A young woman remained paralyzed after inhaling iltering gas. “People thought they were drunk.”
A former bartender from Illinois (USA) has inhaled so much iltering gas that it remained paralyzed. Destroy the nervous system and cause serious neurological lesions.
Effects of Ilarient Gas on Human Body Photo: Shutterstock
The 29 -year -old Rachel Kelly tried for the first time the nitrous protoxide, also known as “laughed” gas in 2018, while participating in an electronic music festival. From then until 2023, it had come to spend over $ 220 a day to inhale eight two -liter bottle of this gas, bought from neighborhood stores.
Usually used as a sedative in dental offices, nitrous protoxide eliminates oxygen from the lungs, thus reducing oxygen intake and slowing the nervous system. The effect is a dizzying euphoria that lasts only about a minute.
And the problems for this appeared during a laps at the bar, in April 2024, when they numb their legs and right hand.
“People believed they were drunk, I seemed to be in a state of intoxication, because [protoxidul de azot] I poisoned my brain, ” said this, according to the Daily Mail.
A few days later, her body “has given up ”. Rachel lost her senses largely, not being able to hold her phone, wash her teeth or go to the toilet alone.
At one point, he woke up and felt nothing.
The effects of the illicit gas
Nitrogen protoxide exhausts vitamin B12, essential for maintaining myelin sheath – the protective layer of nerve fibers, especially in the spinal cord. Without vitamin B12, this sheath degrades, affecting the nerves and causing numbness, loss of coordination, weakness and even paralysis. Doctors told Rachel that the gas created “dead areas“In his brain, which led to the loss of the functions of the hands, feet and bladder.
“All my nerves had died, and my body simply stopped. It's like rats poison,” she said.
After 10 days of hospitalization, Rachel was transferred to a rehabilitation center, where she did occupational and physical therapy for 30 hours a week, during a month. There he learned to walk again, write and live his life again.
He later moved to his parents' house and, for another five months, used a frame to regain his mobility. Over a year after the incident, Rachel has regained most of her skills, although she still has numbness on her toes and has to take B12 supplements.
The young woman is currently working as a receptionist and intends to become an anti -drug counselor. It sends a clear warning to young people: “That 30 -second euphoria is not worth it. Ever since I left the hospital, I have not reached the nitrogen protoxide and I would not. Just because something is sold in a store does not mean that it is sure to use. The inevitable end is that you get to the hospital – the only unknown is when you will happen and when you wake up without feeling anything. “
Rachel now draws attention that although gas is easily accessible, it can cause permanent damage. “What shocked me the most is how easy I could buy it ”she added.
US health authorities estimate that 13 million Americans used at least once Ilaring gas to drug. Its possession is legal, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) government agency has prohibited its distribution for human consumption, but the law is difficult to apply. Thus, the gas is still sold in pressure cylinders, shops and online.
