Does Ibogaine Work?


When people first hear about ibogaine, the first thing they always ask is: Does it work? The answer to this question is multifaceted and incredibly nuanced. Nevertheless, we will endeavor to answer this question in the following article. Our answers are grounded in the combined 20 years of experience that our team has from administering Ibogaine treatment in Mexico. There is no simple way to answer the question, “does ibogaine work?” and this is because there is no single way to describe all of the patients that pass through our doors in a given year. Indeed there are as many answers to this question as there are patients who take ibogaine. Nonetheless, we will try our best to describe several scenarios that we feel best represent the ibogaine experience as a whole. Does Ibogaine Work For Addiction? Addiction comes in many flavors but because ibogaine is most closely associated with opioid addiction we will begin by addressing ibogaine treatment for these sorts of cases. For Opioid Addiction? Opioid addicts receive two distinct benefits from treatment with ibogaine. *The first benefit is the suppression of withdrawal symptoms, which we will call the physical benefits. The second benefit is the psychological component, which we will call the psychological benefits. Together these two benefits (physical and psychological) combine to propel opioid addicts out of addiction and into a life of true recovery. There are enormous synergies that come from combining these two benefits. Many addicts report that their fear of withdrawals is the number one reason they continue using. By suppressing the person’s physical and psychological symptoms of withdrawal concurrently, people can more quickly progress into a state of mind where they can ponder rationally about what their recovery ought to look like. So in answer to the question, “does ibogaine work for opioid addiction?” The answer is that, frequently, it does work — really well, in the grand sense, and that it always works in the smaller sense when it comes to withdrawal symptom suppression. Indeed, ibogaine, when administered at BAJA IBOGAINE, has, many thousands of times, put people back into the driver’s seats of their own lives. As with any pursuit, success is a function of how much a person “wants it.” The people that experience the numinous within themselves and then diligently pursue lifetimes of recovery do, in many cases, succeed. The flipside to all of this is that there are no guarantees. The cold hard truth is that an addict must fully commit themselves if they are to be free of opioids once and for all, and we sternly convey this message to every single addict that walks through our doors. For Smoking? Many people who have passed through our doors have quit smoking cigarettes upon completion of ibogaine treatment. The mechanics of this are not dissimilar to the mechanics at play in opioid addiction. In essence, the ibogaine works as it always does, by resetting a person’s mindset to the one they used to enjoy in their pre-addictive state. They become untethered from their maladaptive behavior. People describe this as “space away from [my] addiction”¹ and are able to use it to feel less cravings. Taking space away from an addictive thing, allows people to experience cravings for that thing from an entirely new perspective. In fact, the experience of cravings for nearly anything and everything that people routinely overdo (food, drugs, sex, nicotine, etc.) is radically diminished. The idea of having one lonesome beer over dinner becomes pleasant instead of unfulfilling or stifling. People’s attitudes about excess radically shift post-treatment. Behaviors prone to “craving” become dampened in a way that most describe as “downright amazing.” Patients routinely described this as “it feels like the hole inside of me has now been filled.”² And no, we are not kidding, people legitimately say this more often than not. In the case of nicotine addiction, ibogaine is extremely useful in helping people to move on from cigarettes or vaping. There is a sense of renewal, almost a freshness of spirit* that people feel compelled to protect. And with intelligently designed coping strategies, we have seen many patients entirely quit nicotine. Of note, ibogaine is unique amongst psychedelics for eliciting this downregulation in appetite for vice, in both people and mice. Does Ibogaine Work For Depression? The unique oneiric³ aspects of many ibogaine journeys can be extremely helpful for people suffering with depression (and other mental health conditions). Many patients report experiencing “life reviews.”⁴ These life reviews often unfold in much the same way sophisticated psychotherapy might progress over the course of a decade. Realizations are made, painful experiences are relived, and a sort of catharsis is reached near the conclusion. Many patients feel as though they are returned to a period of time before their depression took hold. This experience can help people to unlock and grok their habits of mind. Years later, patients write to us telling us, “I really think I just needed to get over this one something and once I did that, it freed me to live my life.”⁵ Stories like this embody the typical responses that we see in our depression patients. While some mental health disorders are perhaps beyond the scope of ibogaine (e.g. schizophrenia) diagnoses like depression, anxiety, and the diseases of despair respond phenomenally well to treatment with ibogaine. Of particular note for people struggling with depression is that the benefits encountered can often snowball and build upon themselves in a positive feedback loop. Indeed it is not uncommon for many of our mental health patients to adopt rigorous exercise routines, improved nutritional habits, and report “[feeling] more well rounded” overall. Does Ibogaine Work For the Betterment Of Well People? At BAJA IBOGAINE we sometimes encounter patients who are struggling with neither addiction nor mental illness. These patients come in many forms; some are seekers simply looking to experience the father of all psychedelics while others are busy professionals seeking respite from their hectic lives. Regardless of their specifics, they all come for the same fundamental reason. They are curious. Perhaps they are curious to see if they can eke out some more performance at work or home. Or maybe they are simply curious about themselves and want to know more about what their minds are capable of. Perhaps they are curious about the world around them, the universe they exist in, or just the nature that surrounds them. What they all have in common is that they chose to try and use IBOGAINE just as addicts and patients struggling with mental illness try to use IBOGAINE — as a tool to help them improve their mind, body, and spirit. People Use Ibogaine To Improve Their Lives Ibogaine, as all things upon this earth are, is a gift from God. Yes it can be used to suppress the symptoms of opioid withdrawal, and yes it can be used by people to restore balance in aspects of their lives where they tend to lose balance (substances, behaviors, etc.) But really what ibogaine is all about is the liberation of the human spirit and the process of human beings becoming ever more closely acquainted with their full potential. Ibogaine is about helping us free ourselves from the chains that prevent us from achieving our true human potential. When you are ready to free yourself from the chains holding you back, we invite you to give us a call. We are BAJA IBOGAINE, we understand people, and we understand ibogaine. Come to K38, and we’ll help you find out if ibogaine can work for you. JLJ 2017 (with permission) ↩ DMF 2016 (with permission) ↩ (adj.) of or related to dream ↩ Rick Doblin, Ph.D. Shares his Ibogaine Experience ↩ JLJ 2017 (with permission) ↩

