helping others with iboga

So.. My old friends are talking! 

In all my drug using time I can still tell the difference between my friends and people who I was only with to get more drugs. Even though I had many friends who will not be a good influence for me on this new path, I can still see that they are good people, with great hearts, who have simply been locked in the prison of addiction just like I was in the past.

So anyway, one of these old friends (actually the person who set me up and got me sent to prison! crazy huh? long story, but he totally screwed me.. it took me a few years, but eventually I contacted him again and forgave him. It took me a lot of work to be able to do that, but we're good friends again, he's a wonderful person, and I'm happy at the way things have turned out) left me a message on facebook to contact him. I gave it some time after my treatment until I felt strong enough to talk to him, because I'm sure him and his girlfriend are still using. But I called him today and through a mutual friend (my ex-fiance, his ex-girlfriend) he heard that I was clean. Word spread and now many of my old friends are talking about it.

"He's clean? No way. I'll believe it when I see it. Won't last long. How many times have I heard that before." Things like that were floating around at first, until my ex-fiance answered the questions of "Really? How did he do it?". She mentioned "some crazy plant from africa that's supposedly a miracle of some kind". And I had already mentioned to this friend a month ago or so that I was planning on trying this new treatment. So anyway, I called him, and I told him all about my experience, and he's very excited and interested.

Him and his girlfriend are both addicted to heroin, and living in a city where the heroin is strong and cheap. They also just had a beautiful daughter born less than a month ago. They've been addicts for longer than me, and are both sick and tired of that life and ready to move on. Like me they've tried rehab multiple times with no success, and are desperately wanting to change their lives for the better.

So he asks me, "can you get more of this stuff? can you help us?". To which I can't help but respond "Yes. There are many things I have to consider when thinking about a big decision like this, but I can't tell you no. So, yes.". I know it's risky, both medically and legally. (Though, while I do respect the medical considerations, I think they're much exaggerated. People are statistically much more likely to die from a life of addiction, or even driving to work, than from iboga!) But how can I possibly say "no" to someone who's in the same place I have been, and honestly asking me for help? For a lifeline? For just a simple CHANCE. Everyone deserves a chance. Everyone.

And not only does he want the treatment. But ironically, unbeknownst to me, on the same day I had my treatment, one of my friend's friends called him, because she had just heard from a friend about ibogaine. "What do you know about this stuff?" she asked him. He told her that it was such a crazy coincidence that she just found out about it and was asking, because he just recently found out about it himself from me. He said that he'd wait to hear back from me on how it worked, and let her know. To which she responded "Well if you think this could be real, if it could help in anyway to give me and my son a chance to get off this shit, please tell your friend I desperately want help!"

Crazy! It's amazing how things get pieced together.

So now I'm giving serious consideration to trying to help people seeking treatment. God the drug policy in this country upsets me. I'm trying to start a new positive life, drug free, and for once in my life within the constraints of the law.. But I feel such a need to help these people. 

So, I'm not sure of all the questions I should ask just yet.. I will certainly not rush this, and take much more time to prepare myself and learn about helping others than I did with myself. Obviously I'm made of money so if I were to help someone seeking a treatment, it would be in mexico =). So legal considerations aside, what kind of things do I need to keep in mind when thinking about this?

I know most of the obvious medical considerations. EKG if possible, medical history, heart problems, test dose.. but what about other things.. A legal waiver of liability? Do providers ever do that? Life contracts I've heard of and think are a great idea. Also, if I were to help this specific friend and his girlfriend in anyway, do people ever get treatment at the same time? Or would a sitter have their hands full with just one person? 

I've made it very clear to my friend that iboga is a tool that gives you the CHANCE to finally make the positive life changes you want. It will stop the withdrawal, and all but eliminate cravings for up to several months. But it won't take him out of the city, it won't make the dealers stop calling, and it won't get him a job. He understands these things. I'm encouraging him to start reading about it on his own and learning all he can, and really to just listen to his gut and go with his feelings on this.

