Plant Medicine: 5 Tips to Help With An Ayahuasca Journey

There are lots of different ways you can heal and there are many tools and techniques you can use. You can see a doctor when you are not well and maybe you will get medication or maybe you need surgery. Massage can be very healing and sometimes it may be mixed with other techniques like reiki, or cranial sacral therapy. Some people use Chiropractors, my chiropractor used a technique called Network Spinal Analysis that was very powerful and healing. Some may go to a psychologist, counselor or life coach to talk out their problems. Some may find healing in yoga, breathwork, on the dance floor or at the gym. There are lots of different things that can help you heal and grow. Some may gravitate to one over another or maybe use a combination of approaches. I personally like to try them all and I naturally gravitate to a few. We each have our own unique healing profile. 

It is interesting where your healing path can take you. You have found yourself here looking into how ayahuasca may help you. I know I found myself walking down a similar path. I am not an expert in Ayahuasca nor am I a shaman, but I do believe in it’s healing potential. I wanted to share my story and view in hopes that it may help you. Once you decide you would like to try ayahuasca it naturally starts to enter your life.

I am not going to write out my complete story here, but you can view it in the video that should be attached to this blog or on my YouTube page. I will say though that the opportunity to do ayahuasca appeared to me when I needed it and I answered the call. My first journal changed my life. I was told by a friend about a 10-day ayahuasca retreat in Peru and she encouraged me to go. So, I bought a ticket that week and within a month I was there. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but something felt right. I was struggling at the time in my relationships, with anxiety, sleep, and direction. I knew I had past trauma that needed to be healed and I did not have the patience or time to find a therapist to work with, so this seemed like a good option, and it was.

If you decide to go and do ayahuasca there are a few things, I wanted to pass on:

1.Know Anything Is Possible But Release All Expectations:

I believe knowing what is possible when doing ayahuasca can be helpful to open yourself up but in the same breath, you want to release any expectations. Each person’s journey is unique along with the messages they need to hear. Basically, anything is possible with ayahuasca! I tell a little bit of my story in the video but each time I have done it, it was a completely different experience. The visuals, what you see, feel, think, who comes to you, the lesson, etc. can be different every time.

Ayahuasca is a plant medicine but it is not of this earth. It is one of the only plants that connects you to the cosmos, and you can feel it. It’s one of the things that makes it feel so foreign but also familiar. We are of the cosmos, but we exist on this earth, at this moment. There is so much more to our existence then what we perceive or even think about. Life is so much more than going to work, eating, sleeping, and watching TV. We are made of so much more and we come from so much more! We are magic.

Each ceremony has reminded me of the magic that exists all around us. I feel much of our society has forgotten the magic, the community, the coming together and connecting in an intimate way. It is hard to be truly intimate and magical these days with everyone living their lives through social media. I really appreciated the sharing and connecting that occurs when one goes through a healing ceremony. At the end of one of my journeys, everyone took turns singing icaros if they knew it or shared a story. It really spoke to my soul and realized I was missing this form of connection and music in my life. It is easy to isolate. Open up and don’t be scared to connect to the people you are journeying with. You are not alone.

2. Surrender:

It’s so important to set an intention but then to release it. To surrender to the experience and what she has to offer you. If you do not and what is occurring is not matching your expectations, then you will create tension and it will not be fun. Observer yourself mindfully and release. Don’t get caught up in the stories that take you away from the experience but allow yourself to go right in. Let go.

I know letting go is not easy. It is not easy to surrender especially to something so foreign. I really struggle with surrender not just with ayahuasca but in life and it was really highlighted for me in my trips. I know it is something I need to work on, receiving help, being vulnerable and open. Though on some levels I am very open and not scared of vulnerability another part of me is terrified. Mostly due to trauma in my childhood. Trust has been a lifelong journey for me and ayahuasca helped me a lot with this.

3. Do The Diet If You Can:

There is a special diet you can do before you do the ayahuasca. I am not an expert on this, but I encourage you to look into it. I will share a bit of what I know about it.

There is a general diet that is suggested that involves not eating certain foods that could interact with the ayahuasca. Ayahuasca is a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) which is naturally found in the body. It is also synthetically made for cetin antidepressant medications such as Fluoxetine (Prozac) and Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI). You do not want to be on these medications when you do a ceremony, your system has to be clean of them. There are also other medications that can have a negative interaction with Aya such as Tyramine an amino acid that triggers norepinephrine in your bloodstream that can be dangerous.

When you hear horror stories of people dying on ayahuasca this is what is most likely happening, or they have had an allergic reaction to something else. Way more people die of peanuts or seafood then they do of ayahuasca, so you do not have to fear actually dying when you do it. Though you may experience an ego death…

There is a general diet that you can follow that will tell you not to eat cheese, soy, fermented food, beer, broad beans and several other general things to help clean out your system but then there is another diet that is much more specific called The Master Plant Dieta. If you are interested in the Dieta you will have to speak to the shaman, you are looking to do a ceremony with, and they will help you.

I do not know a lot about the Dieta but I know you will be called to do it, you will be invited. There a number of different Master Plants that may be the center of the Dieta along with ayahuasca. This will allow you to gain access to and understand the scared plant spirit within you. It will help guide and heal you offering your strength and wisdom.

4. Make Sure It’s Safe And Traditional:

Make sure you are going to a safe place. There have been stories of “shamans” not real ones taking advantage of people. They put another medicine in the ayahuasca that causes you to blackout and can rob you or worse. Be careful! Go to a place you know is safe.

It is also important to do a traditional Shipibo ceremony. When it is traditional you want to look that they are using true Shipibo shamans that will sing Ikaros which is a magic song that will help you with your journey. The Ikaros are passed down through shamans or taught to them during Dieta where the plants reveal their song. Everything is energy that vibrates, and these songs can bring in harmony. In many cultures, sound is healing and ayahuasca is a plant medicine that works best when mixed with is true sound the Ikaros to help you come back into harmony. It is honestly one of the most beautiful things I have ever heard, and you can feel the song enter you and help you. 

5. Integrate The Lessons Into Your Life:

During an ayahuasca ceremony, you will be given lessons that may take a lifetime to process. The information you receive during your ceremony is only helpful to the point you integrate it into your life. This can include changing your lifestyle, habits, relationships or community. It may require you to approach life in a new way, changing your perspective and increasing your self-awareness as you work towards new goals.

It can be challenging when coming back from a journey to your regular life. Your life will test you as you try to apply the lessons and insight you gained. It may be helpful to stay in touch with the group that you completed the retreat with to stay accountable and share your experiences. It also may be good to keep yourself accountable with a journal helping you create goals and new habits. It may also be helpful to reach out to a life coach or counselor that is familiar with ayahuasca to help you stay on your true path.

I would love to hear your story and how it has changed your life.