London Woman Credits Japanese Prison Sentence with Saving Her Life from Addiction
A British woman from Bermondsey has revealed how five months in a Japanese jail cell became the catalyst for her recovery from a severe drug addiction. Izabel Rose, 26, was arrested in Tokyo after ordering ketamine from the UK, an experience she now describes as a life-saving intervention.
The Arrest That Changed Everything
Izabel's ordeal began when she arrived in Japan for what was supposed to be a month-long work trip. Within thirty minutes of landing at Tokyo airport, she paid £150 for 7 grams of ketamine to be sent from Britain, hidden inside a birthday card destined for her accommodation.
Instead of receiving the package, nine Japanese police officers appeared at her door. The authorities had intercepted the shipment, which contained 4.6 grams of the illegal substance. Izabel was arrested immediately and spent the next five months in custody awaiting trial.
"My whole life flashed before my eyes," Izabel recalled. "My stomach dropped and I was terrified. I was so naive that I thought I could talk my way out of it with an apology."
From Denial to Desperation Behind Bars
The marketing professional initially struggled to accept the severity of her situation. "I was still in denial and wouldn't have called myself an addict," she admitted. "Only when I was in that jail in Japan, I came to my knees in a moment of desperation and realised I had a problem."
Her time in the Japanese prison system proved profoundly challenging. "It's the most lonely, isolating place to be," Izabel described. "At points in the first few months, if I could have, I would have tried to end my life. I was suffering withdrawals and on the brink of psychosis."
A Spiral into Addiction
Izabel's relationship with substances began early, smoking marijuana at just thirteen years old. By university, her drug use had escalated dramatically, with ketamine, acid and MDMA becoming near-weekly habits.
"I grew up in an environment where using substances is normalised," she explained. "When I went to university, I was going to gigs and parties - it escalated. It really ramped up and I was doing it every weekend."
Her ketamine use became particularly problematic. "I'd come home from work and do ketamine to watch a film. I'd do it before bed on my own, which escalated. I would wake up in the morning and the first thing I'd do was take ketamine," she confessed.
The physical toll became severe enough that Izabel hoped her Japanese work trip would help her get clean. "In London, you can get ketamine delivered to you quicker than pizza," she noted. "I thought I'd go to Japan and be clean for a month because I hadn't been sober since I was 13."
The Turning Point and New Purpose
After pleading guilty in September, Izabel received a four-year suspended sentence and was allowed to return to the UK a week later. Despite the trauma of her incarceration, she now views the experience as transformative.
"I'm glad I got arrested in Japan," she stated. "In other countries, I could have been on death row. The experience reconnected me to my sober self and made me realise that's what I want in life."
Izabel has since quit her marketing career and dedicated herself to addiction awareness. She documents her recovery journey on TikTok under the handle @hyakuban7 and is writing a book about her experiences.
"The purpose of life is to give to others," she said, explaining her new direction. "I want to help other people. I don't want a fancy car, I want to make a positive change to other people's lives. I want to speak in schools and raise awareness."
Her physical health has improved dramatically since becoming sober. "My health has completely transformed," Izabel reported. "I can get through the whole night without going for a wee, my nose is less blocked and I've got an appetite again."
Reflecting on her journey, Izabel emphasised that "addiction can happen to anyone and can be the cause of bad choices you wouldn't normally make." Her time in Japanese custody, while traumatic, ultimately provided the intervention she needed to confront her dependency and rebuild her life.
