The revelation of the American actress Megan Fox about her recent trip to Costa Rica to ingest Ayahuasca (Yagé) brought to the fore the real scope and risks of this traditional drink from the Amazon. The protagonist of the Hit Transformers said that she traveled to our country, where she drank hallucinogenic tea in the company of her partner, the musician Machine Gun Kelly.
“We went to Costa Rica to drink ayahuasca in a suitable environment, with indigenous people. So I thought it was like a glamping, like it was some kind of five star experiences … “But you get there and you really are in the middle of the forest, and you can’t eat after 1pm. You have to walk a very long distance to get water and you cannot shower because they are in a drought,” she said last week on the Jimmy Kimmel Live program.
Fox said that each person’s “journey” is very different. “But on the second night I went to hell for eternity. Just knowing that eternity is torture in itself, because there is no beginning, middle or end. So you have a real ego death. It just goes straight to your soul and takes you to the psychological prison in which you are kept,” she said.
Yagé: What you have to know
Much has been said about the effects of this drink and why Costa Rica has become a center of attraction for travelers eager for Ayahuasca, as revealed by The New York Times newspaper last September.
These are the 5 things you have to know about this concoction:
1. Coming from death experience
Ayahuasca is also known as yagé or wine of death. It is a traditional drink from the Amazon that results from the mixture of two plants – the ayahuasca vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) – and a bush called chacruna (Psychotria viridis), which contains the hallucinogen dimethyltryptamine (DMT).
2. Why is it being sought?
The consumption of the “master plant” or “wise” “constitutes the door to the spiritual world and its secrets, which is why Amazonian medicine has been structured around the ayahuasca ceremony,” the Peruvian government reported some time ago.
Based on scientific evidence, the clinical benefits of yagé are limited. But those who defend it – like the actress Megan Fox – assure that it is a tool to treat post-traumatic stress disorders, depression and addictions.
Professor Dennis McKenna, a botanist at the University of Minnesota in the United States, said “Thrill seekers discard it after several vomiting sessions. It is not nice or fun. It puts your body in a physical and emotional squeeze”.
3. The Shaman
A Shaman is the person responsible for directing the ceremony, but he is also the one who must check what medications people take before ingesting Ayahuasca. And he will also know about the possible reactions you may have with other drugs, such as antidepressants.
4. Health risks?
Although studies are being carried out to analyze the feasibility of giving psychedelic substances instead of traditional drugs, the New York Times report also warns of the dangers of drinking Ayahuasca, especially if antidepressants and anti-hypertension drugs are also ingested.
For its part, the British government long ago warned that Yagé use can have serious implications for someone with mental health problems. This is because the hallucinogen can be responsible for triggering disorders in those predisposed, although unaware of it.
5. Costa Rica, a popular destination in the USA
In our country, there are several sites where rituals with South American shamans occur. One of them is on the Pacific coast, a fully equipped private luxury resort. Retreat prices range from $3,050 to $7,075 per person for a one-week stay.