The Honor of Being An Advocate for Ayahuasca

I’ve been working with an Ayahuasca retreat center for the past couple of months as a volunteer, helping people through their journey with the sacred medicine. It has been so fulfilling for me to hold space for others this way because I believe in the healing powers of Ayahuasca and I know how much it’s changed my life as well.

Ayahuasca is a sacred medicine brewed into an elixir from a vine traditionally grown (for about 5+ years) by indigenous peoples in South America. It is taken as a drink in a ceremonial setting and induces a full-body, immersive experience where the participant connects with its psychoactive effects. Usually, there is a purging process that may come in the form of vomit, tears, laughter, screaming or involuntary body movement. This is a major part of Ayahuasca’s healing journey.

It is quite challenging to explain the intimate details of this sacred ritual, but I can say that anyone who sits with ayahuasca will indeed be changed forever. There’s no way to tell what kind of experience you’ll have since this is a very personal medicine, tailored to the individual each time. There’s no way to predict what you’ll go through, what you’ll be shown, or what you will come to understand from your time with Her. Nonetheless, you’ll always come out on the other side with a brand new perspective.

What drew me to the medicine was hearing that it was like ten years of therapy in one night. I had the courage to explore the mystery last year when I booked a spot with a retreat center in Cusco, Peru. Even though I didn’t know anyone who’d done this before, it seemed like the medicine was calling me and I just needed to answer. I stayed at the center deep in the Amazon mountains and sat through 3 Ayahuasca ceremonies before staying even longer to study with the Shipibo shamans there.

That moment changed everything. After communion with Ayahuasca, I never saw life the same way ever again. Every decision I've made since then has been led by the clarity I found during my experience. I’m not claiming Ayahuasca to be a cure-all, end-all, be-all, but it is the beginning of a life lived with a deeper knowledge otherwise hidden from us in the mundane world.

It will take your spiritual journey to the next level. All the meditation, prayer, yoga practices, and other explorations with psychedelics will be made one hundred times stronger. In my opinion, there is no other medicine on earth that has as much healing magic as Ayahuasca. Also, in my opinion, only the strong and courageous find their way to it.

It is my honor to guide these strong warriors through their spiritual deaths and help them emerge reborn. When we do this, we heal not only ourselves but everyone we come in contact with, our ancestral lineage, and everything we leave behind on this physical plane.

I’m excited to learn more and more about this healing work and to have an outlet for my spiritual growth that I’m passionate about. I don’t know what it looks like down the road for me to stay connected with Ayahuasca while pursuing a career in entertainment. I have one foot in the heavens and one foot in Hollywood. What a challenge it is.

All I know is that when we are truly connected with the spirit of the medicine, everything we need is provided for us. Staying connected is, of course, easier said than done, but I do my best every day. Ayahuasca has taught me to remind myself, over and over again, to forgive (myself and others) many times over, to love unconditionally (myself and others), and to keep going forward no matter what. So that’s what I’ll do.