Ketamine

Ketamine is usually a powder. But you can also encounter it as crystals (sticks and little balls) and even in bottles as a fluid.

Het effect van alcohol en andere drugs kan iedere keer anders zijn. Dit heeft te maken met hoe jij je lichamelijk en geestelijk voelt (set) en waar en met wie je op dat moment bent (setting). Ook hoeveel je neemt en wat er precies in je drugs zit, maakt uit voor het effect. Dit noemen we ‘drug, set, setting’.

Wat doet ketamine met je?

Hoe je je voelt na het nemen van ketamine ligt onder andere aan de hoeveel  je neemt (dosering).  Bij lage doseringen voel je vooral ontspanning en een 'high'. Bij grotere hoeveelheden worden de tripeffecten en dissociatie duidelijker.

Bij een kleine hoeveelheid;

• Voel je je ontspannen en zorgeloos
• Voel je minder pijn en kan je lichaam soepeler aanvoelen

Bij een grotere hoeveelheid;

• Dissociatie:
• Je neemt de wereld om je heen anders waar
• De tijd kan anders aanvoelen, meestal langzamer. Dit kan fijn zijn als je het naar je zin hebt, maar eng als je je slecht voelt.
• Je kan anders gaan denken en een nieuwe kijk op dingen hebben. Je kunt ook chaotisch of onlogisch gaan denken.
• Je kunt moeilijker rechtop staan of lopen. Je kunt daardoor makkelijker vallen
• Kun je misschien géén pijn voelen. Hierdoor is het risico groter dat je jezelf verwond en je het niet doorhebt.

Daarom is het belangrijk om te gaan zitten als je veel ketamine neemt.

Als je héél veel ketamine neemt, kun je in een k-hole komen. Een k-hole is een hele intense ervaring. Het voelt alsof je niet kan bewegen of praten. Contact met de wereld om je heen gaat moeilijk en het is moeilijk om te begrijpen wat echt is en wat alleen maar in je hoofd afspeelt.

Voor sommige mensen is dit een interessante en leerzame ervaring maar voor sommige mensen is het eng. Als je veel ketamine neemt, zorg dan dat je een plek hebt om te gaan liggen.

Ketamine wordt thuis gebruikt, maar ook op feesten en festivals.

Werkingsduur: Als je het snuift merk je de effecten na 3-10 minuten. Het is na zo’n 1 - 1,5 uur uitgewerkt.

Ketamine is usually snorted, but it's also possible to directly inject fluid ketamine.

What you feel exactly strongly depends on how much you take. To know how much you're taking, it's important to know how pure your ketamine is. You can get this tested at our test service.

• A low dose (10-30 milligram) feels lightly numbing and relaxing
• With a higher dose (30-70 milligram) you start to feel the tripping effects and it can get more difficult to move the way you want to
• With a large dose (70-150 milligram)
• Bij een hogere dosis (30-70 milligram) begin je de trippende effecten te voelen en kan het moeilijker worden om te bewegen zoals je wilt
• Bij een grote dosis (70-150mg) worden de trip effecten sterk en kun je in een k-hole komen.

Using ketamine does carry risks. Some risks you'll notice right away and are called 'short term risks'. An overwhelming trip or feeling scared, for example. Other risks you'll notice only later when you use a lot of ketamine, often. Those are called long term risks.

Short-term risks:

• Problems with balance and movement: You could have a hard time walking straight or standing. You could fall and hurt yourself. Because you feel less or no pain on ketamine, you might not always notice this. So make sure to sit down if you're having a hard time standing or walking and stay away from traffic or other dangers.
• Nausea: Ketamine can make you feel nauseous. Sometimes people throw up. If you pass out, you could choke on your own vomit.
• You could feel anxious or scared (bad trip): the effect of ketamine can be hard to predict sometimes. You could feel scared.
• Taking too much: The amount of ketamine makes a huge difference in what you feel. If you take a lot, you might feel like you can't move or talk. This is called a k-hole. This can be very scary.
• Combinations: It's extra dangerous to take ketamine together with alcohol/weed or other drugs, like GHB or anxiety medication (sedatives). Because your brain doesn't get enough oxygen when you combine these drugs, it can be deadly.

Long-term risks:

• Addiction: If you use ketamine often, it might be difficult to quit. It can be mentally addictive. You can read more under 'Ketamine and addiction' on this page.
• Bladder, kidney and stomach problems: Using a lot of ketamine often can badly damage your bladder. It could be painful to pee. You can also get pain in your kidneys or stomach. These are sometimes called 'k-cramps'. Do you suffer from these pains for an extended period of time? Then make sure to contact your doctor (huisarts).
• Mental problems: If you use ketamine often, you could start feeling anxious, sad or confused. If you're sensitive to it or if it runs in your family, it can also cause psychosis or feelings of paranoia
• Memory problems: Using a lot of ketamine often, you can start facing memory-loss, like having trouble with remembering new things and concentrating. Some of these problems can disappear when you stop using ketamine, but some problems can stay.

