The questions to ask before you book
These are the questions worth asking any facilitator or centre before you book a ceremony. Print this page, or keep it open while you talk.
Last updated 26 October 2026.
The questions
A reliable facilitator or centre expects these questions and answers them plainly. Allow for language and culture: a short answer through a translator is not evasion. And hold the list lightly. Good answers to all of it are the minimum, not proof of safety; fluent, charming answers are also how the wrong rooms recruit. If everything checks out and something in you still hesitates, that hesitation is information too.
How do you screen participants?
Somebody must ask about medication (antidepressants and other interacting prescriptions included), other substances you take (recreational drugs, supplements, herbal remedies such as St John’s wort), heart health, blood pressure, epilepsy, psychiatric history, your own and your close family’s (psychosis and bipolar disorder especially), and pregnancy or breastfeeding. A written intake plus a conversation is the usual good form; the non-negotiable is that the asking happens. It is fair to ask, too, whether they have ever told someone not to drink. Screening that has never turned anyone away is worth questioning. And ask who will see your answers, and how they are kept.
What exactly is in the brew, and where does it come from?
An honest answer covers the plants, the source, and, since strength varies between batches, how dosing is handled. Ask which plants are in it, whether anything has been added beyond the vine (and the leaf they usually brew it with), and how they know the strength of this batch.
What else will be offered during the retreat, and when?
Some retreats combine ayahuasca with other substances, such as bufo (5-MeO-DMT), cannabis, kambo or rapé. Each brings its own risks. ICEERS warns that combining 5-MeO-DMT with ayahuasca is dangerous and can be deadly. Kambo can cause a sharp drop in blood pressure and upset the body’s salt balance; rapé often contains strong tobacco; cannabis can add anxiety and confusion. Hear about anything on the programme before you book, not on arrival. You can decide in advance to take nothing else, but in the middle of a retreat, open and among others, an offer is harder to decline.
Who will be present?
How many participants, how many people supporting them, and who stays able to care for the room? There is no fixed ratio, but no group should rest on one person alone.
Who on the team is trained in first aid?
Not everyone in the room needs medical training. Someone who stays clear-headed should know first aid, someone should know how to reach medical help quickly, and the team should be able to tell paramedics exactly what was served.
What happens if I get into difficulty, or another participant does, and what is the plan for a medical emergency?
How far is the nearest medical help? Does the whole team know the plan?
Where does your experience come from, and may I speak with past participants?
Bear in mind that references the organiser selects are curated; the more telling ones are found independently.
What are your agreements on touch, and will I ever be alone with a facilitator?
Some traditions use touch, to steady someone or as part of the ceremony. Ask what kind, and how it is agreed with you beforehand. Romantic or sexual contact between participants and anyone on the team has no place before, during or after a ceremony. The answer to the second question should be no, or only in settings agreed beforehand and within sight or hearing of others. Safety and care explains what to look for, and where to find help if something happens.
Do you work to a written code of ethics, and where can I take a concern?
A good answer names a person or a route, ideally including someone outside the team. If the only person to complain to is the facilitator, that is worth noticing.
What does aftercare look like?
Can you rest on site until the next day? Is there contact in the weeks that follow, and will they point you to someone qualified if you need more?
What does it cost, all in, and what are the terms if I withdraw?
What should I do about my medication?
The only good answer points you to a medical professional. The brew contains an MAO inhibitor, so some medicines, antidepressants especially, can interact with it dangerously (serotonin toxicity), and some take weeks to clear the body. How long depends on the medicine, so there is no single waiting time. No facilitator should manage tapering or washout themselves, and prescribed medication is never stopped or tapered without the prescriber’s advice. Staying on medication you need, and therefore not drinking, is a legitimate outcome, not a failed one.
And one question with only one good answer: what happens if I decide, at the last minute, not to drink? Nothing, beyond the withdrawal terms you agreed in advance: no pressure, no persuasion. The choice remains yours, always.
These questions come from 30 years of first-hand experience, including 20 years of facilitation, supplemented by the minimum safety standards in Towards Better Ayahuasca Practices: A Guide for Organizers and Participants (ICEERS, 2019).
Readiness is part of safety, not a substitute for screening.
This looks at your emotional and psychological readiness. It sits alongside medical screening, never in place of it.
Inner calling & motivation
Explore your motivation, and whether this decision is truly yours.
Emotional readiness
Your ability to navigate deep, difficult emotions without forcing an outcome.
Practical preparation
The difference between research and genuine readiness.
Psychological & ego strength
Whether you can stay grounded when things feel unfamiliar.
This readiness assessment can bring more clarity to the four areas of readiness above, but it cannot determine medical suitability. Medication, psychiatric history and health conditions need proper screening with qualified healthcare professionals.