The research, which is being carried out together with the Rabbit Hole Institute, tries to compare therapy involving the use of ayahuasca - a traditional herbal tea with psychedelic effects - and classical psychotherapy. Interviews with people that have tried the ayahuasca therapy are being conducted as part of the research, and initial results show the approach has a very high rate of success. It opens the door to the darkest rooms and thus enables a person to face and confront his past. However, Paševa warns that the therapy is not about creating shortcuts.
Research work on the therapeutic effects of psychoactive substances goes back to the 1970s with the publishing of several attention-grabbing studies on the effects of LSD. A later ban on the use of LSD quelled all such future research. However in recent years there has been rising interest for such therapy. Research results show that psychedelic substances help treat anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction.
Despite positive shifts the shadow of the ban is still present and ayahuasca still lingers in a "grey area". It contains a banned substance called DMT but is treated as a herbal mixture. People who consume ayahuasca go through intensive experiences in a relatively short period and gain insight into their past, their fears and traumas, which they can then process.
Mina Paš stresses that although the therapeutic approach is very efficient, and ever more popular, in does also include risks. "It's a responsible task which can't be performed by just anyone who has completed a quick course," says Paš. She adds that people offering such therapy have years of experience behind them, including making sacrifices, being in isolation and similar rituals. According to Paš, traditional South American rituals and western classical psychotherapy should not exclude one another. On the contrary, they should work together in harmony and complement one another. Research results show that psychedelic therapy has great potential in treating anxiety and depression.
