It’s essential to understand how the medicine works, what its rules are, and what we need to know to work with it consciously.
What Are the Points of Working With Ayahuasca?
Why can’t everyone use Ayahuasca? It’s important to understand that the medicine will not heal everyone — and why.
The spiritual world is about oneness with oneself and with God. If we are not truly ready for such deep work, the experience can be negative. Therefore, it’s crucial to learn how the medicine works and to honor its golden rules.
Ayahuasca is a scientific cure, not a magical or instantaneous treatment.
What Does the New Age Preach About These Ancestral Therapies?
Today, the spirituality market can be deceptive. The science of Amazonian shamanism has existed for over 5,000 years, yet, the new age market often sells the Ayahuasca experience as something magical.
People come to the medicine expecting that one dose will solve their entire life. In reality, an Ayahuasca retreat or single ceremony requires thorough preparation, often a month or more in advance, with clear purpose and intention.
Many do not want to follow the dieta, make mental and emotional changes, or commit to personal transformation — but without this commitment, the process is ineffective. These superficial modern movements sell “experiences” without the real awareness required for true healing.
In contrast, traditional shamans study and diet for years to gain the knowledge necessary to evaluate and guide their patients safely and effectively.
Why Isn’t Ayahuasca Effective for Everyone?
There are many interrelated factors. Each person and process is unique, but some individuals do not begin their healing journey even after multiple ceremonies.
Personal disposition is essential. It refers to one’s mental state, expectations, intentions, and personal history. If someone seeks an immediate fix and is unwilling to face fears, traumas, or difficult emotions that arise during ceremony, or refuses to honor the pre- and post-retreat guidelines, healing will not occur.
Returning to harmful habits — such as alcohol, poor diet, unhealthy relationships, or other addictions — without respect for the process prevents true transformation. The individual must be fully conscious and respectful of the healing process that begins with the ceremony in order to experience positive results.
The Environment
Healing doesn’t thrive in isolation. It’s essential to surround yourself with people who support your process. The quality and safety of the environment where the medicine is served is essential.
In inadequate settings — with inexperienced guides or untrained shamans — results can be risky and even harmful, potentially adding trauma instead of resolving it.
Proper training, guidance, and respect for traditional protocols (such as dieta, abstinence, and safe preparation) are vital to ensuring a positive and safe experience.
Risks of Using Ayahuasca in Unsafe Hands
Mental health risks:
Ancestral medicines like ayahuasca can invoke intense emotional experiences, reviving past traumas or repressed emotions. In the hands of inexperienced facilitators, a participant may face psychological crisis, extreme panic, or even require psychiatric care.
Physical risks:
Because Ayahuasca contains MAOIs, it can be dangerous when mixed with certain medications. A thorough medical screening weeks or months before the ceremony is crucial to ensure safety.
Improper preparation of the medicine: Only experienced shamans should prepare Ayahuasca. True masters know the correct balance of the two plants the brew is composed of. Unfortunately, many untrained individuals prepare or sell Ayahuasca mixed with other substances, which can be extremely risky.
Personal safety risks: It’s vital to attend centers that operate with ethical responsibility and the necessary regulations to avoid risks such as robberies, sexual assaults, and other violent crimes. We know that cases of this nature have been reported where many people have had such experiences by going to places where there is no security or regulation. That is why it is very important to go to places that guarantee a safe experience with the necessary precautions.
Integration
Healing doesn’t begin and end with the ceremony. The healing process starts the day we decide to take the master plant, with the preparation, during the ceremony or retreat, and then with the integration where we consciously work on and apply everything learned from the first day we decide to begin treatment with this ancestral medicine.
We want to make it clear that ayahuasca is not an instant coffee where we obtain results instantly or magically. Many people seek to solve problems or heal their lives instantly and without contributing anything. This treatment, like any therapy, requires time, understanding, awareness, and above all, that each individual puts what they’ve learned into practice. Otherwise, the changes will not be profound and lasting.
The growing popularity of these practices outside their true, traditional, and authentic context leads to encountering unserious practices by inexperienced hands that only promote these practices to make money. That’s why it’s important to keep all these steps in mind to ensure a safe and positive experience with the medicine.
written by Maria Fernanda Morales – Founder of Seven Retreats
