Preparing to drink Ayahuasca (DMT) - safety, benefits & more »

Ayahuasca is a psychedelic Tea from the Amazon Jungle and it’s peoples and is used in various ways by various people. In this article I will run you through basic safety checks, why you would even consider drinking such a thing, finding a safe place to drink Ayahuasca and give you information on how to prepare for an Ayahuasca Ceremony in the traditional Shipibo (Peruvian Amazon) style as I (learn about me here) learned to do back in 2018 when I drunk Ayahuasca 9 times in Peru over about 7 months.

How could Ayahuasca be useful for me?

Ayahuasca is used for differing purposes. Some use it to,

heal medical ailments – you would need to speak to a Shaman about exactly what can be done for you.
others use it to cure depression and anxiety – the DMT present in Ayahuasca is chemically very similar to Serotonin and has great effects on the brain via neurogenesis ie the creation of new neural pathways that bypass old traumatized ones,
cure addictions like Alcoholism – related to the neurogenesis above new pathways can be created and nurtured which are free from the addictions you seek to remove,
to increase or progress spiritual development by providing connection to ‘La Madre’ or ‘Abuela’ which is the ‘Great Mother’ feminine spirit who inhabits you can come into contact with my drinking Ayahuasca.
- Encounters with her are often healing in nature and can provide hope, love and connection with the non-material world we are used to. These encounters often change peoples opinions about ‘God’ and other religious questions as they provide a experience with the divine. La Madre is considered a deity but not the Ultimate “God” of creation but a deity nonetheless. The Greeks called her ‘Rhea’ and many cultures around the world have their own names for her in their own traditions.
In my own personal experience drinking Ayahuasca can remove a lot of negative patterns and behaviors from your life and set you on a more sustainable healthy path in your life both physically, mentally and spiritually.
Note: Ayahuasca is not instant and some sort of magical cure normally. You do have to reciprocate with real work effort and work in order to have the above benefits last permanently.

Safety checks – can I drink Ayahuasca safely?

NB: None of the information on this page should take the palce of your medical doctors’s advice. The author of this page is not a medical professional so do your own research. I have tried to collate common information to help people understand Ayahuasca better but this does not replace the advice of your medical doctor.
You should not drink Ayahuasca if you are taking any pharmaceutical drugs which mix dangerously (contraindicate) with MAOI’s. Commonly SSRI’s prescribed for Depression are NOT to be mixed with Ayahuasca as this can cause Serotonin Syndrome but this is not the only pharmaceutical which mixes dangerously. Check this page to learn more about MAOI’s and a more full list of drugs to avoid with Ayahuasca.
If you have heart problems Ayahuasca MAY be dangerous. Ayahuasca contains an MAOI which increases blood pressure. If you already have a heart condition Ayahuasca MAY not be appropriate for you. Consult your doctor before use. Some people have found this to be fine and drink Ayahuasca safely even with a heart condition so it just depends on your case.
Avoid drinking Ayahuasca if you are pregnant.
If you or people in your immediate family has a mental health history of psychoses like bi-polar or schizophrenia then psychedelics can cause mental breaks for you. If you don’t have a history of this then your psychological health is not considered at risk with Ayahuasca.

With whom and where should I find a place to drink Ayahuasca?

I recommend going to Peru and finding an Ayahuasca retreat there that is respected and has a thorough process for checking your health and preparation for drinking Ayahuasca. Drinking Ayahuasca in Peru might sound expensive and a hassle for some but it is also a barrier to those truly committed to its benefits. La Madre, the spirit behind the Ayahuasca Ceremony, respects sacrifice and hard work reciprocated by her helping you.

In addition, The Ayahuasca Ceremony is from the Amazon and going to Peru or elsewhere in the Amazon in drink ensures that you do the process ‘properly’ and adequately prepared. This is a significant and great milestone in peoples lives and should be treated as such imo.

It is possible to find Ayahuasca ceremonies in your home country (check the legality) but I do not have experience of these and tend to think you get a better result by going to the source or culture which understands it best for best results. Of course, not all will agree with me and thats fine.

How should I prepare for an Ayahuasca Ceremony and/or retreat?

Finding a Retreat:

Preparation for Ayahuasca involves first finding a good place to go and Drink. I suggest finding a retreat which has a respected reputation, thoroughly checks your physical and mental health prior to accepting your money.

In the past I have compiled lists of Retreats which I like but now I prefer to just let you do your own research and find one which suits you. If you are completely lost I suggest you go to the Ayahuasca Reddit group and ask for retreat recommendations from the community. This community has real life Ayahuasca users and can give you the best advice I feel.

In my experience the retreats in and around Pucallpa, Peru are very authentic and provide deep healing and strong Ayahuasca brews. Its where I go to drink Ayahuasca – next time will be August 2025.

Following a “Dieta”:

A Dieta is a change in both physical and mental inputs into your body, mind and through these the soul. It consists of removing ‘bad’ foods, drinks and mental influences and replacing them with ‘good’ ones for a period of 3 days to 1 month BEFORE AND AFTER a retreat for both safety and effective an Ayahuasca ceremony.

This is a really important part to get right if you want safe and effective healing. Why?

A Dieta is necessary to remove certain dangerous toxins from your system to allow you to have a safe ceremony but also because Ayahuasca creates neurogenesis. A lot of neurogenesis. In order for these new neural pathways to be created in a way which is absent from trauma and toxins we need to drink Ayahuasca with a ‘clean slate’.

A Dieta is how we achieve this clean slate in order to gain safe and effective healing or spiritual development.

Food and drink in a Dieta:

Physically removing certain foods and drinks from your diet lowers ‘Tyramine’ in your system which can cause high blood pressure when combined with Ayahuasca. In addition it removes toxins from your body which you would otherwise ‘purge’ in ceremony. Many a person has not followed a correct diet in preparation for Ayahuasca and has paid the price by spending the entire ceremony throwing up. You can avoid this by following the dieta.

You can read about the specific of what to remove and what to include from food and drink in an Ayahuasca Diet(a).

Mental Influences in a Dieta:

Mentally and spiritually following a dieta and removing ‘wrongful influences’ from your ‘mental diet’ allows you to start to orientate towards healthy actions and habits which you may not be doing now but will help the Ayahuasca ‘take root’ and be effective. Our actions and behaviours are engraved so to speak in our neural pathways and as Ayahuasca provides a ‘reset’ to neural pathways when we drink Ayahuasca we have an opportunity to create new neural pathways without the influence of negative influences.

In addition, to this these will be changes that you are likely to want to promote permanently so that you can gain these benefits long term.

A Dieta can be anywhere from 3 days to 1 month depending on your devotion to the process. I’d suggest 2 weeks is a better minimum. This should be done BOTH in preparation and after Ayahuasca.

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