The purpose of this report is to educate people about ketamine and to establish the consequences on the individual users mental health. Having stable mental health is very important to society for many different reasons in many different ways. To live a more fulfilled and happy life having good mental health will make it so much easier, making people less of a burden in public. For example, if someone accidentally knocks you, rather than making a scene your strong mental health will make you realise it's a mistake and you will stay calm. To keep a stable running job in your future you’ll need so much patience and resilience, which comes with good mental health.

This report will start with the process of production of ketamine then the chemical formula and makeup. It will then continue on to the interaction Ketamine has with the brain and other body organs. The report will finish off with a final discussion about how Ketamine affects a user's mental health.


Background

The process of production of Ketamine starts with the reaction of cyclopentyl grignard and o-Chloro benzonitrile, its then stirred for 3 days with hydrocarbon solvent, to then give o-chlorophenyl cyclopentyl ketone. Next is the alpha bromination of the ketone, then the reaction with methylamine to form 1-Hydroxycyclopentyl-o-chlorophenyl-ketone-N-methylimine. Through heating this results in Ketamine.

Figure 1: Synthesis of Ketamine. Received from- http://www.lycaeum.org/rhodium/chemistry/pcp/ketamine.html

Ketamine is a party drug known in 3 different forms, a tablet, liquid and the most commonly known way, a powder. When inserted into your veins it takes a quick   10-15 seconds to take severe action, due to it being such a quick onset it becomes extremely more dangerous than taking it other ways. There is a very sudden and considerable drop in respiratory depression. When being snorted or taken orally the powder goes directly through the mucus membrane and taken straight into the bloodstream, but it takes longer to take action than injecting. There are many side effects that come with taking ketamine, such as hallucinations, dizziness, nausea nightmares and many more. But the greatest long term side effect is the damage that is causes to various major organs, including the urinary tract, digestive tract and of course the brain. Frequent use can also cause harm to the liver and kidney, causing permanent strains to the systems. A major internal harm that occurs with Ketamine abuse is ulcerative cystitis, basically it is a slow process of painfully destroying the lower urinary tract. Most severe cases lead to bladder augmentation, where parts of the urinary tract are removed. 
When Ketamine is used illegally it can have dramatic effects on the brain. Ketamine messes around with the brain's chemical and endocrine system. Ketamine alters the chemical balance of the brain by slowing down the neurotransmitter process, which over a period of time damages the brain's chemical balance. Rapid surges in the brain's neurotransmitter called glutamate and GABA are caused by the abuse of Ketamine. Research has suggested that these certain effects on the brain's neurotransmitters may be responsible for Ketamine's antidepressant effects. 

Discussion

Although Ketamine is used as an anesthetic agent, in the wrong hands it can become extremely dangerous psychologically, for the user and society. During a Ketamine high users turn to a psychotic like state of mind, that occurs due to the hallucinating effect and the feeling of being detached to your body. Even after the effect of the drugs wear off hallucinations and random flashbacks of experiences can occur at any given time. Having that happen would be extremely frightening, turning a person to an extreme panic, and not being able to control what their mind is making them see and feel creates aggravation, which leads to aggression, which then leads to random violence, towards the user's own body or society which is extremely unsafe. Ketamine's effect on the brain's electrical activity will take a toll on disrupting communications between neurons in the brain as well as through the central nervous system. If a dose is large enough and the user falls into the ‘K-hole’ they will lose all ability they had to interact with anything in their surroundings. Having the inability to not be able to communicate with people will create confusion within the person, not understanding how to have a normal conversation will mentally turn a person crazy. That craziness will trigger at random times, driving the person mad and making the person a danger to society. Learning impairments will be caused from abusing the drug Ketamine, the person will have a completely different mindset to someone that doesn't take the drug Ketamine. This society is growing in their intelligence, so having learning impairments will affect the user's ability to get a job and earn money. If an individual is unable to earn money, have a job or communicate with people it is very likely they will become depressed, and get anxiety in social situations due to the fact that they cannot produce a conversation.

Conclusion

It is a long difficult process in the production of Ketamine, it has a very complex chemical formula.There is an immense amount of time, elements and chemicals that are put into the creation of Ketamine. There are a fair few ways for Ketamine to enter the bloodstream, all having different reaction times. Immediate short term side effects include high blood pressure and an increased heart rate, with the most severe side effect being ulcerative cystitis. Ketamine is an anesthetic, most commonly used in veterinary workplaces. It can cause drowsiness and hallucinations to an individual which can cause major effects to the brain by slowing down neurotransmitters process which over time can alter the brain’s chemical balance. Ketamine has an immense effect on a user's mental health, by slowly driving a person insane by not being able to control what past traumatising experiences are flashed in front of their eyes and slowly ridding a user of their ability to communicate. It is important in today's society to have good mental health, people need to be able to know how to produce a conversation to do anything in life.
Ketamine's effect on the brain is enormous, by slowing down the neurotransmitter process and creating an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. Ketamine causes learning impairments, traumatising flashbacks and loss of communication skills, which are 3 things that could be a danger to society. 

Public Education Piece

For my public education piece I made a brochure to advise the general public of the information showed in this report.

References

Synthesis of Ketamine (n.d) Retrieved from
http://www.lycaeum.org/rhodium/chemistry/pcp/ketamine.html

Ketamine Advocacy Network (2015) Retrieved from
http://www.ketamineadvocacynetwork.org/route-of-administration/
Ketamine.com (n.d) Retrieved from
http://ketamine.com/ketamine-effects/understanding-the-effects-of-ketamine-on-the-brain/
American addiction centers (2017) Retrieved from
http://americanaddictioncenters.org/ketamine-abuse/physical-symptoms/