Kambo Experience In the Azores

Back in May I found myself in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, in the Azores volunteering at a Kambo Retreat. I have been calling in Kambo since I left Bali in December. And the universe delivered. Through a connection I made at my ayahuasca retreat last year, this was able to happen. I had already been looking up Portugal to go too, and then it just so happened that, that is where the Kambo training was happening.

The journey began and I flew from Santorini through Toulouse to Lisbon, where I was meant to meet my friend that was meant to travel with me, but both of our flights got delayed, so I had to fly to the Azores without her. She then flew the following morning, and we went up together to the air BnB to meet the practitioner and the rest of the group.

There was something about this medicine that was calling me, but I was nervous, but excited because I had heard of the amazing benefits it can give you. To my surprise when I arrived, 3 out the 6 people there were all women from Northern Ireland. I have never been around this many Irish women especially in a medicine practice and in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, I felt instantly at ease just hearing the accent, and the very warm Irish mammy welcome. Thank you ladies!

If you don’t know by now, I am very interested in alternative medicines, especially if it is nature or mama Gaia that is supplying them. My friend Donna who is not spiritual at all and not really into any of this, decided that she was going to come with me. Honestly so much respect for Donna, how she was just like fuck it lets go, so Donna, I appreciate you and applauded you for just jumping right on in. You do not need to be spiritual at all whatsoever to do any of these medicines, all that is required is respect of the medicine and the lineage of the tribes and to come with an open mind and an open heart.

Phyllomedusa Bicolor, also known as the Giant Green Monkey Tree Frog is native to the Amazonian Rainforest. This species of frog carries the medicine of Kambo, a secretion that is extracted from the back of the frog used for a countless number of healing modalities. This medicine has found to have cleansing effects of the mind, body and spirit.

Some of these include : Depression
• Migraines
• Blood circulation problems
• Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease
• Vascular insufficiency
• Organ diseases
• Cancer
• Fertility problems
• Deeply rooted toxins
• Chronic pain
• Addiction to opiate or prescription painkillers (Kambo reduces physical pain, thus helping people kick their addictions to other painkillers)
• Fever and infections
• Negative energies (traditionally known as “panema”)

Indigenous tribes have created a deep relationship with the medicine of Kambo. Traditionally, tribes referred to the use of Kambo for two reasons. The first being for an energetic cleansing. The medicine has been told to have strong effects in releasing “Panema”, an indigenous word for negative or dark energy. Secondly, the medicine is used by hunters because tribes have found that the medicine enhances their hunting skills. For example, the medicine heightens one’s senses (smell & vision), strengthens stamina, increases overall energy and more incredibly is believed by tribes to temporarily mask the human scent. Therefore, Kambo is often referred to as “Hunting Magic” or “Warrior Medicine “

Kambo is starting to become more known around the world, there have been countless stories of people are turning to this medicine in dire need for healing. Kambo’s strong effects in detoxing the body via physically, emotionally and spiritually have given people hope in finding cures and solutions to illnesses, diseases and traumas they may have been faced with all their life. The medicine of Kambo extracts the root of what no longer serves us, bringing it to the surface and aids in releasing it whether it be an physical, emotional or spiritual blockage. Traditional uses of Kambo have primarily been used for treating malaria, snake bites, fevers, fertility issues, reducing body pain and inflammation in the body, and eradicating bacterial and viral infections.

In any ceremonial setting it is important that you are guided by a shaman(s) or a practitioner(s) that you can trust and feel safe with. More importantly, that your guide is knowledgeable in the medicine that he or she will be serving.

Kambo is typically served in a small group setting or can be done 1:1. First, the ceremony is opened up with a cleansing of the space using sage, prayers and intention. Intention is so important as you need to guide the medicine where to go.  Before the medicine is applied it is very important that you drink 1-2 litres of water. Drinking water is essential because it will aid in the process of bringing up any vial that needs to be purged. It is recommended that you drink water 30 minutes before the medicine is applied. You will literally feel so full and nauseous from how much water you have drank and this is totally normal and believe it or not will make the ceremony process smoother.

Your guide will then consult with you where you prefer to have your “dots” placed on your body this is done using a small stick. These small burn marks are applied fast and with very minimal pain. After the skin is burned the top layer is wiped off exposing the epidermis below and without any blood. Typically, if it is your first time sitting with Kambo, your dots will be placed on the sides of your shoulders. It is also common to have dots burned on the back of your neck, legs, and chest. It’s all about preference and depending on where the gates are placed on the body can seem to have more of an intense effect. Moreover, it is your choice on how many dots you would like to receive. However, the facilitator will also recommend where and how many dots should be placed based on your specific condition and intention you are setting.

