Department of Medical Psychology and Psychiatry, School of Medical Sciences, University of Campinas, Campinas, SP, Brazil.
Schools of Population Health and Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
J Psychoactive Drugs. 2021 Jul-Aug;53(3):272-282. doi: 10.1080/02791072.2020.1854399. Epub 2020 Dec 7.
Diseases that threaten life raise existential questions that can be a source of psychological distress. Studies with psychedelics demonstrate therapeutic effects for anxiety and depression associated with life-threatening illnesses. Ayahuasca has been proposed as a possible therapeutic agent in the treatment of psychiatric disorders. Preliminary studies suggest that ayahuasca could promote therapeutic effects for people with physical illnesses. The aim of this study was to explore how the ritual use of ayahuasca during the treatment of severe physical illnesses (SPI) may influence the way people understand and relate to their illness, using qualitative methods to assess the participants' perspectives. Participants who consumed ayahuasca ritualistically during the period of treatment for SPI were purposely chosen. Data were obtained through semi-structured interviews. A thematic analysis was performed with 14 individuals. The ritual experience with ayahuasca acted on the participants' illness understanding through multiple psychological mechanisms, including introspection, self-analysis, emotional processing and catharsis, recall of autobiographical memories subjectively related to illness origin, illness resignification, and perspective changes. This study suggests that the experience with ayahuasca may facilitate illness acceptance through an influence on the meanings of the illness, life, and death. These changes may favor a more balanced relationship with illness and treatment.
威胁生命的疾病会引发存在主义问题，这些问题可能成为心理困扰的根源。使用迷幻剂进行的研究表明，它们对与威胁生命的疾病相关的焦虑和抑郁具有治疗作用。阿育吠陀被提议作为治疗精神障碍的一种可能的治疗药物。初步研究表明，阿育吠陀可能会促进患有身体疾病的人的治疗效果。本研究旨在探讨在治疗严重身体疾病（SPI）期间仪式性使用阿育吠陀如何影响人们理解和对待疾病的方式，使用定性方法评估参与者的观点。选择了在 SPI 治疗期间仪式性地服用阿育吠陀的参与者。通过半结构化访谈获取数据。对 14 个人进行了主题分析。阿育吠陀的仪式体验通过多种心理机制对参与者的疾病理解产生了影响，包括内省、自我分析、情绪处理和宣泄、回忆与疾病起源主观相关的自传体记忆、疾病重新定义和视角变化。本研究表明，阿育吠陀的体验可能通过对疾病、生命和死亡的意义的影响来促进疾病的接受。这些变化可能有利于与疾病和治疗建立更平衡的关系。
