Using Ayahuasca For Addiction There is an unfortunate misconception that natural necessarily means safe, and this is not always the case. This article provides readers with an overview of a natural but not necessarily safe substance known as Ayahuasca, which is made from a number of ingredients, including Banistereopsis Caapi vine. This plant is native to the Amazon region. It creates altered states of consciousness which can vary dramatically from one individual to the next. While some people can take Ayahuasca and it is just a bit stimulating, other people report having powerful visions. The primary ingredient of Ayahuasca is the vine which is also called Ayahuasca, meaning vine with a soul. Ayahuasca has other ingredients, like the Chacruna plant, which contains a psychedelic substance called DMT. The tea is named after the vine that it is made with but DMT is the substance that creates the experience that people usually associate with Ayahuasca. History of Ayahuasca It is difficult to know when people first started using Ayahuasca, but there are records dating back to the 16th century. Missionaries from Spain and Portugal went to South America and found that the indigenous people were using the concoction. The missionaries called it the work of the devil. It was written about for centuries, but first came to prominence in the West when the writer William S Burroughs was traveling through South America and looked for the brew in an attempt to cure his opiate addiction. Ayahuasca was then written about in the book by the McKenna brothers, True Hallucinations. Why do people take Ayahuasca Ayahuasca is used to produce a psychedelic experience, like other hallucinogens. In traditional cultures, shamans use it to communicate with nature. These spiritual leaders can also use it to find out what is causing a person to be sick at a spiritual level. In modern Western society, people have become interested in the use of Ayahuasca to overcome fears and explore the capacity of their mind. “THE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE AND THERAPY THAT I RECEIVED, I ATTRIBUTE DIRECTLY TO MY RECOVERY. THE SUPPORT OVER THE PERIOD OF TIME THAT I WAS THERE WAS CONSISENT, SUPPORTIVE AND TAUGHT ME THE VALUE OF RELATIONSHIPS” - ADAM - CARON TREATMENT CENTERS REVIEWS -- HTTPS://REVIEWS.CARON.ORG/CARON- PENNSYLVANIA-REVIEWS/ How does Ayahuasca work? People are not just interested in the myths and stories about Ayahuasca, but are also interested in understanding how this tea can work on the brain. It is important to realize that the Ayahuasca vine does not necessarily have psychoactive properties by itself, but when it is combined with other plants, it creates psychedelic effects. The has DMT, which is a substance that has a similar structure to serotonin. Around 30 minutes after drinking Ayahuasca tea, people start to begin experiencing hallucinations. While people who take a drug like LSD say that the feeling can be recreational, Ayahuasca is more frequently described as being emotional and spiritual. There have been brain scans that show that using the tea decreases activity in some parts of the brain. When these areas become overactive, conditions like addiction, anxiety and depression can occur. This is why people who take Ayahuasca might benefit from it when they have these disorders. Often people who seek out Ayahuasca are those who have a problem such as addiction. Many of these people have experienced trauma and say that Ayahuasca has helped them to see these situations more clearly and to heal themselves. Is Ayahuasca safe? People often wonder whether Ayahuasca is safe. One of the most commonly reported side effects of drinking Ayahuasca is vomiting, though those involved with Ayahuasca often understand this to mean you are purging negative elements from your life. If people ingest large amounts of Ayahuasca tea, they can develop serotonin syndrome. There have also been deaths from people who have participated in Ayahuasca ceremonies, usually due to undiagnosed heart conditions and interactions with other drugs that they had been taking. There have also been a few reports of people having allergic reactions from drinking Ayahuasca. There is not a definitive answer to the question of whether Ayahuasca is safe. Some say that it is, but the scientific research is currently limited, so while there might be benefits to using it, your safety cannot be guaranteed. Conclusion People who have addiction problems have sought out Ayahuasca in the past, and some have found what they needed. However, the combination of plants in Ayahuasca have not been researched thoroughly enough by science for us to be sure about whether or not Ayahuasca is safe. If you have addiction problems, the first solution you look at should always be attending an addiction treatment center.