“How long does Ayahuasca last?” is really three questions, and mixing them up is what makes most answers confusing. Here is the short version of each:
- The ceremony itself — around 4-6 hours, sometimes up to 8.
- The aftereffects — you may feel spacey or tender for a day or two.
- The lessons — integration can last months, years, a lifetime.
The rest of this article takes each one in turn.
DISCLAIMER: Everyone’s journey WILL be different.
Below is just to share what we’ve experienced. If you feel called to sit with the medicine, we recommend just going to experience yourself.
Drop any expectations. Set an intention and let grandmother Ayahuasca guide you ;)
How long does an Ayahuasca ceremony last?
In short: most ayahuasca ceremonies last 4-6 hours from when you drink the first cup, though some may stretch to 8 hours. Here’s an example timeline of what may happen.
HOWEVER EVERYONE’S JOURNEY WILL BE DIFFERENT! (Remember that)
- Onset: 20-60 minutes after drinking
- Peak effects: 1-3 hours in
- Main journey: 4-6 hours total
- Shaman closes the window for the last cup
- Integration: Weeks to months
- Insights & Lesson: Potentially lifelong
What happens during the ceremony
Your experience may vary depending on your diet, your intention, your preparation, your facilitators, the medicine and how the medicine is prepared.
We will share the experiences in our women’s retreat before the Ayahuasca ceremony begins as an example
1. Preparation Phase (Before Drinking Ayahuasca)
This is when you prepare for the medicine. In this phase you will:
- Follow the “Dieta” for 1-2 weeks before
- Set intentions
The medicine already works with you when you start setting intentions.
2. Pre-ceremony
- We get everyone familiar with the space
- The shaman will share instructions
- In our retreat, we do Hape (this is optional to help you ground into your body)
- Each shaman has their own ritual before ceremony (Pamela, one of our beautiful shamans, clears everyone’s energy with tobacco before)
3. Initial Phase
- Shaman opens the ceremony, everyone takes a turn for their cup
- The effect here varies from person to person.
- Some people may feel resistance, some may see spirit animals, some may not feel anything as well.
4. Onset Phase
As effects begin:
- Possible nausea, warmth, or tingling
- Colors may look brighter
- Emotions may stir
- Voices may want to come out
With my personal experience - my journey only begins when I surrender, when I stop trying to control my body and just let the medicine take me where I want to go.
For me this is only possible when I feel safe, so if you’re looking for your experience, make sure you will be in a space where you feel safe, guided, protected.
(Here I will shamelessly plug our women’s retreat :) We’ve heard so many stories of people wanting a safe, smaller, more intimate experience and at the Portals Women’s Retreat, it is designed with that in mind - and so so much more.
5. Peak Experience
Again - everyone’s experience may differ.
“The medicine gives you what you need, not what you want”
- Vivid visions or geometric patterns
- Deep emotional releases
- A different dimension, seeing, feeling or experiencing what the medicine wants
- Physical purging
- Singing, Dancing, Crying (a lotta crying for me)
- Possible encounters with spirits or guides
6. Coming down
- Gradual return to your body
- Your soul, spirit may still be somewhere as this is truly a different dimensional experience
You may not feel fully yourself and that is totally okay, during this time, all you need to do is listen to your body. Rest.
What affects how long it lasts
MANY things influence it. Below are just some of what may affect your ayahuasca duration.
- Dosage (How many cups you drink)
- Individual Metabolism
- Ayahuasca Preparation Method (Brew strength, how they are made)
- Previous Experience
- Your MINDset and Setting (environment that affects your comfort level, ceremonies guidance, music)
How long does Ayahuasca stay in your body?
This is a different question from how long the ceremony lasts, and it is where most confusion comes from.
The brew itself moves through you quickly — the medicine may stay in your body from 4 to 8 hours, which is roughly the length of the ceremony itself.
What stays longer is not the brew. It’s everything below.
How you may feel in the days after
Personally I’ve experienced feeling spacey and disassociated after the ceremony
Example things people have shared how they feel after are:
- A state of “wth just happened”
- Heightened sensory awareness
- Emotional openness
- Changes in appetite or sleep
- Feeling “Spacey”
- Deep emotional Release
A participant shared a story of how she was able to dance with her loved one to feel “complete” in letting go of holding on to him.
Most of the time, you don’t have to overthink, what needs to be processed will come out naturally.
Integration: how long the lessons stay with you
And this is where Integration comes in.
It is important to NOT only do the medicine but also take the time to “integrate” what you experienced. And this integration can last years to a lifetime.
Sometimes, now after 3 years from one of my Ayahuasca experiences, I still get reminded of one of the voices that was present in my ceremony.
So to put it all together: the ceremony lasts 4-8 hours, and the brew clears your body in about the same time. But what you take from it — the lessons, the voices, the shifts — can stay with you for weeks, years, or the rest of your life.
