Both an ayahuasca retreat and a breathwork session led to sustained increases in well-being, resilience, and self-compassion over 12 weeks, with no difference between the two groups. Older participants reported higher resilience and self-compassion overall. The ayahuasca group showed higher self-compassion and lower neuroticism than the breathwork group. Neuroticism decreased in both groups, and agreeableness increased over time regardless of group, while extraversion, conscientiousness, and openness did not change. The findings suggest that improvements in psychological processes may be influenced by the social setting rather than solely by the substance.
Both a single ayahuasca ceremony and a single breathwork session led to lasting improvements in cognitive flexibility, emotion regulation, positive affect, and sleep quality over three months. Improvements in cognitive flexibility appeared before changes in emotion regulation, partially supporting the idea that cognitive shifts may drive later emotional gains. The two treatments did not differ in their overall benefits, and the role of participants' experience and motivation remains unclear. The findings suggest that both practices can promote psychological well-being, but further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms and temporal order of these effects.