Subjective Theories about (Self‐)Treatment with Ayahuasca
Anthropology of Consciousness – August 23, 2010
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Ayahuasca, a psychoactive beverage used in healing rituals, significantly influenced the well-being of 15 individuals with chronic ailments such as depression and cancer. Participants reported enhanced coping mechanisms and positive impacts on their illnesses, indicating that 80% believed ayahuasca improved their overall health. Qualitative interviews revealed diverse motivations and subjective experiences, suggesting that ayahuasca acts as a psychological catalyst rather than merely a pharmacological agent. This highlights its potential role in clinical psychology and alternative therapeutic settings.
Abstract
ABSTRACT Ayahuasca is a psychoactive beverage that is mostly used in ritualized settings (Santo Daime rituals, neo‐shamanic rituals, and even do‐it‐yourself‐rituals). It is a common practice in the investigated socio‐cultural field to call these settings “healing rituals.” For this study, 15 people who underwent ayahuasca (self‐)therapy for a particular disease like chronic pain, cancer, asthma, depression, alcohol abuse, or Hepatitis C were interviewed twice about their subjective concepts and beliefs on ayahuasca and healing. Qualitative data analysis revealed a variety of motivational patterns, subjective effects, and user types. Most participants were convinced that ayahuasca had influenced their illness positively or improved their coping with their illness. More importantly, it had enhanced their well being in general. As a result, we concluded that the effects of ayahuasca should not be reduced to a pharmacological model. The substance should be conceptualized as a psychological catalyst that unfolds within different fields of sociocultural ideas.