🐸Kambo Medicine

Traditional practice

This is a living tradition carried through lineage and community. Its value is documented through generations of practitioners rather than clinical trials. Absence of Western studies is not absence of wisdom.

• Psychoactive plant or substance use. Some practices in this tradition may involve psychoactive plants or brews (for example ayahuasca, peyote, iboga, kambo, psilocybin, cannabis, or datura). These can interact dangerously with antidepressants (especially SSRIs and MAOIs), heart medication, and other prescriptions, and can trigger vomiting, disorientation, or lasting psychological distress if unsupervised.
• Fasting or restrictive diet. Fasts, cleanses, and prescribed diets can cause dizziness, low blood sugar, electrolyte imbalance, or refeeding problems, and are risky for anyone with diabetes, eating-disorder history, pregnancy, or on medications that require food.
• Financial and spiritual exploitation risk. Sacred traditions attract self-appointed teachers charging steep fees. Watch for practitioners who pressure you to pay for extra ceremonies, discourage outside support, or claim exclusive spiritual authority.
• Cultural appropriation and closed practices. Elements of this tradition may be reserved for initiated practitioners or community members. Approach as a respectful learner, not a consumer, and never present the practice as your own.

• Heart, blood pressure, and stroke history. Intense heat, cold, breath, or exertion can strain the cardiovascular system. Clear it with your physician if you have a heart condition, uncontrolled blood pressure, arrhythmia, a pacemaker, prior stroke, or take cardiac medication.
• Pregnancy, breastfeeding, and fertility treatment. Several herbs, essential oils, deep-tissue techniques, extreme temperatures, and intense breath or plant-medicine practices are not recommended during pregnancy, breastfeeding, or IVF cycles. Disclose your status and ask for a practitioner with prenatal training.
• Active PTSD or unprocessed severe trauma. Immersive, ceremonial, and altered-state work can surface traumatic memories without warning. Build a relationship with a trauma-informed licensed clinician first, and choose practitioners trained to hold trauma responses.
• Bleeding disorders and blood thinners. Practices that pierce or bruise the skin can cause prolonged bleeding or large hematomas if you have hemophilia, low platelets, or take anticoagulants such as warfarin, apixaban, or high-dose aspirin.
• Skin infections and immune suppression. Any practice that breaks the skin requires sterile, single-use tools. If you are immunocompromised, in cancer treatment, or have active skin infection, delay these practices or choose non-invasive alternatives.
• Prescription medication interactions. Bring a full medication list to your practitioner and pharmacist. Common problem combinations include SSRIs and MAOIs with ayahuasca or St. John's wort, blood thinners with garlic or ginkgo, and immunosuppressants with many herbs.