This is an account of how a powerful ancestral plant medicine native to Equatorial West Africa has gradually made its way westward to help us heal—the Tabernanthe Iboga shrub, and its distinctive psychoactive alkaloid, ibogaine. In today’s post we will be exploring ibogaine’s potential for addiction and mental health treatment.
As modern society becomes increasingly complex, it seems that we are collectively becoming more overwhelmed, disenchanted, traumatized, and chronically depressed with each passing day.
Many of us resort to multiple addictions as harmful coping mechanisms for a deep-rooted pain that was already present.
In a system that prioritizes symptom-management over addressing the root causes of our numerous mental health issues, it is no surprise that we have started to explore beyond the constraints of conventional therapy.
Iboga: The Ancestral Wisdom of the Bwiti and the Path to a Healthier Future
Within the Bwiti spiritual tradition, numerous tribes have historically consumed the root bark of the Tabernanthe Iboga shrub, where ibogaine is most concentrated.
Though its initial discovery is attributed to the Babongo people of southern Gabon, successive migrations over time would eventually disseminate this knowledge to neighboring communities, including the Mitsogho, the Punu, and the Fang tribes.
Their spiritual practice, now acknowledged as one of three major religions, is called “Bwiti.” Iboga, as a gateway to psycho-spiritual insight, emotional healing, and ancestral knowledge, has been used historically (and continues to be) in various initiation rituals and healing ceremonies.
Dr. Iboga’s Journey West
In a somewhat fortuitous turn of events, French physician Theophile Griffon du Bellay first documented the Iboga shrub’s unique therapeutic properties in 1864. However, its main compound, ibogaine, would not be isolated until 1901, and it took several more decades for its potential to resonate in the Western world.
In 1962, Howard Lotsof, who was struggling with heroin addiction, discovered ibogaine’s remarkable ability to eliminate his cravings.
Recognizing the importance of this discovery, Lotsof dedicated his life to sharing the substance with fellow addicts and promoting ibogaine as a remedy to break the chains of addiction.
The Potential of Ibogaine for Addiction Treatment: A Path to Liberation
Research has shown ibogaine’s effectiveness in reducing various drug cravings and alleviating withdrawal symptoms associated with the grip of addiction.
Whether trauma, mental health, or addiction to opioids, cocaine, or alcohol have taken control of one’s life, ibogaine may offer a chance at redemption.
Various studies have demonstrated that ibogaine has the power to reset the brain’s reward pathways, disrupted by the insidious hold of addiction, and increase levels of serotonin, the neurotransmitter associated with feelings of well-being and satisfaction.
However, it is essential to acknowledge that ibogaine is not without risks and should only be administered under the supervision of qualified medical professionals.
Caught Between a Court and a Healing Space?
In the United States, the ever-changing landscape of regulation casts a shadow on the potential healing benefits of ibogaine, which has been classified as a Schedule I substance since 1967.
This classification has left the pursuit of its medicinal potential teetering on the edge of legality, supposedly due to its potential health risks.
However, amidst concerns about its possible cardiotoxicity, there is a glimmer of hope: should ibogaine one day be legally destigmatized, it could provide relief for individuals suffering from both mental health issues and addiction on a global scale.
As we navigate the intricate web of regulation and safety, it is crucial that we proceed with caution, seeking guidance from experienced ibogaine clinics such as Tabula Rasa Retreat, Europe’s leading ibogaine treatment center.
Ibogaine: A Beacon of Hope In the Dark
As the drug overdose crisis continues to escalate not only in the US but worldwide, the importance of ibogaine as a treatment option becomes increasingly critical. Renowned physician and author Gabor Maté emphasizes that addiction does not occur in a vacuum, stating:
“The question is never ´why the addiction?´ but ´why the pain?´”
More than 200 scientific papers published since 2010 have explored ibogaine and its potential applications for addiction treatment, which it is primarily known for.
However, its benefits extend beyond addiction treatment, demonstrating effectiveness in healing from conditions such as PTSD, depression, anhedonia, anxiety.
Unravelling the Folds of the Psyche
Ibogaine’s enigmatic nature has also prompted investigations into its therapeutic potential regarding trauma and repressed memories. Some studies suggest that ibogaine may help process distressing experiences and memories, leading to improved mental health outcomes.
For example, research has shown significant reductions in symptoms of depression and anxiety in individuals with PTSD following ibogaine treatment.
Scientifically speaking, the precise mechanisms by which ibogaine exerts its therapeutic effects on trauma and repressed memories remain unclear.
However, by presenting information from the subconscious through extremely vivid, lucid-dream type visions that last for nearly twenty-four hours, it appears that ibogaine may help individuals process traumatic experiences by fostering communication between different regions of the brain.
War and Peace: PTSD and Ibogaine
PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is a mental health condition that affects those who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event.
Complex-PTSD, a variation, describes those who have endured prolonged abuse and trauma, which includes war veterans or individuals who have suffered from persistent childhood abuse, torture, physical, emotional, or sexual abuse.
Conventional treatments for PTSD often involve therapy and medication but fall short as they primarily focus on symptom management, making them ill-suited for treating C-PTSD.
However, ibogaine has emerged as a potential alternative therapy.
