FAQ
Here you will find all the answers to the questions we receive most frequently.
What is ayahuasca and what ingredients does it contain?
Ayahuasca is a medicine that unfolds its effects not only on a physical but also on a psychological level in the brain. Although it is often mistakenly referred to as a drug, it is in fact a shamanic healing art that is becoming increasingly well-known internationally. This may be due not least to the fact that ayahuasca offers the possibility of curing depression, psychosis or other mental illnesses. An ayahuasca experience reveals paths that would possibly never arise in conventional therapy.
The ingredients of ayahuasca medicine are made up of two different herbal components – caapi (the ayahuasca root or liana) and chacruna. Chacruna, which contains DMT, is responsible for the psychoactive effect of ayahuasca. While DMT as an endogenous substance is generally broken down very quickly, the ayahuasca plant caapi with MAO inhibitors ensures that the breakdown of DMT is slowed down during the ayahuasca ceremony.
However, the special thing about ayahuasca tea are not the ingredients, but the unique consciousness of the ayahuasca, whose spirit can gradually be transferred to your body.
What does ayahuasca do and what effect does it have on the brain?
Ayahuasca unfolds a profound change of consciousness in your mindset and has an effect on your brain that helps you to recognize and overcome old or toxic habits. The medicine strengthens your emotional and self-reflective perception and gives you a deep inner knowing. The effect of the ayahuasca plant sets in after 30 to 40 minutes. The peak – the spiritual climax, so to speak – of an ayahuasca experience is usually reached after 90 to 120 minutes. The duration of the effect is around 4 hours, but can also last up to 12 hours.
Ayahuasca cleanses you both physically and mentally. You will meet yourself in the process. The ayahuasca ceremony shows you all your sides, including the unpleasant aspects. It is a self-critical encounter in which you can feel a deep respect for life and nature. The harmony of nature around you will probably also be part of your experience. In the ayahuasca ceremonies during your retreat, the medicine will help you to strengthen your own emotional health and mental clarity. Each process is a highly individual matter. During your personal ayahuasca experience you can experience many things – from insights, shattering experiences, inner wars, rebirths, near-death experiences, enlightenments, to unbearable bliss. You can find, meet and strengthen yourself. Some of your realizations may also appear after the ayahuasca ceremony. The after-effects of the medicine are different for each person, and it is possible that you will deepen and internalize your ayahuasca experience even more in the days following the ceremony.
How do I prepare for an ayahuasca ceremony?
The most important thing when preparing to take ayahuasca is to have a positive mindset! However, there are also further recommendations for preparing for an ayahuasca ceremony. These include a diet in which you avoid lactose and meat for at least 3 days prior to your ceremony, as these foods are somewhat heavier on the stomach. This category also includes spicy food such as onions, citrus fruits and garlic. Take these recommendations into account so that you feel well during your ayahuasca ceremony. You should not consume any strong drugs or marijuana for at least a week prior to the ceremony. It is best to avoid any kind of sexual intercourse in the days leading up to your ceremony, as this creates an energy exchange. When the wisdom of the medicine receives you, you want to be surrounded by your own aura. This way, the effect of the ayahuasca plant will unfold its full power to you.
Are you taking antidepressants or do you have heart or respiratory problems? Then please consult your doctor before your ayahuasca ceremony. Only they can assess whether taking ayahuasca is dangerous for you or whether side effects may occur.
If you follow these preparations, you will be ready for your ayahuasca experience and this is your sign that you should finally book your ayahuasca trip.
Is ayahuasca dangerous or deadly?
The sole intake of ayahuasca medicine has no lethal effect on an organism. Only the interaction of ayahuasca with other drugs, medication or illnesses can be dangerous. This is because ayahuasca tea contains the body’s own active ingredient dimethyltryptamine (DMT) as well as Mao inhibitors. In combination with other drugs or medication (e.g. antidepressants), the monoamine oxidase-inhibiting effect of ayahuasca poses a danger to life. The enzyme complex monoaminooxidase actually ensures that substances such as DMT are broken down quickly in the body before they cross the blood-brain barrier. This enzyme complex must therefore be inhibited during a retreat so that ayahuasca can actually have an intensive effect on the brain.
If you need to take medication, please consult your doctor before an ayahuasca ceremony. This also applies if you suffer from an increased heart rate or high blood pressure.
To prepare for your ayahuasca ceremony, we recommend that you do not take any medication two weeks prior to your ceremony. Then, nothing will stand in the way of your ayahuasca experience.
By the way, birth control pills have no effect on drinking ayahuasca or vice versa. However, you should make sure to take them early enough before the ceremony so that your body can fully absorb the active ingredient and you are still protected against pregnancy.
What happens when you drink ayahuasca and what are the side effects?
Immediately after drinking the bitter ayahuasca tea, you may experience side effects such as diarrhea, discomfort, nausea and vomiting. Ayahuasca then triggers massive visions and puts you into a mind-expanding state of trance for several hours – the so-called chuma. The effects of ayahuasca range from mild visions to powerful out-of-body experiences. These insights bring about a profound healing of your body from the inside out. The visions are usually followed by other feelings (e.g. the feeling of flying or being behind your own ego). However, it is also possible that you will not receive any visions on your ayahuasca journey. Sooner or later, everyone experiences emotional highs and lows during an ayahuasca ceremony. Long forgotten memories can resurface and you will meet your innermost self. Ayahuasca not only changes your consciousness during the ceremony, but also has a lasting effect on your thoughts. The effects of such an experience can appear months after your ceremony.
How much does ayahuasca cost and where can you buy it?
Under no circumstances should you buy ayahuasca and consume it alone. There are several important reasons for this. Ayahuasca is generally not freely available for sale and is not even offered commercially. Of course, you should never obtain it illegally on the black market. Apart from the fact that this is illegal anyway, it can also be very dangerous to consume ayahuasca of unknown origin without professional supervision. For example, the ayahuasca could also be stretched with other substances, and it is not possible for laymen to reliably assess the effects of a tea made from the ayahuasca plant. The preparation of the plant brew is a real challenge and should therefore only be carried out by knowledgeable shamans. A responsible shaman knows his own home-made ayahuasca medicine very well and can guide and support you during your ayahuasca experience if, for example, you experience intense spiritual experiences and emotions during your ceremony.
Here you can book an ayahuasca ceremony with competent and responsible shamans and find out about the associated costs. Or perhaps an entire ayahuasca journey or retreat is just what is right for you.