Harambe Ibogaine Detox Retreat Centre - Testimonials

The ibogaine treatment with Bilal and Cathy was nothing short of comfortable.

The treatment itself was nauseating, but the waking dream state and the grey day following it both contributed to a heightened sense of self confidence, determination and empowerment. Nestled within the foothills of Valencia, I caught up on sleep the first night followed by a magnesium flush on the second day before test dose and then the full dose. I saw lots of images and had the pleasure of interacting and engaging with the ibogaine; carrying out my intentions and laying the emotional foundation for lasting change. Physically I also fasted for the period of time and felt my body take a break and felt completely refreshed.

The grey day was processing a lot of exaggerated but specific reflections on my life thus far with lots of action points for follow up.

In my second dose, I did not have any waking dream effects. I think the medicine was working in the background continuing to heal and rewire unresourceful patterns and behaviours.

I think the bulk of the gains are yet to come and I have a new sense of stillness and confidence. Ibogaine works on a very deep level and despite its side effects has been incredibly therapeutic and impactful. I look forward to uncovering more and more of the changes it’s made and will do my best to keep the state of calm certainty with me for as long as I can.

I lost 3kg and am feeling great!

Thanks Bilal and Cathy, it’s been such a pleasure and inspiration to have had this rewarding experience at Harambe.

Tip: For best results, do the diet and set solid intentions!

Jade

As a person suffering from depression and anxiety for many years, I decided to give the Ibogaine treatment a try after all other conventional medications and talking therapies had failed to offer any relief from my symptoms and was not disappointed by it.

First of all, I would like to thank Cathy and Bilal for their great hospitality. Their home is a very welcoming, friendly and family orientated environment which helped me settle in instantly. The food was exceptional and very organic. I had no idea food could taste so good, which was a nice change from all the processed garbage we eat here in the UK. It got to the point I genuinely looked forward to meal times because it was so good!

My depression and anxiety had affected virtually every area in my life from my relationships with other people to my working life. To say I couldn’t connect with other people would have been an understatement. my relationships in general were non-existent and my sense of self was completely diminished to the point of what felt like extreme depersonalisation.

I pursued Ibogaine as a last resort after all other treatments has failed to alleviate my symptoms and what followed was exactly what I had been searching for. The Iboga trip itself and the preparation work involved is very tough however, the benefits are more than worth it. To put things bluntly my trip lasted roughly 24 hours followed by what they call the “grey day” which lasted about 36 hours.

Following the Iboga trip itself I can honestly say my life has done a huge U-turn in all areas that were affected. The first thing I noticed was my sense of self had completely changed. I got up, walked around and couldn’t help but notice everything had changed for the better.

My sense of depersonalisation was gone completely, I could actually feel it when I looked around that things were different. After walking around outside for a bit I began to notice my depression and anxiety were now under my control. I now had the space I needed in my head to control my thoughts and feelings the way I had craved for years. Even the way I experienced my own body was better. my movements and energy just felt more natural. I also had really bad acid reflux and can honestly say the Ibogaine took care of that too. As crazy as it sounds even my appearance had changed, I actually looked healthier and had more of a glow about me. Seriously.

Two weeks on and now that I’m back home things are continuing to improve the way I had hoped they would, following the Iboga experience. The first thing I noticed was my social anxiety had improved drastically. being amongst other people was infinitely easier and has helped improve my relationships with everyone from my family and friends to my work colleagues and even women. I was chronically shy around women and the Iboga has helped me break out of my shyness and actually talk to women with ease. One of the biggest things I have taken from this is the clarity and stillness of mind that I have achieved to the extent that everything from decision making to eye contact is significantly easier. I’m eating considerably more food since the acid reflux has been taken care of by the Iboga which I did not expect to at all. As a practitioner of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo and submission wrestling I need a lot of calories to keep my energy up and remain competitive.

To summarise I am extremely grateful for both Bilal and Cathy’s service as I am now enjoying a quality of life that just was not possible through other forms of treatment. If you’re in the same boat as me where other treatments have failed and are considering pursuing Ibogaine then do it. The truth is everyone no matter what their situation is can benefit from Ibogaine. To a certain extent I actually feel sorry for people who haven’t done the Iboga experience as it’s the most liberating and freeing thing you can do for your mind.

