CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 40Psychedelics and Drug StudiesParanormal Experiences and BeliefsReligion, Spirituality, and Psychology

A phenomenology of subjectively relevant experiences induced by ayahuasca in upper Amazon vegetalismo tourism

Open access
Wolff, Tom John, Ruffell, Simon, Netzband, Nigel, Passie, Torsten·2019·Journal of Psychedelic Studies
DOI 10.1556/2054.2019.007
Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

Aims This heuristic study reports observations on the phenomenology of ayahuasca experiences of nine foreign tourist participants of an ayahuasca retreat in Peru. Methods Narrative interviews, reflecting individual experiences after ayahuasca “night ceremony,” have been analyzed by qualitative content analysis using a data-driven strategy in order to extract themes and categories inherent in the interviews. Previously, a demographic questionnaire was given. The dose–response connection was uncontrolled, which is typical for this naturalistic setting. Results The typical structure of spontaneously reported experiences includes: personal preparation, physical symptoms, visual phenomena, cognitive and emotional phenomena, reactions of the individual within the psychedelic “world” as well as within ordinary reality, and appraisal to the process. Emotional reactions were subsumed under pleasant (psychotherapeutic “target emotions” and hedonistic emotions) and unpleasant emotions. For a majority, the presence of psychotherapeutic target emotions seemed to involve the presence of unpleasant emotions in the same session – possibly as transitional emotional states. Conclusions This suggests that psychodynamic processes, for example, possible activation of emotional conflicts – can take place spontaneously, during ayahuasca intake in this particular setting. Some participants attributed symbolic meaning to the visionary content, which was more likely to take place in psychotherapeutically motivated clients. The specific setting influence as well as corresponding expectations of the participants in native wisdom could have considerable influence on experiences and interpretations, such as communication with entities as well as receiving personal teachings.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1556/2054.2019.007

Cites

55 of 55 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • The subjective experience shared phenomenological similarities with ayahuasca and other serotonergic psychedelics such as psilocybin, including alterations of consciousness captured by the 11 subscales of the 5D-ASC.

    “Overall, the subjective experience shared phenomenological similarities with ayahuasca and other serotonergic psychedelics such as psilocybin (19, 49), including alterations of consciousness captured by the 11 subscales of the widely used 5D-ASC scale (63, 75).”

    From Potential therapeutic effects of an ayahuasca-inspired N,N-DMT and harmine formulation: a controlled trial in healthy subjects (2024) · cites this paper as [49]

    The Discussion (page unavailable) describes altered consciousness in ayahuasca tourists and says their interviews contained all the general depth stages of psychedelic experience. That supports a broad phenomenological similarity, but the paper does not establish similarity to psilocybin; its explicit comparison notes a difference in nausea and vomiting. The 5D-ASC clause has separate citations in the citing sentence, so it is not attributed to this source. (LLM, conf=0.78)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The clear biphasic phenomenology of initially psychedelic and subsequently more empathogenic experiences described for ayahuasca was less prominent in this study.

    “The clear biphasic phenomenology of initially psychedelic and potentially overwhelming, and subsequently more empathogenic experiences, described for ayahuasca such as discussed by Wolff (19, 49) as “bottleneck” phenomenon during the ayahuasca experience was less prominent in our study.”

    From Potential therapeutic effects of an ayahuasca-inspired N,N-DMT and harmine formulation: a controlled trial in healthy subjects (2024) · cites this paper as [49]

    The Discussion describes a possible ‘bottleneck-like effect’ after vomiting, and the Introduction reports an earlier study’s progression from a frightening state to an expansive one. But the paper does not establish a clear sequence from psychedelic to empathogenic experiences; its Discussion says the interviews provided little detail about temporal sequence. Whether the pattern was less prominent in the citing authors’ study is their own finding, not a claim attributed to Wolff. (LLM, conf=0.85)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Part of this paper’s reference list could not be split into single entries.