When people first hear about ibogaine, the first thing they always ask is:

Does it work?

The answer to this question is multifaceted and incredibly nuanced. Nevertheless, we will endeavor to answer this question in the following article. Our answers are grounded in the combined 20 years of experience that our team has from administering Ibogaine treatment in Mexico.

There is no simple way to answer the question, “does ibogaine work?” and this is because there is no single way to describe all of the patients that pass through our doors in a given year. Indeed there are as many answers to this question as there are patients who take ibogaine. Nonetheless, we will try our best to describe several scenarios that we feel best represent the ibogaine experience as a whole.

Does Ibogaine Work For Addiction?

Addiction comes in many flavors but because ibogaine is most closely associated with opioid addiction we will begin by addressing ibogaine treatment for these sorts of cases.

For Opioid Addiction?

Opioid addicts receive two distinct benefits from treatment with ibogaine. **The first benefit is the suppression of withdrawal symptoms, which we will call the physical benefits. The second benefit is the psychological component, which we will call the psychological benefits. Together these two benefits (physical and psychological) combine to propel opioid addicts out of addiction and into a life of true recovery.

woman doing drugs

There are enormous synergies that come from combining these two benefits. Many addicts report that their fear of withdrawals is the number one reason they continue using. By suppressing the person’s physical and psychological symptoms of withdrawal concurrently, people can more quickly progress into a state of mind where they can ponder rationally about what their recovery ought to look like.

So in answer to the question, “does ibogaine work for opioid addiction?” The answer is that, frequently, it does work — really well, in the grand sense, and that it always works in the smaller sense when it comes to withdrawal symptom suppression. Indeed, ibogaine, when administered at BAJA IBOGAINE, has, many thousands of times, put people back into the driver’s seats of their own lives. As with any pursuit, success is a function of how much a person “wants it.” The people that experience the numinous within themselves and then diligently pursue lifetimes of recovery do, in many cases, succeed.

The flipside to all of this is that there are no guarantees. The cold hard truth is that an addict must fully commit themselves if they are to be free of opioids once and for all, and we sternly convey this message to every single addict that walks through our doors.

For Smoking?

