A Photo Essay
Heal: the work begins before you arrive.
Heal is a seven-day retreat in Baja, Mexico, with three ayahuasca ceremonies. It comes with one month of preparation and one month of integration. This essay follows it in three parts: before, during, after.
Before
One month of preparation, before you fly.
It starts with a connection call. Someone on our team asks what brought you here and answers what you ask. You can ask about ayahuasca, the group, the medical side, the cost. If you want to go ahead, the next step is yours.
Next come an application and a medical intake. Be honest, including about the parts that are hard to write. A nurse practitioner reviews every intake.
If you take medication, your prescriber leads any change. Tapering often takes one to two months. Do not stop or change a medication on your own. We cannot tell you the right plan, but we can talk it through with you and your prescriber.
Once you are accepted and have paid your deposit, you spend a month preparing online. You pay nothing until you are accepted. Preparation is time to think about what you are bringing with you, and to ask questions.
You fly into Los Cabos. A round-trip group shuttle meets the main arrival and departure windows and takes you to Yandara Retreat Center near Todos Santos, in Baja California Sur. The group gathers. Most people are strangers that morning. The retreat is seven days, with three ayahuasca ceremonies. Lodging and meals are included.
During
Three ceremonies in seven days, with rest in between.
Music is part of every ceremony. We use both analogue and digital music. Most of our facilitators are also musicians and ceremonialists. The playlists have been shaped across many ceremonies.
What happens in a ceremony is different for each person. Some people cry. Some laugh. Some lie very still. Nobody is asked to perform an experience, and nobody is hurried through one.
Facilitators stay in the room. There is at least one facilitator for every four participants. Jo Ann Forristal, a family nurse practitioner, is on site during the retreat.
Some people meet grief. Some meet anger they have carried for years. Some meet nothing dramatic at all. None of these is the right one. The job of the room is to keep it steady enough for whatever comes.
Three ceremonies in seven days. Ceremonies 1 and 2 usually run 5pm to 10pm. Ceremony 3 usually runs 9am to 2pm. Between them you rest, walk, eat, and talk when you want to. There is room for each ceremony to settle before the next one begins.
After
One month of integration follows.
You fly home. The world looks the same, and you may not feel the same. Or you may. We cannot promise what you will notice. Keep the first days quiet if you can.
The first week is for the basics. Sleep, regular meals, time outside. You do not need to have anything figured out yet.
For one month after the retreat, the group meets virtually. This is where you can say out loud what happened and hear how others are doing. It is included in the price.
Take your time with what came up. Insight is one thing and daily life is another. Small, steady steps are enough. If you have a therapist or doctor, keep them in the loop.
You may want to tell the people close to you what you went through, or you may not. There is no right pace for that. Talk to us if it helps to think it through first.
When the month closes, the included integration ends. If you want more support, there is an optional two-month extension. It is Awaken at Home, a 12-week program you do online.
Begin
The retreat is seven days. Integration is a month.
Heal takes place in Baja California Sur, Mexico. A connection call with someone on our team is where we decide the fit together. The Journey Archetype reflection and the TEDx talk are good places to start.