use of nitrous oxide hinders you from absorbing vitamin B12,” according to the BBC.
“If you have a depletion, it wears away this safeguard and harms your spinal cord.”
Because of this, people sometimes experience difficulty with their walking, numbness, tingling, and, in more serious situations, paraplegia, a form of paralysis.
I didn’t care at the moment, Ms. Donaldson continued. I was hurting myself, but I didn’t care.
I never imagined that I’d need to use a wheelchair because I wouldn’t be able to walk.
‘About two years ago, I noticed that my left leg was becoming numb. At that time, I often performed balloons.
I used them for three days, and the following several days would see me throwing up.
I wouldn’t be able to consume any food or water. I could barely function because I would be ill and sleep for about 12 hours.
“Then I’d wake up and repeat the process; it would be like a cycle.”
But I stopped when I entered the hospital in 2020.
“I used a crutch to walk for approximately a year and a half.” Up until the end of last year, I was receiving B12 injections.
I had been experiencing lower back ache. Even though I was aware that the balloons were to blame, I chose to ignore it.
Nitrous oxide-related health problems started out mildly, but when Ms. Donaldson was transported to Newham University Hospital, things grew much worse.
“When I went in, I couldn’t even move, and the pain had returned even worse,” she recalled.
I got MRI scans, and they revealed that I had nerve damage and a disc bulge in my lower back.
This was undoubtedly brought on by the balloons. The damage had gotten worse because I neglected it for such a long time and didn’t get it treated.
The 25-year-old, who was once autonomous, now depends on her father to take care of her daily requirements, including eating and washing.
She remarked, “Before, I could leave whenever I wanted and enter the shower with ease.
“My bath has been modified to make it simpler for me to get in and out, but now my dad has to assist me to the shower.” My dad makes all of my meals for me.
He is my caregiver, and I am incredibly grateful to him for changing what he does in order to take care of me.
“Even going out is difficult,” she said. I just recently received a wheelchair; previously, I had assistance from someone to push me when using a toilet chair.
Ms. Donaldson is currently sharing her experience online in an effort to stop others from going through what she has.
She admitted that it was initially a little disheartening to learn she wouldn’t be able to walk.
But as time went on, I continued to share my story online, and I started receiving letters from individuals who wanted help and had given up doing balloons.
It has been tough, but I managed to make the best of it. At the end of the day, I’m content if I can aid someone and spare them from experiencing what I’m going through.
“I’m attempting to take advantage of the circumstances.”
Of course I wish I had known better before consuming nitrous oxide.
I wish I had known then what I know now because I doubt I would have used it.
But now that I’m in this position, I have to stop reflecting on the bad things that happened in the past.
“My experience might help someone avoid going through this,” I said.
I avoid dwelling on it too much and refrain from looking back because doing so will not improve my mood.
Helping others is the main focus right now.
In order to reach as many people as possible, Ms. Donaldson now wants to take her message outside of social media and into schools and institutions.
I want to visit schools and universities to teach and speak to young people, the woman declared.
Universities are where I also wish to go because I know balloons are frequently utilised there.
There should be a lot more education on the use of nitrous oxide. I doubt that many individuals are aware of the possible consequences.
Many people believe that it is harmless enjoyment that won’t hurt their bodies.
I’m in agony all the time, but I’ve become accustomed to it. Even the sensation of not feeling pain has escaped my memory.
“I didn’t hesitate to post my experience online. I was surrounded by people who asked, “Are you sure you want to share this?”
‘No matter what you do in life, somebody will have something to say about it. If I speak up and someone has negative things to say, I won’t listen to them.
I know speaking out will result in a lot of good, and that is what matters to me.
In August 2018, a young mother who regularly took party drug “hippy crack” developed spinal cord injury, leaving her unable to walk, much as Ms. Donaldson.
After getting sick from breathing nitrous oxide through balloons, Olivia Golding, 24, lost feeling in her body from the chest down.
While her three-year-old son Parker visited his father on the weekends, she had been ingesting up to 15 balloons per day.
However, one morning when she awoke immobile, she had to ask Parker to retrieve her phone so she could contact for assistance.
After learning that the nitrous oxide (NOS) had caused Lichtheim’s disease, also known as subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord, Miss Golding had to relearn how to walk and use her hands.
‘About a month before, I was doing a balloon and I got pins and needles in my neck and back,’ the Bristol-based car salesman recalled at the time.
My body started to feel numb. However, I had no idea it was the balloons, so I just kept doing them.
“The day after taking my son swimming and strolling through the park, I was unable to move.”
After being admitted to Bristol’s Southmead Hospital, the single mother’s spinal cord’s top was found to be damaged by tests.
They questioned her about taking NOS, and she replied, “Sure, I’ve done a lot of them.”
Miss Golding continued, “Things like that break my heart. I cannot even put Parker’s shoes on for him.
My son wants to play with me, but I am unable to. My entire body is twitching, and I can’t feel my legs.
“I cannot feed myself, drink myself, or go to the bathroom by myself.”
Nitrous oxide is thought to cause Lichtheim’s disease by depriving the body of vitamin B12 by preventing its proper absorption.
The fatty sheath encasing the nerve fibres in the spinal cord that regulate movement and sensation is harmed by a vitamin B12 deficiency.
Miss Golding began receiving vitamin B12 injections to address the disease, and most patients fully recover if this occurs within a few weeks of the onset of symptoms.
They may not recover from movement issues brought on by the irreversible nervous system impairment if treatment is postponed.
The small silver canisters are still sold in stores because it is allowed to use nitrous gas as an anaesthetic and to whip cream, even though it is forbidden to distribute or import nitrous oxide for human use.