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 29

  1. [1][1] Ruffell, Simon G. D., Netzband, Nige, Tsang, WaiFung, Davies, Merlin, Butler, Matthew, Rucker, James J. H., Tófoli, Luís Fernando, Dempster, Emma Louise, Young, Allan H., and Morgan, Celia J. A., 2021, "Ceremonial Ayahuasca in Amazonian Retreats—Mental Health and Epigenetic Outcomes From a Six-Month Naturalistic Study" Frontiers in Psychiatry Vol. 12, 1664-0640 Crossref
  2. [2][2] Michael, Pascal, Luke, David, and Robinson, Oliver, 2021, "An Encounter With the Other: A Thematic and Content Analysis of DMT Experiences From a Naturalistic Field Study" Frontiers in Psychology Vol. 12, 1664-1078 Crossref
  3. [3][3] Maia, Lucas Oliveira, Daldegan-Bueno, Dimitri, and Tófoli, Luís Fernando, 2020, "The ritual use of ayahuasca during treatment of severe physical illnesses: a qualitative study" Journal of Psychoactive Drugs pp 1, 2159-9777 Crossref
  4. [4][4] Wolff, Tom John, 2021, "Ayahuasca-Tourismus in Peru: Motivationen und subjektive Bedeutungen bei Teilnehmern von Ayahuasca-Retreats im oberen Amazonasgebiet" Zeitschrift für Tourismuswissenschaft Vol. 13, No. 1, pp 101, 2366-0406 Crossref
  5. [6][6] Kaup, Karl Kristjan, Jiménez, Javier Hidalgo, and Aru, Jaan, 2026, "Cellular mechanisms of serotonergic psychedelics - apical hypercontextualisation" Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews Vol. 189, pp 106876, 01497634 Crossref
  6. [8][8] Xin, Yitong, Griffiths, Roland R., and Davis, Alan K., 2025, "Sex Differences in Religious Beliefs Before and After an Entity Encounter During an Ayahuasca Experience" Journal of Psychoactive Drugs pp 1, 2159-9777 Crossref
  7. [9][9] Heller, Nathan H, Barrett, Frederick S, Buchborn, Tobias, Collerton, Daniel, Dupuis, David, Halberstadt, Adam L, Jardri, Renaud, Noorani, Tehseen, Preller, Katrin H, Taylor, John-Paul, Waters, Flavie, Winston, Brian S, and Leptourgos, Pantelis, 2025, "Visual Hallucinations in Serotonergic Psychedelics and Lewy Body Diseases" Schizophrenia Bulletin Vol. 51, No. Supplement_3, pp S273, 1745-1701 Crossref
  8. [11][11] Attig, Sheryl and Krippner, Stanley, 2025, "Hypnosis, Psychedelics, and Creativity: An Overview and Analysis" International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis Vol. 73, No. 4, pp 485, 1744-5183 Crossref
  9. [12][12] Pernecky, Tomas and Faisal, Abrar, 2025, "Progress or Regress in Phenomenological Research in Tourism? An Epistemological Assessment of Bibliometric Analysis and Visualization Tools" Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research Vol. 49, No. 5, pp 866, 1557-7554 Crossref
  10. [13][13] Coghlan, Alexandra and Prayag, Girish, 2026, "“Ontological shocks”: new transformations for sustainability through psychedelic tourism" Journal of Sustainable Tourism Vol. 34, No. 2, pp 430, 1747-7646 Crossref
  11. [14][14] Kase, Marten, Kaup, Karl Kristjan, and Aru, Jaan, 2026, "Effects of LSD, DMT and psilocybin on cognitive and psychological functions: A systematic review of the literature" Journal of Psychopharmacology 1461-7285 Crossref
  12. [16][16] Foerster, Desiree, 2026, "Representing mental images and immaterial processes in VR. A new materialist reading of Manic VR and Ayahuasca – Kosmik Journey" Multimodality & Society Vol. 6, No. 1, pp 25, 2634-9809 Crossref
  13. [17][17] White, Eleanor, Kennedy, Tom, Ruffell, Simon, Perkins, Daniel, and Sarris, Jerome, 2024, "Ayahuasca and Dimethyltryptamine Adverse Events and Toxicity Analysis: A Systematic Thematic Review" International Journal of Toxicology 1092-874X Crossref
  14. [18][18] Aicher, Helena D., Mueller, Michael J., Dornbierer, Dario A., Suay, Dila, Elsner, Claudius, Wicki, Ilhui, Meling, Daniel, Caflisch, Luzia, Hempe, Alexandra, Steinhart, Camilla, Mueller, Jovin, Von Rotz, Robin, Kleim, Birgit, and Scheidegger, Milan, 2024, "Potential therapeutic effects of an ayahuasca-inspired N,N-DMT and harmine formulation: a controlled trial in healthy subjects" Frontiers in Psychiatry Vol. 14, 1664-0640 Crossref
  15. [19][19] Shore, Ron, 2023, "Psychedelics for military and Veteran communities? Research, practice, and policy considerations" Journal of Military, Veteran and Family Health Vol. 9, No. 5, pp 1, 2368-7924 Crossref
  16. [20][20] Cruz, Lucas, Bienemann, Bheatrix, Palhano-Fontes, Fernanda, Tófoli, Luís Fernando, Araújo, Dráulio B., and Mograbi, Daniel C., 2023, "A quantitative textual analysis of the subjective effects of ayahuasca in naïve users with and without depression" Scientific Reports Vol. 13, No. 1, 2045-2322 Crossref