Once the dots are placed, the facilitator will place a small amount of secretion on each dot. The Kambo will directly enter the lymphatic system and within seconds you will start to feel the effects of this powerful medicine. The effects of the medicine are usually very intense, strong and to be truthful very unpleasant. Within a few moments of the medicine being applied it is completely normal to feel a rush of blood going to your head, an increased heart rate, and super sick and this means the medicine is working! However, the effects are different for everyone. At this point the Kambo is in your blood system and is essentially scanning your body for areas that need to be treated. This medicine is very purgative and this is a good thing because it means that your body is detoxing and cleansing off any toxins that no longer serve you, whether it be energetically, physically or emotionally. Just remember that in these moments of discomfort, it is just temporary and it will pass. The good news is that ceremony will be over before you know it, between 15-30 minutes.

As soon as the facilitator removes the secretion from the dots, the effects of the medicine will subside. It is recommended to lay down for around 45 minutes to 1 hour as you just experienced a very physical experience. It is normal for your hands or face to be swollen, but be reassured that this just a side effect and will go away after a few mins or hour depending on the person.

In my own personal experience, I was nervous but excited, I was back sitting in ceremony again, a sacred place, where you don’t know how it will turn out but having full faith that everything is going as divinely planned. We decided to put 3 dots of the medicine on my left shoulder and I was served by an Irish lady which was very nice and comforting and made this transition a lot smoother. We set a really powerful intention beforehand which is so important to help guide the medicine where to go. And within 10 seconds, I could feel the blood rushing to my head, and my ears heating up, I literally thought I was about to die. And then I passed out, and then I just remembered Melanie was smoking the sacred Mapacho smoke in my face to help with my purge and using the rattle. It felt so uncomfortable, but I was just focusing on my breath and reminding myself that it will pass. I could feel something deep within me that was pushing me to be strong and push through the discomfort.

The first night it wasn’t too intense, passing out not for too long is also a sign or an energetic reset on the body. So that was ok. The next day Donna and I cooked food, we went for a really nice hike on the island, and there were beautiful hydrangeas growing everywhere! It was so cool. We stopped by the super market and picked up some groceries to cook a meal for everyone on the training, as the training was really intense they had to sit with the medicine twice a day, we were cooking the meals for the evening time.

I slept like a baby the first night and woke up feeling lighter, but I was so excited to sit with the medicine again, After the first night of the medicine, Melanie said to me that she saw the frog jump out of my chest surrounded by a pink light. And if I feel called to work with the medicine that I should do it. I would love to be able to serve Kambo as its only 20mins long and very effective, perhaps in the future sometime.

The second day we sat with the medicine this time but I was sitting for one of the practitioners while she self dosed. And as she was starting to feel uneasy I was instructed to pick up the mapacho and smoke it, but I really enjoyed the ceremony of it and holding space for her which made me think I would like to serve Kambo in the future. The second night I took 2 doses on my arms, and this night wasn’t as a intense at all, quite mild but not as intense. Which was good.

On the Third night however we tried 3 dots again to really get that release and let go, the intention setting was so powerful, and the practitioner really held the space so beautifully, and we let some shit gooooo, in the bucket, it was so intense but sooo necessary and needed. The days afterwards I was feeling so tired and heavy and very lethargic but this was old energy clearing out and making room for the body to properly heal, to allow space for new things to come into your life.

What happened after I took Kambo the first time ill describe as magical, so many synchronicities came into my life, it was such a magical time. When your ready to let go of things that no longer serve you, you make room for more things aligned to who you are to enter your life. My energy was up, I felt light, clear, positive, tasks felt so much easier to do, I felt so so good! It was extremely beneficial for me, and I really like this medicine.

As the summer came to a close, and September came around, I felt the need to go back to Bali again. I wanted to go see some friends and perhaps sit with the medicine again. This time around I called up my dear friend Alexa who I met in my ayahuasca trip in Bali last year. I sat with Kambo again, but oh my lord, this time was so much more intense. Its like a completely forgot what it felt like and like I had never taken it before! Its no joke, its quite intense, but this year for me was an eye opening, challenging, heart opening, and heart shattering, so it felt necessary to let some things go that were lingering in my aura. And fully release so again, I can step more into who I am. Alexa held the space so beautifully with her partner Rob, for whom I am extremely grateful for. Its so important as I’ve said before to make sure your sitting with people that don’t hold any judgement, are compassionate, loving and understanding. This is imperative. What happens in ceremony is we can be very venerable, open and ready to release the emotions, feelings and thoughts that don’t align with our higher selves any longer.

For any one feeling the call to work with Kambo it can be extremely beneficial for you physically and mentally, if you have any questions please reach out to me and I can guide you in the right direction, or if you just want to have a chat, you can schedule a 15min Free consult with me 🙂

Peace and love, and keep being you x

Below you can see the dots on my arm in the picture.