Many people who have passed through our doors have quit smoking cigarettes upon completion of ibogaine treatment. The mechanics of this are not dissimilar to the mechanics at play in opioid addiction. In essence, the ibogaine works as it always does, by resetting a person’s mindset to the one they used to enjoy in their pre-addictive state. They become untethered from their maladaptive behavior.

woman smoking

People describe this as “space away from [my] addiction”¹ and are able to use it to feel less cravings. Taking space away from an addictive thing, allows people to experience cravings for that thing from an entirely new perspective. In fact, the experience of cravings for nearly anything and everything that people routinely overdo (food, drugs, sex, nicotine, etc.) is radically diminished. The idea of having one lonesome beer over dinner becomes pleasant instead of unfulfilling or stifling. People’s attitudes about excess radically shift post-treatment. Behaviors prone to “craving” become dampened in a way that most describe as “downright amazing.” Patients routinely described this as “it feels like the hole inside of me has now been filled.”² And no, we are not kidding, people legitimately say this more often than not.

In the case of nicotine addiction, ibogaine is extremely useful in helping people to move on from cigarettes or vaping. There is a sense of renewal, almost a freshness of spirit that people feel compelled to protect. And with intelligently designed coping strategies, we have seen many patients entirely quit nicotine. Of note, ibogaine is unique amongst psychedelics for eliciting this downregulation in appetite for vice, in both people and mice.

Does Ibogaine Work For Depression?

woman crying

The unique oneiric³ aspects of many ibogaine journeys can be extremely helpful for people suffering with depression (and other mental health conditions). Many patients report experiencing “life reviews.”⁴ These life reviews often unfold in much the same way sophisticated psychotherapy might progress over the course of a decade. Realizations are made, painful experiences are relived, and a sort of catharsis is reached near the conclusion. Many patients feel as though they are returned to a period of time before their depression took hold.

This experience can help people to unlock and grok their habits of mind. Years later, patients write to us telling us, “I really think I just needed to get over this one something and once I did that, it freed me to live my life.”⁵ Stories like this embody the typical responses that we see in our depression patients. While some mental health disorders are perhaps beyond the scope of ibogaine (e.g. schizophrenia) diagnoses like depression, anxiety, and the diseases of despair respond phenomenally well to treatment with ibogaine.

Of particular note for people struggling with depression is that the benefits encountered can often snowball and build upon themselves in a positive feedback loop. Indeed it is not uncommon for many of our mental health patients to adopt rigorous exercise routines, improved nutritional habits, and report “[feeling] more well rounded” overall.

Does Ibogaine Work For the Betterment Of Well People?

At BAJA IBOGAINE we sometimes encounter patients who are struggling with neither addiction nor mental illness. These patients come in many forms; some are seekers simply looking to experience the father of all psychedelics while others are busy professionals seeking respite from their hectic lives. Regardless of their specifics, they all come for the same fundamental reason.

They are curious.

Perhaps they are curious to see if they can eke out some more performance at work or home. Or maybe they are simply curious about themselves and want to know more about what their minds are capable of. Perhaps they are curious about the world around them, the universe they exist in, or just the nature that surrounds them. What they all have in common is that they chose to try and use IBOGAINE just as addicts and patients struggling with mental illness try to use IBOGAINE — as a tool to help them improve their mind, body, and spirit.

People Use Ibogaine To Improve Their Lives

Ibogaine, as all things upon this earth are, is a gift from God. Yes it can be used to suppress the symptoms of opioid withdrawal, and yes it can be used by people to restore balance in aspects of their lives where they tend to lose balance (substances, behaviors, etc.) But really what ibogaine is all about is the liberation of the human spirit and the process of human beings becoming ever more closely acquainted with their full potential.

woman smiling

Ibogaine is about helping us free ourselves from the chains that prevent us from achieving our true human potential. When you are ready to free yourself from the chains holding you back, we invite you to give us a call.

We are BAJA IBOGAINE, we understand people, and we understand ibogaine. Come to K38, and we’ll help you find out if ibogaine can work for you.

JLJ 2017 (with permission) ↩
DMF 2016 (with permission) ↩
(adj.) of or related to dream ↩
Rick Doblin, Ph.D. Shares his Ibogaine Experience ↩
JLJ 2017 (with permission) ↩