'I'm a young professional and I was banged up abroad over my silent killer addiction'

Banged up in solitary confinement in a Japanese prison celllike a common drug addict, Izabel Rose’s facade of respectability was stripped away. Just days before, the 26-year-old marketing professional had kidded herself that her drug addiction was under control. All she needed to stay on top was a holiday.

So, taking a month off, she excitedly booked a flight to Japan - planning to touch down in Tokyo and then head to Osaka - an area known as ‘Japan’s kitchen.’

But Izabel, who left London’s South Bank University with a first class honours degree in journalism, was in complete denial about the level of her addiction.

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She says: “I started to take drugs in my late teens. At first it was fun, but five or so years later I was spending £20 a day on one or two grams. Ketamine numbs your busy brain and makes you feel like you’re in a bubble.”

But within five years, what began as a bit of fun with friends, became a daily addiction. And without ketamine - used as an anaesthetic for animals -, the withdrawals were hideous. She says: “When I didn’t take it, it was like a horror movie going on inside my head.”

At first, a bit more ket would mask the side effects and restore the high. She says: “I was a high functioning addict - good at my job." But, in time, the drug had a tightening grip on her mind and metabolism.

Izabel continues: “I started to get debilitating symptoms. I struggled to urinate and suffered abdominal pain so bad it was like a horse was sitting on me. I passed out because of the pain more than once and ended up in A&E.

“My family and friends knew about my addiction. They were worried about me when I slurred my words or looked like a zombie.” Her loved ones had supported her idea to go away and escape from the lifestyle she was embroiled in back in London.

But the night before she flew, Izabel went on a ketamine bender. She admits: “I sniffed an awful lot and was in agonising pain. I lay in the bath under the hot tap until it burned my skin. I thought that was rock bottom, how wrong I was.”

On the plane the next day Izabel began to crave ketamine. She says: “I was naive. I thought being away from the UK would mean I didn’t want it anymore. But that’s not how addiction works - it came with me.” When she landed, instead of exploring the country, all she wanted was to buy some ket.

She contacted a friend, who put her in touch with someone who would send her drugs in the post, hidden inside a birthday card. It was to be the biggest mistake of her life. She says: “I watched the card’s progress for a week before it was intercepted by authorities. The next thing I knew, there were Japanese police at my hostel saying they needed to seize my phone and laptop. I have never felt such terror in my life.”

Arrested and taken to Osaka Detention Centre to be interrogated, her anxious parents had tracked her phone GPS. Seeing where she was, they contacted the Foreign Office, who gave them her case number. Izabel says: “I really wanted to believe I could talk my way out of it. But once they took my fingerprints and mug shot, it hit me.”

Thrown in a cell, she anxiously awaited her fate. Describing her surroundings, she says: “The cell had bare walls and a mat on the floor for sleeping, a toilet, wash basin and a little set of drawers.” A communication ban for the first month meant no contact with the outside world. And after that, it was via letters only. She continues: “The British embassy was amazing and someone came to visit me within the first four days. They gave me advice and support. Through them, I was able to write letters to my family.”

But life was extremely harsh. She says: “No interaction was allowed among prisoners. We weren’t even supposed to glance at each other. I had no direct sunlight in my room and I wasn’t allowed outside, so I didn't see the sky for five months.”

Izabel also suffered extreme ketamine withdrawals. She says: “I was on the brink of psychosis. I thought that people back home were conspiring against me. I had no medical treatment or anything to help. It was mental turmoil.”

Recording her experiences in a journal, she continues: “I could shower three times a week. “Other than that, I could sleep, eat and listen to the radio.” It was brutal, but for the first time in several years, the harsh regime meant she got clean. She says: “After a few weeks my sleep improved and I began to urinate more easily. Being in prison forced me to stop using.”

In September 2025, after co-operating with the authorities, Izabel was charged with importing drugs, given a suspended sentence of two and a half years and allowed to leave. Seeing the sky for the first time in over 150 days, she broke down. She admits: “It’s a miracle I’m out. And the day I left I promised it would be the first day of the rest of my life. My criminal record in Japan lasts for 40 years. But, thankfully, it doesn’t translate over to the UK.”

Returning home, Izabel began sharing her story on TikTok, under the name Hyaku-Ban - the Japanese word for 100 - which she was given at the Osaka Detention Centre. She says: “I hope by sharing my story I will encourage others not to feel shame or guilt. There is hope after addiction.”

Izabel's experience taught her how to enjoy be sober and she wants to take this into her life. She adds: “It caused my family a lot of trauma. But they're really proud of where I am now. I'm dedicated to making a change. The ketamine problem in this country is as bad or worse than the heroin crisis in the 1980s. It’s cheap and accessible - an affordable way to get high. You think because it's a white powder that it's harmless and fun. We don’t have the education behind it that we need.”

Recovery is an ongoing process, but Izabel - who is now campaigning for more support for ketamine and other drug users - is taking it one day at a time and is hopeful for the future. She says: “I still have cravings every day, it’s a daily battle. But if I’d carried on the way I was, I’d be dead. Being locked up has given me a second chance at life.”

Now living with friends in Bermondsey, south east London, she says: “We hear about heroin and cocaine, but ketamine is just as addictive. It destroys lives.” Over the last five years, the number of young people being supported for ketamine use by drug charity WithYou has more than doubled.

Grace Willsher, Head of WithYou’s Young People’s Services in the north, says: “This is a serious and escalating issue. Ketamine can cause permanent damage to the body. This includes really horrible effects like bladder problems, changes in mental health, and memory, and damage to your nose, liver and kidneys.”

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