EBV type 2 can infect T cells in vitro9; however, most infections with EBV outside of equatorial Africa and New Guinea are of EBV type 1. In addition to T-cell CAEBV, EBV is present in T cells of healthy Kenyan children infected with EBV type 2,10 in a small percentage of tonsils,11 and in T cells from some patients with T-cell lymphoma or HLH.
Bortezomib and HDAC inhibitors induce virus replication and expression of the EBV PK . GCV is phosphorylated by the viral PK, resulting in inhibition of EBV replication; phosphorylated GCV induces cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis of virus-infected cells . Antiviral therapy with acyclovir inhibits the viral DNA polymerase but not the host-cell polymerase. Therefore, although acyclovir inhibits lytic virus replication, which occurs in epithelial cells, it has virtually no effect on the virus when lymphocytes divide and use the host-cell polymerase to replicate viral DNA. In theory, antiviral therapy might have an effect early in primary infection, when the virus replicates in cells and spreads to other cells. However, once EBV infection is established, acyclovir has no effect on virus-infected T cells in T-cell CAEBV.
In some South American centers where the Ayahuasca vine is legal, medicinal plant retreats are paired with complementary practices like yoga, meditation, breathwork, or other personal growth practices to help guide the experience. The effects of Ayahuasca can heighten the feeling of connection with the heart and to the earth, so pairing these experiences can create a more expansive healing journey by helping integrate introspection with outward activity. T-cell CAEBV is a rare disorder in which EBV-infected T cells infiltrate tissues, and high levels of EBV are present in circulating T cells. In the absence of HCT, the disease has a poor prognosis, and patients may succumb to liver failure, HLH, or T-cell lymphoma.
Research into the harm potential and adverse effects of peyote is limited, but in general, it is considered a safe substance. A lethal dose has never been identified, probably because it’s too high to be taken accidentally. In other words, to the best of our knowledge, nobody has ever died from a peyote overdose. Peyote is an endangered species and care should be taken to avoid purchasing specimens that have been illegally poached from the wild. Mescaline, the primary psychoactive alkaloid, is also an illegal substance in many countries, and we do not encourage or condone the use of this it where it is against the law. However, we accept that illegal drug use occurs, and believe that offering responsible harm reduction information is imperative to keeping people safe.
Potential Benefits
It’s therefore recommended to wait several days between doses of any of these substances. As early as the late-1800s/early-1900s, non-native intellectuals and scientists—including the neurologist Silas Weir Mitchell, the philosopher William James, and the occultist Aleister Crowley—were experimenting with peyote for themselves. In fact, the drug company Parke-Davis was even promoting their own liquid peyote extract as an effective “cardiac tonic” . Other in-depth studies, conducted by German and Austrian scientists, led to the isolation of mescaline in 1897 and its synthesis—the first of any psychedelic—in 1919. During this process, the traditional peyote ceremony was overlaid with Christian elements to help safeguard the new religion as a legitimate form of Christian worship. For example, Jesus was invoked alongside animal spirits, and the “peyote road” was conflated with Christian values.
The medicine can be very powerful, and it’s important to approach it with intention and respect. In the moments that followed my heart healing, a small ceremonial dance session unfolded. And under the guidance of rapé and Ayahuasca, I knew whatever this work was, I wanted in. Beyond my own transformation, I witnessed people forgive & fall in love with themselves, find their purpose, connect to their passion, and smile so big it filled a maloca. When we work with hapeh in the morning or early afternoon, it can shape the rest of our day if we so choose. So set an intention that lasts throughout the day and connect to it again hours after sitting with the medicine. You’d be surprised how this intention, mindful practice can positively influence the hours to follow when the experience has technically passed.
Upon the altar, the “roadman” who led the ceremony not only kept a large sacred peyote button (the “Peyote Chief” or “Father Peyote”) but also a Christian Bible. Interestingly, Peyotism, as it was called, was devoid of all the usual Christian guilt. In fact, it positioned Native Americans as much closer to God than whites, since it was “the whites,” they said, who crucified Jesus—not the ancestrally separated Indians. At the same time, the ceremonial use of peyote became all the more important to Native Americans as an emblem of their emerging pan-Indian identity and their ongoing struggle against the so-called “manifest destiny” of their oppressors. Of course, it was also a means of coping spiritually with the subordination and loss of their culture.
Final Thoughts. The Tepi vs. Kuripe
Finding a good kambo facilitator is essential to minimizing the risks of the experience. Kambo not only has severe physical effects; it can also be a trying psychological experience. An alternative way to approach the risk of hyponatremia is to provide electrolytes to balance sodium levels.
He wrote about the case and others in the paper “as an alert for health teams”. In a paper published in the Journal of Venom Research, Haddad described how Brazil has seen a spate of deaths as kambo is adopted by urban therapy clinics. During purification rituals, a shaman healer burns a line of dots into the participant, with the number of burns varying depending on factors such as the body part and the gender of the participant. The participant drinks large amounts of liquid before the kambo is applied. T was unusual enough for a previously healthy 37-year-old man to suffer from a sudden perforated oesophagus, an uncommon and potentially fatal condition usually caused by prolonged, forceful vomiting. Please do not drink distilled water or more than the suggested amount of water day of session. It’s a precious organ that is about to get worked bigtime with The Frog, so treat it nice and pause on the Spirits, thanks!
Read more about Matses Kambo Training here.