If my symptoms were ever to return, I would not hesitate to call Bilal and Cathy and book another session and would gladly go through the tough aspects of the experience again. To quote Bilal “Ibogaine is a miracle cure and at the same time it’s not”. what this means is that yes it will help to obliterate your symptoms however, it is up to yourself to maintain a positive outlook on life and stay away from old habits and negative thought processes otherwise you will be back to square one eventually. Me personally I have taken up meditation and practice gratitude on a daily basis to help maintain the clarity of thought I had been chasing for so long. I still have a lot of work to do in regards to keeping on top of things but can honestly say I’m in a much better place both mentally and emotionally than before I began treatment.

I first heard about iboga quite a few years ago when I was looking for a way to cure my sister’s addiction to opiates and other hard to get off substances. When she was eventually ready to stop, I found Harambe online. I had emailed other websites offering iboga but had not really had a response but Harambe responded quickly and gave me a lot of information. I instantly knew that this was the right place to take my sister. When we eventually got there, we met Cathy and Bilal who were so welcoming and understanding to what my sister was going through. It was lovely to be surrounded by mountains and trees and the food they cook is amazing!

My sister was given two large doses of iboga over a course of a couple of days in which she time travelled and was also able to speak to our father who has passed away. The doses took away all of withdrawals and the majority of her cravings but most importantly, it took away her depression and feelings of wanting to commit suicide which were just as much part of the problem as was the addiction. My sister lost nearly everything because of all of this and now she is gaining it all back. I can really say that she is a changed person and is back to the way she was before the addiction and other traumas of life took her.

A couple of months later I decided to go back to Harambe to do the iboga myself as I was struggling with some issues with anxiety and depression and had been reliant on smoking cannabis every day all day for nearly ten years. If I did not have it I felt like I could not get through the day and I wanted it to stop. Unfortunately, my experience with the iboga wasn’t too pleasant, not because of the hallucinations but because I was very very sick for the whole time and was unable to keep it down. I experienced an emotion that does not even exist and it was a terrifying feeling. When I got home, I had night terrors every night for a week but I think that this was just all of the bad stuff coming out of me. The experience definitely changed something in me as it took away my mind chatter which usually used to stop me from falling asleep for hours and was usually full of negative comments! Bilal said that I would need to come back and do a second dose like my sister did so another month later I came back and did it again.

This time it was a lot easier and I was able to keep it down. I did not have deep visions like my sister did but when it was over, I had the best feeling of peace and relaxation I have ever experienced! A lot of things have changed for me now. I don’t feel anxious and low all of the time. I don’t have social anxiety now. I can sleep so well and so deep now which is amazing! My diet has completely changed as for some reason the experience made me want to go vegetarian and not eat sugar as much as I was so addicted to chocolate and cake but this could have been down to the munchies! Anyway, I have lost weight because of it which is great. I never wanna taste or smell nicotine again, the thought of it makes me heave and I cannot stand the smell at all now. My mind has totally been altered and I just do not feel the same about cannabis anymore. I do not rely on it and the voice in my head telling me I need it 24/7 is gone. I can’t say that I won’t ever smoke it again but I will never let myself become reliant on it again, that much I know.

A couple of months after this my mum decided that she wanted to try it too to see if she could give up smoking 40 cigarettes a day. She did it and she is still free of them now. I cannot recommend this detox enough to anyone. It is not entirely an easy experience but it is so worth it for your mental and physical wellbeing! I will definitely do this again at some point as it has helped me and my family so much.

I really hope that if you are reading this, you make the choice to go ahead and do it. Cathy and Bilal are some of the most interesting people I have ever met and what they are doing is nothing short of miracle work! Whilst I was there, I have seen some very chronic addicts being cured and I never thought I would see my sister live the rest of her life so I cant thank them enough. My whole family has changed for the better because of iboga and Cathy and Bilal and I am eternally grateful for that.