Are you planning to use ketamine? Then that's never without risk. But there are things that you could look out for to make the risks smaller. Read these tips:

• Make sure to get your drugs tested before use. Then you'll know how strong they are and whether there's other dangerous substances in there.
• Don't use if you don't feel good mentally or physically.
• Are you using ketamine for the first time? Then do it at home (and not somewhere crowded). Start with a low dose and make sure someone who has experience with ketamine is nearby.
• You can get nauseous from ketamine. For this reason it's best not to have eaten for 3 hours before using ketamine.
• If you feel scared or overwhelmed by the experience, don't fight it but let it happen. Remind yourself that the feeling is temporary and goes away, usually within 1 hour.
• Never use ketamine together with alcohol/weed, GHB or other calming substances (like benzodiazepines). These combinations are especially dangerous.
• If you've been snorting ketamine, clean your nose before you go to sleep.
• Voel je een pijnlijk of brandend gevoel bij het plassen of kramp in je buik? Stop dan met ketamine gebruiken. Als je hier last van blijft houden, ga dan naar je huisarts. Vertel artsen altijd te waarheid over je gebruik - ze kunnen je dan beter helpen.
• Do you feel pain or burning when you pee, or a cramp in your stomach? Then stop using ketamine. If you continue to have problems, contact your doctor (huisarts). Always tell doctors the truth about your usage - then they can help better.

Ketamine, because it's a kind of medicine, falls under Dutch medicine law (Geneesmiddelenwet). This means that you're only allowed to have ketamine if a doctor gave it to you. If you have ketamine without a prescription from a doctor, that's illegal.

If you carry a little bit of ketamine with you (1 gram or less) you usually aren't punished. Police could however take (confiscate) your ketamine. You can also be rejected or kicked out of a party if you are seen carrying ketamine. If you have more than 1 gram  with you, security or the police could think that you're selling drugs (dealing). You can get a fine or prison sentence for this.

There is a lot of research into drug usage in the Netherlands. Some research is about all people above 18 years old. Other research is about smaller groups. Like people who go out a lot, students, or citizens of a specific city. This research gives us a good overview of drug usage in the Netherlands.

0,8% of Dutch people aged 18 and over had in 2022 used ketamine in the last year (NDM). If we look only at 18-29 year olds the percentage is a bit higher at 3%. When we look at people who go out between the ages of 16-35, the percentage is a lot higher at 25%.

• A large amount of incidents reported to the Monitor DrugsIncidenten involved patients combining different drugs with ketamine.
• The LADIS keeps track of how many people need help with a certain substance in addiction care organizations. In 2023 ketamine users made up 0,7% of the total amount of people looking for addiction care.

If you want to use alcohol or other drugs it's important you feel good physically and mentally. If you're sick, sad or fearful for example, then alcohol and drugs can make it worse.

Some drugs in combination with certain medicine can make you very sick. Some combinations can even be deadly.

Are you using medicine and do you still want to use alcohol or other drugs? Then carefully research if you can beforehand. You can ask your doctor or pharmacy. Or check our overview. Do you still feel uncertain? Then make sure to message us at our Question & Answer service.

Do not use alcohol or other drugs if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. Drugs are harmful for the baby and can cause your baby to be born sick.

More info about the influence of cocaine on sex, pregnancy and breastfeeding can be found in this overview.

Ketamine as an anti-depressant

Ketamine wordt soms gebruikt als medicijn tegen depressie. Dit gebeurt meestal als andere behandelingen niet hebben geholpen (therapieresistente depressie). Sinds 2019 mogen artsen in Nederland hiervoor ketamine geven.

Ketamine is sometimes used as an anti-depressant. This is usually when other treatments haven't worked (therapy resistant depression). Since 2019 doctors are allowed to prescribe ketamine against depression.

When using ketamine as an anti-depressant, it's important this is done under supervision of a doctor. Don't self-prescribe ketamine. Doctors know the right amount (dosage) and will keep a good eye on risks for the patient.

You can read more about ketamine and depression here

Do you use ketamine often or in large amounts? Then it can be addictive. You might lose control of your use and using less or stopping is difficult.

Quickly you'll start needing more to feel the same effect. We call this tolerance.

People can get addicted to ketamine mentally. This means they think about it a lot and want to use it. Your body does not get addicted to ketamine. So if you stop using, you don't get sick or pain in your body (withdrawal symptoms).

Quitting ketamine is different for everyone. Usually it takes 4-6 days before you feel better. This could be longer or shorter, it's different per person.

You could;

• Feel like you don't want to eat
• Sweat a lot
• Feel anxious or sad
• Have bad dreams
• See things a bit blurry
• Get headaches
• Get a strong urge to use ketamine (craving)
• Have difficulty sleeping

Do you have questions about your use or someone else's? Or are you looking for help to quit or use less? Then you can reach out to Jellinek for a free and non-binding [consultation](link naar nieuwe advieslijn url, misschien een synoniem voor consultation vinden)