  17. [21][21] Ruffell, Simon G. D., Crosland‐Wood, Max, Palmer, Rob, Netzband, Nige, Tsang, WaiFung, Weiss, Brandon, Gandy, Sam, Cowley‐Court, Tessa, Halman, Andreas, McHerron, Diana, Jong, Angelina, Kennedy, Tom, White, Eleanor, Perkins, Daniel, Terhune, Devin B., and Sarris, Jerome, 2023, "Ayahuasca: A review of historical, pharmacological, and therapeutic aspects" Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences Reports Vol. 2, No. 4, 2769-2558 Crossref
  18. [22][22] Perkins, Daniel, Opaleye, Emerita, Bouso, Jose Carlos, Tófoli, Luis Fernando, Sarris, Jerome, Schubert, Violeta, Ruffell, Simon, and Simonova, Hana, 2023, "Insights, Life Changes and Lifestyle Changes Reported by Individuals Consuming Ayahuasca in Naturalistic Settings: Nature, Frequency and Associations with Mental Health and Wellbeing" Psychoactives Vol. 2, No. 4, pp 256, 2813-1851 Crossref
  19. [23][23] Michael, Pascal, Luke, David, and Robinson, Oliver, 2023, "This is your brain on death: a comparative analysis of a near-death experience and subsequent 5-Methoxy-DMT experience" Frontiers in Psychology Vol. 14, 1664-1078 Crossref
  20. [24][24] Cowley-Court, Tessa, Chenhall, Richard, Sarris, Jerome, Bouso, José Carlos, Tófoli, Luís Fernando, Opaleye, Emérita Sátiro, Schubert, Violeta, and Perkins, Daniel, 2023, "Life after Ayahuasca: A Qualitative Analysis of the Psychedelic Integration Experiences of 1630 Ayahuasca Drinkers from a Global Survey" Psychoactives Vol. 2, No. 2, pp 201, 2813-1851 Crossref
  21. [25][25] Weiss, Brandon, Wingert, Aleksandra, Erritzoe, David, and Campbell, W. Keith, 2023, "Prevalence and therapeutic impact of adverse life event reexperiencing under ceremonial ayahuasca" Scientific Reports Vol. 13, No. 1, 2045-2322 Crossref
  22. [26][26] Apud, Ismael, Scuro, Juan, Carrera, Ignacio, and Oliveri, Andrés, 2022, "Ayahuasca Ritual, Personality and Sociality. Observational Research Conducted in a Substance Use Disorder Rehabilitation Center in Uruguay" Journal of Psychoactive Drugs pp 1, 2159-9777 Crossref
  23. [27][27] Perkins, Daniel, Ruffell, Simon G. D., Day, Kimberley, Pinzon Rubiano, Diego, and Sarris, Jerome, 2023, "Psychotherapeutic and neurobiological processes associated with ayahuasca: A proposed model and implications for therapeutic use" Frontiers in Neuroscience Vol. 16, 1662-453X Crossref
  24. [28][28] Barnby, Joseph M, Park, Sohee, Baxter, Tatiana, Rosen, Cherise, Brugger, Peter, and Alderson-Day, Ben, 2023, "The felt-presence experience: from cognition to the clinic" The Lancet Psychiatry Vol. 10, No. 5, pp 352, 22150366 Crossref
  25. [29][29] Maia, Lucas Oliveira, Daldegan-Bueno, Dimitri, Wießner, Isabel, Araujo, Draulio B., and Tófoli, Luís Fernando, 2023, "Ayahuasca's therapeutic potential: What we know – and what not" European Neuropsychopharmacology Vol. 66, pp 45, 0924977X Crossref
  26. [30][30] Apud, Ismael, Scuro, Juan, Carrera, Ignacio, and Oliveri, Andres, 2022, "Psychological effects and subjective experiences of ayahuasca rituals in participants of two neoshamanic centers of Uruguay" Journal of Psychedelic Studies Vol. 6, No. 2, pp 72, 2559-9283 Crossref
  27. [31][31] Weiss, Brandon, Sleep, Chelsea, Miller, Joshua D., and Campbell, W. Keith, 2023, "Examining the Therapeutic Effect of Ceremonial Ayahuasca on Narcissistic Personality and Antagonistic Externalizing in Adults" Journal of Personality Disorders Vol. 37, No. 2, pp 131, 0885-579X Crossref
  28. [32][32] Tulver, Kadi, Kaup, Karl Kristjan, Laukkonen, Ruben, and Aru, Jaan, 2023, "Restructuring insight: An integrative review of insight in problem-solving, meditation, psychotherapy, delusions and psychedelics" Consciousness and Cognition Vol. 110, pp 103494, 10538100 Crossref
  29. [33][33] Fotiou, Evgenia and Gearin, Alex K., 2019, "Purging and the body in the therapeutic use of ayahuasca" Social Science & Medicine Vol. 239, pp 112532, 02779536 Crossref

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Wolff, T. J., Ruffell, S., Netzband, N., & Passie, T.
Affiliations
  • University of Bremen (DE)
  • King's College London (GB)
  • University of the West of England (GB)
  • Goethe University Frankfurt (DE)
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
Publisher
Akademiai Kiado Zrt.
Published
2019-03-29
Volume
3
Issue
3
Pages
295-307
ISSN
2559-9283 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1556/2054.2019.007
OpenAlex
W2928852232
Cited by
40
References
55
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 1
FWCI
3.80
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
Journal of Psychedelic Studies (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychedelics and Drug Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Paranormal Experiences and Beliefs
  • Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
Keywords
ayahuasca, Upper Amazon

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review