Anonymous

I’ve been off kratom for a good while now. (Thanks to my doctor helping me taper and this group!)

Then I started feeling really tired and figured it was just lingering effects and would pass.

Long story short, it didn’t pass. I had bleeding ulcers all in my stomach and ended up in the ICU. I was told that I must have had malabsorption issues because of how low my potassium,  sodium, ferritin, etc. was. 

I had to her four bags of blood and six bags of potassium before I was stable enough to be sedated for surgery.

I certainly can’t prove that kratom causes ulcers or malabsorption, but I also certainly suspect it. Low potassium is extremely dangerous (who knew). All of this can cause heart attacks, strokes, etc.

In my case, it triggered Guillain Barre syndrome (google it. It’s terrifying and I’m lucky to have survived it!). My MRI showed that I’ve had at least one stroke (completely unbeknownst to me.)

I’ve come out (finally!) on the other side, and have zero desire to use kratom. I know that’s not always the case for others and I am seeing kratom openly sold without warnings all over the place! This stuff is poison and no doctors seem to know much about it and for sure don’t know what it can do long term. If anyone here has been on the fence about quitting, I hope my story helps to push you in the right direction. – Anonymous