Ayahausca Retreat #3

Ayahausca and our two Maestro healers //

Our third retreat working with this medicine together. Each time has been completely different for me, but the intention remains the same: a time to look inward, release what no longer serves, reconnect with clarity and purpose.

Myth: it’s a drug.

Fact: it’s a traditional Amazonian plant medicine used for centuries in ceremonial settings.

Myth: it’s instant healing and a way to escape reality.

Fact: it’s a tool for deep self reflection, emotional processing, and deep personal insight. Aya interacts with serotonin receptors in the brain, quieting the brain’s default mode network.

Myth: you go to be “fixed.”

Fact: I went for deeper awareness,

to meet myself more honestly and continue my work of growth.

Myth: you hallucinate and lose control

Fact: it’s a time of deep reflection, emotional release and a heightened sense of awareness. 10 ceremonies now for me and each one has been deeply introspective.

I feel different, because I am. More aware. More open. More honest with myself. More present to the truth of who I am.

I love that researchers and medical institutions are beginning to study these traditional practices to better understand the effects on the brain, mental health, and emotional processing. May 2023, in my first retreat, I participated in studies with Ohio State University, Harvard and had brain scans before and after Ayahausca showing a profound change and improvement. And now, with my third retreat, I’m participating in an inter-institutional research study at Ayahuasca Research Foundation, led by scientists from the University of Washington’s Center and the Advancing Integrative Medicine and Science Institute in Seattle.

If the medicine calls you, listen. I promise, it’s worth it. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Happy to share more about my experience in depth, just ask away