Techiyas HaMayseem

Ibogaine is a psychoactive indole alkaloid derived from the rootbark of an African plant - Tabernanthe iboga. While currently illegal in the United States, Tabernathe Iboga IS LEGAL in most countries around the world.

Iboga has shown significant success in helping victims of trauma come to terms with their past, allowing them to move forward with their lives in a healthy productive way. The iboga session literally severes the trauma's control over the person - freeing them from their past baggage.

Iboga is also noted for it's ability to treat both drug and alcohol addiction. Both scientific studies and widespread anecdotal reports appear to suggest that a single administration of ibogaine has the ability to both remove the symptoms of drug withdrawal and reduce drug-craving for a period of time after administration.

In addition, the drug's psychoactive properties (in large doses it can induce a dreamlike state for a period of hours) have been widely credited with helping users understand and reverse their drug-using behaviour. These same psychoactive properties also allow many people who have been stuck in serious depression or OCD behavious patterns for years to literally wake up and start their lives anew.

(illustration of molecular structure courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Studies suggest that ibogaine has considerable potential in the treatment of addiction to heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, methadone, and alcohol. There is also indication that it may be useful in treating tobacco dependence. It has also been suggested that the drug may have considerable potential in the field of psychotherapy, particularly as a treatment for the effects of trauma or conditioning.

A single administration of ibogaine typically has three effects useful in the treatment of drug dependence. Firstly, it causes a massive reduction in the symptoms of drug withdrawal, allowing relatively painless detoxification. Secondly, there is a marked lowering in the desire to use drugs for a period of time after taking ibogaine, typically between one week and several months. This has been confirmed by scientific studies. Finally, the drug's psychoactive nature is reported to help many users understand and resolve the issues behind their addictive behaviour.

Recent studies have shown that ibogaine and its primary metabolite interact with numerous neuroreceptors and neurotransporters within the cellular networks that modulate the activity of dopaminergic-dependent and independent circuits. Ibogaine's actions are reported to reduce dopamine concentrations in the body. This is proven by the presence of dopamine metabolites dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA) in increased amounts after ibogaine administration. This action of ibogaine is what is thought to reverse the affects of certain abusive and highly addictive drugs and highly addictive drugs, namely/specifically: cocaine, morphine, amphetamines and nicotine. All of these drugs act upon dopaminergic systems and they will stimulate dopamine production in the body. Ibogaine is thought to reverse this process by antagonizing dopaminergic systems. Ibogaine is also thought to reduce addiction because it can inhibit naloxone which will precipitate the blockade of NMDA channels. Ibogaine can readily affect serotonergic transmission in the brain, as this has been observed in clinical studies. However, the mechanisms of action on the many serotonergic receptors are complex and not completely understood. What is clear is that the actions of iboga in the body are not completely understood.