That's all I can think of for now. I will certainly not be breaking any laws, but I want to learn about all I can do to give back and help others in need. Especially after the part of my first iboga experience where I was told with great force that "karma is very real. what you do in this life matters. and your actions have consequences that reach beyond this life", I have such a strong urge to explore these plant teachers and do all I can to help my fellow man, in addiction and all other life-matters. And the cool thing is that I don't want to help out of guilt, or because I feel fear of a "hellish afterlife" from my christian upbringing, but rather because I get such a good feeling from helping others. There's nothing altruistic about it. I want to help others because of how good it makes ME feel! :-)

My ex-fiance paraphrased a quote from the dali llama to me yesterday.. Something along the lines of "Be careful of helping others in your life, because if you give and give it is a very selfish thing. If you ever need help, you will have all that you need"

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2 Comments

brightwillow· 12 Jul 2026

Great post - many people feel as you do after their experience with ibogaine. It is hard to imagine not wanting to share such a gift when so many others are still suffering, and right in front of our eyes is this wonderful tool which can truly help in unimaginable ways. Yes the legal status of ibogaine is sick joke, like the legal status of every other outlawed plant. How in hell can you EVER justify outlawing a plant?? Pisses me off to no end. As far as you (or anyone for that matter) helping folks as a provider - if it is being done in a clandestine fashion (which I personally approve of) no amount of informed consent/waivers etc. would protect you if something were to go terribly wrong. Remember this. On the other hand, giving information still isn't illegal....I think....and so directing those you care about to look into this on their own is a good idea. It is a good idea for many reasons, not least of which is that they would be putting some of their own efforts into the process. This will crack the door so to speak for their own journey to begin. I am not poo-pooing our intentions to help others friend, just take your time and be careful. There are several members here who can speak from much more experienced perspective than myself. I have only ever treated myself and my brother, and helped a few friends along the way. Still, it is something I would like to do in a more hands on way someday. You have a good heart, and a good brain. These will serve you well, and I have no doubt you will help others along the way. I think you will find a lot of good advice forthcoming in this thread. Good luck to you, and keep on shining!

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lotty41· 12 Jul 2026

Absolutely Cal, though I'm really really excited about things right now, I know I have to be very thorough and careful with things. I plan on taking as much time as it takes until I feel competent on the topic. I really like what you said about pointing my friends in the right direction.. Not just because it can certainly keep me out of harms way, but you're right about it helping them to put in some of the foot work.. In the months leading up to my treatment, I had already started to make better decisions and form new, good habits.. and I didn't understand why, because in the past no matter how hard I tried it never happened.. I attributed some of it to a small, VERY small amount of root bark that I took, and the rest to maybe just getting older and more mature. But hearing you say that cued me in that it was probably how bad I wanted iboga, and the steps that I had to take to make it a reality for me, that helped me just as much as anything else. Having to put in the work for something I truly wanted, and finally receiving it after being diligent, was a very good lesson for me. And that's unfortunate about waivers/informed consent not being able to help.. I had kind of expected that would be the case.. I'm sure there would be no end to the legal repercussions. But I'm glad that you simply mentioned pointing in the right direction. Because I have such an urge to help, now! But I know I can't just start handing out treatments. I'm not ready to do that yet, not just because I could be at risk, but it wouldn't be safe for the people I'm trying to help either. But while I'm learning more about that, pointing in the right direction is something I can most certainly do, and I'm sure it will help me feel like I'm still doing some good. Tia did so much for me when I first started this path and had no money for anything.. not even that much pointing at first, because it was an impossibility for me at the time, but she always made herself available for me to talk to, and no matter how often I relapsed or how bad things got for me, she never judged me or thought of me different. I had just recently started speaking to her and I could tell how much she loved me. Just hearing her voice on the phone gave me strength and hope I never knew I had. I am ever-grateful for that. And that's something that I can start doing for others today.

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