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- “Journal of Psychiatric Drugs;” Ayahuasca in adolescence: a preliminary psychiatric assessment.
- “Journal of Psychiatric Drugs;” Ayahuasca in adolescence: a preliminary psychiatric assessment.
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Ayahuasca Side Effects
Ayahuasca is a traditional South American medicine brewed from a combination of several plants that are legally available. Ayahuasca contains the potent hallucinogen DMT as well as harmaline, an alkaloid that allows DMT to quickly cross the blood-brain barrier. Unlike the short-lived effects of ingesting DMT in a pure form, ayahuasca intoxication can last up to 10 hours. While many take ayahuasca for its vivid and realistic hallucinations and the promise of insight into the mysteries of the mind, some are unprepared for the negative side effects of ayahuasca. These intense side effects virtually guarantee that ayahuasca will never be a popular psychedelic drug.
Nausea and Vomiting
The most reported side-effect of ayahuasca is nausea, followed by intense repetitive vomiting. For some, the vomiting comes early, while for others it occurs during the hallucinations. In ritual settings in South America, vomit buckets are often close at hand for this certainty, according to National Geographic writer Kira Salak in her 2004 article “Peru: To Hell and Back." Some users experience diarrhea as well. In the shamanic cultures where ayahuasca originated, these gastro-intestinal events are considered signs that the medicine is cleansing the body, mind and soul of impurities and toxins.
- The most reported side-effect of ayahuasca is nausea, followed by intense repetitive vomiting.
- In the shamanic cultures where ayahuasca originated, these gastro-intestinal events are considered signs that the medicine is cleansing the body, mind and soul of impurities and toxins.
Other Physical Side Effects
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Some users experience profuse sweating, tremors, increased blood pressure and heart rate, according to Peter Strafford, author of the “Psychedelics Encyclopedia.” These effects are most likely due to DMT intoxication, which is also known in a pure state to cause:
- hypertension
- agitation
- dilated pupils
- dizziness
- muscular incoordination
Neither ayahuasca, nor DMT, are addictive.
Emotional Intensity
This profound and unsettling effect has attracted medical doctors to research the psychiatric value of ayahuasca. However, if ayahuasca is not taken in a safe environment with trained guides, these effects could be destabilizing. You have to be willing to have a very powerful, long, internal experience, which can get very scary.”
Taken in a ritual context, such as provided in ayahuasca shamanism or part of the Brazilian ayahuasca church União do Vegetal, ayahuasca use appears safe and may even facilitate greater psychological health for Brazilian youth, according to a 2005 study published in the “Journal of Psychiatric Drugs. 2”
- This profound and unsettling effect has attracted medical doctors to research the psychiatric value of ayahuasca.
- Taken in a ritual context, such as provided in ayahuasca shamanism or part of the Brazilian ayahuasca church União do Vegetal, ayahuasca use appears safe and may even facilitate greater psychological health for Brazilian youth, according to a 2005 study published in the “Journal of Psychiatric Drugs.
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References
- “Illegal Drugs: A Complete Guide to Their History, Chemistry, Use and Abuse;” Paul Gahlinger, M.D., 2001
- “Journal of Psychiatric Drugs;” Ayahuasca in adolescence: a preliminary psychiatric assessment.
- Drug Enforcement Administration. N,N-DIMETHYLTRYPTAMINE(DMT). December 2019.
- Addiction Treatment Services. How Long Does DMT Stay in your System? Updated May 22, 2020.
- American Addiction Centers. Side Effects of DMT Use. Updated November 25, 2018.
- Gallimore AR, Strassman RJ. A Model for the Application of Target-Controlled Intravenous Infusion for a Prolonged Immersive DMT Psychedelic Experience. Front Pharmacol. 2016;7:211. doi:10.3389/fphar.2016.00211
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. How Do Hallucinogens (LSD, Psilocybin, Peyote, DMT, and Ayahuasca) Affect the Brain and Body? Updated February 2015.
- Dos Santos RG, Bouso JC, Hallak JEC. Ayahuasca, dimethyltryptamine, and psychosis: a systematic review of human studies. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2017;7(4):141-157. doi:10.1177/2045125316689030
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. Commonly Abused Drugs Chart. Updated August 20, 2020.
- American Addiction Centers. The Effects of Mixing DMT and Alcohol. Updated June 1, 2020.
- Riba J, Mcilhenny EH, Bouso JC, Barker SA. Metabolism and urinary disposition of N,N-dimethyltryptamine after oral and smoked administration: a comparative study. Drug Test Anal. 2015;7(5):401-406. doi:10.1002/dta.1685
Writer Bio
Ryan Hurd is a writer and consciousness studies researcher living in California. His dream expertise has been featured in the Huffington Post and Psychology Today. Hurd has an M.A. in consciousness studies, and is the author of "Enhance your dream life."