Man reveals laughing gas 'ruined his life' after inhaling up to 500 balloons a week left him disabled

Connor Wilton was hospitalised when his dad, Jamie Wilton, 53, found him 'collapsed' on the floor in November 2022 after using nitrous oxideConnor Wilton was hospitalised when his dad, Jamie Wilton, 53, found him 'collapsed' on the floor in November 2022 after using nitrous oxide
Connor Wilton was hospitalised when his dad, Jamie Wilton, 53, found him 'collapsed' on the floor in November 2022 after using nitrous oxide | Kennedy News and Media
Connor Wilton was hospitalised after his dad, Jamie Wilton, 53, found him 'collapsed' on the floor in November 2022 after using nitrous oxide

A man claims laughing gas 'ruined his life' after inhaling up to almost 500 balloons a week left him permanently disabled. Connor Wilton was hospitalised after his dad, Jamie Wilton, 53, found him 'collapsed' on the floor in November 2022 after using nitrous oxide.

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The 27-year-old suffered from severe nerve damage that left him paralysed after the drug, which became illegal in November 2023, starved his body of oxygen and B12 vitamins. After spending three months bed bound in hospital and four months in a neuro rehabilitation unit, Connor will 'never be able to stand up straight' and is forced to use crutches and a wheelchair while taking around 30 tablets a day.

Having first started to use laughing gas aged 18 on lads' holidays and at social events, the former mental health rehabilitation worker started 'abusing' the illegal substance, using up to 480 balloons every weekend.

Taking to Facebook, Connor shared a picture of him in hospital to warn others against the dangers of using the illegal drug, captioned, “Stay off balloons kids. Never thought this could or would happen,” adding how it's ruined his life. Video footage shows Connor being helped to take small steps by hospital staff out of his wheelchair after being bed bound for months.

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Another clip shows the 27-year-old's leg spasms he experienced due to his nerve damage. Connor, who lives in Shirebrook, Derbyshire, said: "It's changed my life so much. I never believed it would happen. You see it and think 'it'll never happen to me'.

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"I was abusing it for years. Not badly. I did it socially at weekends and when I went to Kavos and stuff like that. During October 2022 I was smashing it every weekend. I started to be sick all the time. I didn't think it was to do with nitrous oxide to be honest. I was quite naïve.

"Then I started to get tingly feet. One day my dad found me collapsed on the floor from smashing laughing gas. I couldn't feel my legs properly. I was moaning about not being able to wee. I couldn't wee for six days. It's because my nerves and muscles had failed on my bottom half."

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After being rushed to hospital, he discovered he had severe nerve damage, a vitamin B12 deficiency and subacute degeneration of the spinal cord as a result of using nitrous oxide. The former mental health worker revealed he required 24/7 bed care and was unable to stand for nearly two months.

Connor said: "It was absolutely horrible. I couldn't control my muscles. My hands were starting to bend like little dinosaur hands. I couldn't pick up my phone properly. I had a catheter for five months. I was in 24/7 bed care.

"I spent two full months hoisted. I couldn't feel or move my legs. My hands slowly started to get better. I was hoisted into a chair out of my bed everyday. I was bed bound for ten weeks. I didn't stand up until the week before Christmas with help from two workers.

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"I had a nerve conduction study. It was quite a lengthy process for finding out what was happening. The doctors knew it was from balloons but not what damage it had done.

"The nitrous oxide took all the B12 out of my body and starved my body of oxygen so I was having vitamin B12 injected into my legs every two days for three months. Now I have to have it once every three months."

After being moved to a neuro rehabilitation unit in Nottingham in January 2023, Connor was finally discharged but now relies on crutches and a wheelchair. Connor said: "Still to this day I'm between a wheelchair and crutches.

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"The amount of nerves I've damaged, some are too far gone and will never repair. I will never be able to stand up straight. I've got 35 degree drop feet.

“My legs spasm a lot. I get a lot of pain first thing in the morning. The muscles lock in my leg. I scream in pain. I'm quite independent now but I'm on crutches all the time. I have an adaptive car, which I drive with my hands."

The wheelchair user vows 'never' to touch the illegal substance again and warns others to stay away. Connor said: "I'd never do it again. Absolutely not. I hate it. It's not worth being like this.

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"It's changed my life so much. I love dancing and I can never dance again. I love festivals but I went to one just for fun the other week and it's quite draining. I tell people to stop doing it [nitrous oxide]. It's not worth the risk. I'm probably the worst person I've seen with this.

"That's the go-to thing for young people because they think it's funny. They think it's not as serious as other drugs. They're massively accessible. People will sell them to kids because they think they're not dangerous, it's just a balloon. That's why it wasn't illegal until recently."

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