Ayahuasca Research Paper

Francisco Garcia Drugs and Behavior University of Houston Clear Lake March 12, 2018

The Uses and Effects of Ayahuasca

Uses and Effects of Ayahuasca Ayahuasca is a relatively new psychoactive substance that was discovered in the early 1900’s around the Amazon Rainforest; Amazonian indigenous tribes have been using ayahuasca for thousands of years religiously. In the last hundred years Brazilian culture has expanded into a more

Ayahuasca has been used by tribes in brazil for thousands of years in religious rituals to alter their state of mind. The indigenous cultures have established a ritual using ayahuasca that could be considered ritualistic. Ayahuasca is a beverage that is composed of two plants, one of which contains a psychedelic “The beverage is generally prepared by mixing two plants: Banisteriopsis caapi (a vine containing betacarbolines such as harmine, harmaline, and tetrahydroharmine) and Psychotria viridis (a shrub containing N, N-dimethyltryptamine, commonly known as DMT, an alkaloid similar to serotonin).” (Apud, I. 2017, Pg. 101). In the 1970’s Spain started commercially distributing ayahuasca to Europe; It expanded the view of ayahuasca in many European countries for its psychedelic properties. After the drug policies in the 1980’s Europeans were quick to change their policies on hallucinogenic substances due to pressure by foreign governments (Apud, I. 2017, Pg. 110). The substance was popularized by recreational use due to a spiritual belief of an altered states of mind and a heightened sense of

Patients all had prior experience using ayahuasca ranging from acute to chronic use; these ayahuasca users also had an impact on creativity due to the different brain regions. It was found that ayahuasca could potentially enhanced memory and creativity. It is believed to be caused by the increase of blood flow to different parts of the brain that are involved in creative thinking “The ayahuasca-induced enhancement of divergent thinking could potentially be linked to the effects ayahuasca exerts on brain regions involved in creativity.” (Kuypers, K. P. C., et. al 2016, Pg. 3398). Although thinking and creativity was enhanced, it was believed that ayahuasca improve mood; while drug users all had different experiences using ayahuasca; ayahuasca use in patients increases openness to many creative ideas but was in decline when using one way to problem solve “In contrast, convergent thinking and mood are related in a negative way: more positive mood lowers convergent thinking.” (Kuypers, K. P. C., et. al 2016, Pg. 3401). Ayahuasca holds promise as a psychedelic due to its divergent properties while assisted in psychotherapy. Researchers find that ayahuasca users not only found a way to adapt to problem solving but also to cope with severe sentiments “The sub-acute effects could then be suited in a second, “integration” session in which patients