Ayahuasca is an herbal tea that has been used mostly for spiritual purposes amongst the indigenous tribes of the Amazon Forest basin in South American covering several countries such as Brazil, Peru and Colombia. Traditionally the tea was drunk by the tribe’s healer (curandera), to ask for “advice” from the spirit world for various needs such as how to heal certain illnesses of a person or any other questions that the villagers might have. The healer was the only one who was allowed to drink the tea since he or she is trusted by the tribe members to be the most experienced in bringing the message from the spirit world. Ayahuasca is a strong psycho-active tea that could give the person vivid visions and powerful messages with the interpretation of the person’s own psyche, which can be quite frightening for those who aren’t experienced.

However, in around 1950s when the tea was known to the westerners, they began to experiment with its effects by drinking the tea themselves under the guidance of the healer, who later became better known as “shaman”. Then they began to publish the findings and became fascinated by people in the modern world and went to seek the experience in the Amazon Forest themselves, and now it has become known worldwide.

The term Ayahuasca comes from a Quechua language “ayawaska”, with aya means soul and waska means vine, hence “the vine of the soul”. It is brewed from the Ayahuasca vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) with other plants such as Chacruna leaves (Psychotria viridis). The Chacruna leaves or other plants, such as Mimosa Hostilis, that is put in the Ayahuasca brew contains dimethyltryptamine or DMT, a powerful psychedelic and one of the most abundant molecules found in most plants and animals, including the human brain that acts as a neutral transmitter like serotonin. But when DMT is ingested orally, the monoamine oxidase enzyme (MAO) in the digestive system will break down the DMT molecule to other forms that are non-psycho-active. The key that makes Ayahuasca tea psycho-active is the Ayahuasca vine which contains alkaloids that inhibit the monoamine oxidase enzyme from working (monoamine oxidase inhibitor: MAOi) so that the DMT doesn’t get broken down and able to be absorbed into the blood stream and eventually the brain.

The interesting interaction between the DMT and the body is the reverse tolerant effect, meaning that the more often one takes DMT, the less the body needs in order to experience the same effects. Therefore, it’s common for people who take Ayahuasca for the first time to drink a larger amount of the tea in order to feel the effects and once they become more experienced, they will need less to feel the similar level of the effects. This makes it impossible for someone to be addicted to DMT biologically.

The side effects of the MAOi are that, the body will not be able to digest some types of food in the stomach, especially those that contain tyramine, momentarily and will exhibit food poisoning-like symptoms, such as nausea, diarrhea, fever, etc. Hence, a strict diet guideline is necessary to prepare the body before taking Ayahuasca, such as no red meat, dairy and fermented food a few days before the ceremony. And since, in general, MAOi conflicts strongly with pharmaceutical anti-depressants, especially the SSRIs (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors) class, and hard narcotics such as heroin and cocaine, it’s vitally important to stop those at least 2 weeks before taking Ayahuasca or it could result in deadly consequence.

There are studies that show the physical benefits of the MAOi’s in Ayahuasca, such as beta-carboline and harmine, that they can protect and regenerate brain cells, prevent inflamation, stop tumor’s growth and promote memory experimental animals. On the psychological side, studies show that Ayahuasca increases the level of mindfulness, the ability to stay focused and stabilize the mood. Depression and PTSD patients also receive long term benefit from Ayahuasca from only a few sessions.

The experience of drinking Ayahuasca is not very pleasant, at least in the beginning. Firstly, the tea has a very foul taste, then when the MAO in the stomach stops working, the body will begin to exhibit the symptoms similar to that of food poisoning. During such period, however, it’s a good sign that the MAOi in Ayahuasca is working and the body is absorbing the DMT into the blood stream. When the DMT level in the brain increases (a significant amount of DMT, comparable to serotonin, is already present in human’s brain naturally), the person will begin to experience extra visual sensation (aka hallucination) and go on a unique experience that the individual has in their subconscious. Some may experience extreme body discomfort to a degree that they might feel like dying. If the person chooses to cling on their body, the experience would only become heavier and more difficult to the point that they will have no other choice but to let go of what they feel is their life. Once letting go, the experience would become more profound and meaningful. This is where people say they receive wisdom, lessons and guidance from “the Mother”. The experience usually lasts about 6-7 hours.

For those who have never drunk Ayahuasca before, it isn’t advisory to attend just one ceremony, since it’s likely to be too alienate and overwhelming for the person to receive anything useful from the experience. The second ceremony the night right after the first one will be much more meaningful due to their body and mind are able to cope with the medicine better, which usually results in a much deeper and more meaningful experience.

The dosage of Ayahuasca varies greatly depending on the strength of the brew and the sensitivity of the person. Generally, it would be between 40 ml to 120 ml. The more isn’t always the better since the experience could become too strong and too fast to be meaningful for the person. The onset is about 40 minutes, during which, the person is advised to sit up right to allow the medicine to be absorbed into the body. When they start to feel something and don’t feel too much nausea, they could lay down for the DMT to be sent to the brain better. The accompanying chanting (or icaro), songs or music will be an anchor for the person’s journey. After a few hours, the facilitator might call for those who feel the need to have another dose of the medicine, which usually is going to be a much smaller dose just enough to give the person an extra “kick” to the experience. The experience will get less intense after 6-7 hours but some may experience recurring visions while they sleep due to the still elevated DMT level in their brains.