Although research on ibogaine for PTSD is still in its early stages, preliminary studies have shown promising results. A study published found that ibogaine was highly effective in reducing C-PTSD symptoms in veterans, helping them regain control of their lives from cycles of flashbacks, hyperarousal, dissociation, depression, and addiction.
Performing a “Factory Reset” on the Brain
Aside from addiction and trauma-related issues, ibogaine has piqued curiosity for its possible applications in addressing various mental health problems, such as depression, anhedonia, and anxiety.
Although there are no specific clinical studies yet, our experience with numerous clients at Tabula Rasa Retreat has shown that ibogaine treatment has resulted in significant and lasting reductions in depression symptoms, even if not a complete cure.
Similarly, we have also witnessed its potential for treating anxiety, as ibogaine treatment has led to considerable reductions in anxiety and panic attacks for many clients in the months following treatment.
Based on current scientific research, one of the ways ibogaine works is by reducing activity in the amygdala, a brain region often overactive in anxiety and major depressive disorders.
The mechanisms by which ibogaine exerts its therapeutic effects on mental health issues are not yet fully understood.
However, studies indicate that ibogaine may help by resetting neural circuits in the brain, promoting neuroplasticity, and modulating levels of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine.
How Safe is Ibogaine?
Like addiction treatment, using ibogaine for mental health issues also has its risks. Ibogaine’s psychoactive effects can be intense and long-lasting, potentially causing adverse reactions.
In terms of its psychoactive effect, ibogaine uncovers repressed memories from an individual’s life, allowing them to relive and reinterpret key events that may have shaped their subconscious self-image.
This aspect alone can make it a challenging journey, which is why we at Tabula Rasa Retreat insist on having certified in-house therapists.
Additionally, ibogaine poses some health risks concerning cardiac, respiratory, and liver function.
Since we prioritize client safety, we require a full blood panel test, liver function test, and resting and stress ECG tests before admission.
For each person undergoing treatment, we have a fully trained ACLS medical team consisting of a head doctor and nurses, equipped with state-of-the-art ECG machines and defibrillators.
Welcome to The Age of Overwhelm. Anyone Got a Migraine Yet?
It is no secret that the world and human civilizations have cyclically treaded a fine line between prosperity and annihilation.
In stark contrast to this premise, we have never before experienced a socio-cultural landscape as atomized and confusing as the present.
Now, more than ever, it is evident we live in an age that French philosopher and social theorist Jean Baudrillard once referred to as “the pornography of the visible.”
An age of hyperreality, where the real has been replaced by its simulation; where signs, symbols, and images have become more tangible than the objects they represent.
Confused by the overwhelming display across various media platforms, we, as a supposedly cognizant race, have settled for the glossy surface of things rather than their substance.
Christianity, the Conquistadors, and All That Was Lost
Christianity, the belief in one God, emerged from the cradle of monotheism, eventually challenging and suppressing animism—the widespread belief that all things possess a soul and communicate with one another.
The direct communication with the divine that humans had enjoyed for millions of years and the ancestral wisdom we once respectfully harvested from our communion with nature was stamped out by the discoveries and conquistadors when they colonized the Americas, where native tribes used ancestral plant medicines such as ayahuasca and psilocybin mushrooms.
The Catholic Church, as an institution, did not take kindly to dissenters or to the idea that every person might be able to communicate with the divine, as it might diminish their power as the sole and uncontested intermediaries between humankind and God.
A Metaphor for Knowledge Lost
An apt metaphor for this can be found in the first film of “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, in Galadriel’s opening monologue:
“The world has changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none who now live remember it. […] And some things, that should not have been forgotten, were lost. History became legend, legend became myth, and for two and a half thousand years, the ring passed out of all knowledge.”
Though it has only been 531 years since Christopher Columbus’ first voyage to the Americas in 1492, and although we are not talking about Lord Sauron’s demonic “ring of power,” but about the benign and ancestral wisdom of plant medicines, the metaphor could not be a better fit.
That wisdom, until recently, was what “should not have been forgotten.”
Paving the Road for a Better Now: Lessons From Ancestral Wisdom
“Disconnection” is the operative word here. From healing. From knowledge. From diversity. From truth.
And in disconnecting ever more from the wisdom of planet Earth and of our ancestors, we have done ourselves a great disservice.
Assuming that Tolkien’s “ring of power” holds equal promise and risk, we can apply that metaphor neatly to a single shrub native to equatorial West Africa—Tabernanthe Iboga.
How, one might ask?
Because despite potentially adverse effects, its powerful psychoactive alkaloid, ibogaine, has an innate tendency to always break through the glossy surface of things and go straight for their substance.
In this, it remains unparalleled in both nature and science as the Ultimate Healer for modern-day maladies such as chronic anxiety, addiction, depression, anhedonia, and trauma.
That said, it is important to remember: ibogaine, in and of itself, is not and never will be a cure-all. If we as individuals are not willing to do “the work” ourselves, to work with our subconscious, learn from it, and make key changes to coping mechanisms that no longer serve us, then no matter how many doors such ancestral medicines may open, we shall forever linger on the threshold of significant change.
For further information visit www.tabularasaretreat.com or call PT +351 965 751 649 UK +44 7961 355 530