A survey of ayahuasca retreat center visitors found that these individuals reported greater gratitude, nature relatedness, and nature appreciation after the ayahuasca retreat experience. Individuals with stronger mystical experiences during ayahuasca sessions tended to report greater increases. The research was published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs.
Ayahuasca is a powerful psychoactive brew traditionally used in spiritual and healing ceremonies by indigenous peoples of the Amazon basin. It is made from the Banisteriopsis caapi vine and the Psychotria viridis shrub, which contain compounds that induce strong hallucinations and altered states of consciousness. The brew is known for its intense psychological effects, often leading to profound personal insights and emotional healing.
Ayahuasca has gained popularity in Western culture for its potential therapeutic benefits. It is typically consumed in the context of ayahuasca ceremonies led by shamans, priests, or spiritual guides. Religious organizations such as the Santo Daime church practice rituals that involve the consumption of ayahuasca brew. In South and Central American countries, there are ayahuasca retreat centers that offer organized ayahuasca sessions for visitors.
Study author Jacob S. Aday and his colleagues note that existing scientific evidence indicates that individuals may feel more grateful after ayahuasca and other psychedelic experiences. Evidence also suggests that psychedelic experiences might alter one’s relationship with nature, leading individuals to adopt more pro-environmental attitudes. To verify these findings, the authors organized a study involving ayahuasca retreat visitors.
Study participants were 65 attendees of the Soltara Healing Center in Puntarenas Province, Gigante, Costa Rica. Soltara is an all-inclusive ayahuasca retreat center where attendees pay to participate in ayahuasca ceremonies with indigenous Shipibo curanderos (i.e., “healers” specializing in plant medicine) from Peru. As compensation for their participation, study authors entered participants in a drawing to potentially win $100.
Study participants stayed at the Soltara center for 5-12 nights and participated in between 2 and 7 ayahuasca ceremonies during that time. After agreeing to participate in the study, participants received an email with the study survey. In this survey, they completed assessments of gratitude (the Appreciation Scale), relatedness to nature (the Nature Relatedness Scale-6), and the appreciation of nature (the Appreciation of Nature Scale).
The day after their visit to Soltara ended, study authors sent participants a link for the second survey. The second survey contained the same three assessments from the first one, along with assessments related to their ayahuasca experiences—mystical experiences during the ceremonies (the Mystical Experience Questionnaire), awe (the Awe Experience Scale), and ego dissolution (the Ego Dissolution Inventory). A month after the retreat visit, participants once again completed the same assessments that were in the first survey.
Results showed that gratitude substantially increased after the retreat experience. Nature relatedness and appreciation of nature were also higher after the retreat experience. These increases tended to be more pronounced in participants who reported stronger mystical-type experiences and more awe during the retreat. The strength of ego dissolution experiences and the number of ayahuasca ceremonies attended were not associated with changes in gratitude, appreciation of nature, and nature relatedness.
“The current study supports that mystical experiences and awe induced by ayahuasca are linked with sustained increases in gratitude, nature relatedness, and nature appreciation. Given the relationships between these constructs and positive mental health outcomes, these results could have important implications for clinical populations and society more broadly,” the study authors concluded.
The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the psychological effects of ayahuasca consumption. However, it also has limitations that need to be taken into account. Notably, all the study participants self-selected to participate in ayahuasca ceremonies (the study authors recruited individuals who had already decided to participate in ceremonies on their own) and the study did not include a control group. Results of randomized controlled trials on the same topic might not yield the same results.
The paper, “Effects of Ayahuasca on Gratitude and Relationships with Nature: A Prospective, Naturalistic Study,” was authored by Jacob S. Aday, Emily K. Bolesch, Alan Kooi Davis, Sarah E. Domoff, Kyle Scherr, Josh D. Woolley, and Christopher C Davoli.