Nexus - 0405 - New Times Magazine-pages

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they felt stronger, more optimistic and calm, and were able to between the doctor and patient over the immediate ceasing of contemplate life more positively. drug use does not exist. If narcotic-dependent, the patient is With ibogaine treatment, it is after the patient awakens that the —_ allowed to continue the use of narcotics until a certain time prior effects are principally noticed, for the majority of patients no to treatment with ibogaine. There is no conflict over opiate use longer desire to seek or use the drugs they were abusing. before treatment because, as Lotsof maintains, ibogaine will either However, it should be noted that the response to ibogaine is very work to interrupt chemical dependence or it will not. In the pro- individual, just as the patient has individual characteristics. cedure, any patient dependent on stimulants is not maintained on According to Lotsof, patients report a reduced need for sleep stimulants, and this practice has not created problems for patients for a period of up to four months, sometimes for up to six months, _ or medical staff. after receiving the ibogaine treatment. Before the Lotsof Procedure was conducted in hospitals under A young Dutch woman has written this about her experiences experimental trial conditions, addicted patients were allowed to with ibogaine treatment: use their personal supply of narcotics until the evening before ibo- "T lost interest in drugs in general because the effect of ibogaine gaine treatment. However, during hospital-administered ibogaine goes far beyond their effect, though not necessarily in a pleasant sessions, the narcotic-dependent patient is maintained on medica- way. Up until four months after the treatment I kept experiencing tions prescribed by the principal investigator during the three-to- colours and light very intensely. five-day intake process preceding their treatment with ibogaine. "Ibogaine was a mental process for me, a form of spiritual Even under these circumstances, patients’ distrust of the med- purification and a truth serum in which I had to experience its ical establishment and their extreme fear of going into withdrawal results through time. It's only now, after six months, that I can has resulted in narcotics being smuggled into hospital environ- say I'm not addicted any more. It takes time ments. As a protective mechanism, all patients to admit that there is no way back. Ibogaine scheduled for ibogaine treatment in a hospital is not a solution in itself, although it takes must undergo a thorough physical examination away withdrawal completely." upon admission and allow all their possessions Ibogaine provides the means for overcom- The use of to be searched. This serves two important ing addiction, but the subject must have the . . a functions. Firstly, it limits the possibility of ial reaine that.all knowledges avaikble to | OGAINE-CONTAINING | rors crter deuce ‘Seconly, allows cure eset ithatis uly what's | BlamtS as bEeM | mor comprehensive understanding of the reported for ple seeking treatment for chemical dependence CLINICAL PROTOCOLS have often masked numerous health problems The effects of ibogaine treatment are centuries in for years or even decades by self-medicating viewed in three categories: acute, . . with illicit, addictive drugs. western Africa in intermediate and long-term. The acute and intermediate effects have some- inl times been referred to as the effects and both rel Iglous after-effects. The two major effects of practice and in traditional medicine. ACUTE EFFECTS REGIMEN The acute effects of ibogaine are dra- matic. The initial reaction in the patient is usually noted within 45 minutes after intake of the oral dose, and full effects are generally evident within 2 to 2% hours. The earliest subjective indication by the patient of ibogaine's effects is the report of a pervasive oscillating sound. The patient tends to lie down, and if asked, to stand or walk, shows signs of ibogaine are: (1) the ability to interrupt narcotic and stimulant withdrawal, and (2) the attenuation or elimination of the craving to continue to seek and use opi- ates, stimulants and alcohol (Lotsof, 1985, 1986, 1989). Knowledge concerning the use of ibogaine in treating alcohol dependence is limited to: (1) a single-alcohol-only ataxia. dependent patient, and (2) the attenua- The protocol for the Lotsof Procedure tion and, in some cases, cessation of alcohol use in persons treated stipulates that the patient remain in bed with as little movement as for poly-drug-dependence disorders. possible from the time of ibogaine administration, as nausea asso- Ibogaine's ability to treat nicotine dependence (Lotsof, 1991) ciated with ibogaine use has been proven to be motion-related or, has been seen in poly-drug-dependent subjects treated primarily in later stages (those longer than four hours after administration), for opiate and/or cocaine use. possibly a psychosomatic reaction to previously repressed trau- Some general considerations should be noted regarding treat- matic experiences. ment protocols. The treatment team has four primary obligations: In addition to keeping the patient as still as possible, the proto- (1) to earn the trust of the patient; (2) to maintain the comfort of col suggests use of a non-phenothiazine anti-nauseant, as phe- the patient; (3) to assist the patient in interrupting his/her chemical nothiazines may interfere with the psychoactive properties of ibo- dependence; and (4) to supply the psychosocial support network gaine. If the patient vomits in less than 24 hours after the admin- needed by the majority of patients to enable them to develop a istration of ibogaine, an examination of the regurgitated material sense of personal accomplishment and the ability to function as should be made to determine how much ibogaine may have productive members of society. This is a process the Dutch treat- already been absorbed by the patient. A rectal infusion of ibo- ment community refers to as "normalisation". gaine to supplement the lost portion of the dose may be provided In the Lotsof Procedure™ (for which a manual is now being if it is not possible for this dose to be administered orally, but only prepared), the sense of conflict seen in most treatment modalities if the patient has previously consented to this mode of dosing. The use of reported for both religious practice and in traditional medicine. NEXUS 31 centuries in western Africa in AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 1997