As an ex-photojournalist with over 17 years experience I was diagnosed with PTSD in 2007.
Stupidly I left it untreated until 2011 when I started therapy, but I quickly became frustrated as I felt the counselor was not hearing me or helping me. I stopped therapy and started on anti-depressants but while the meds suppressed my emotions it did not treat the core issue of the PTSD.
After two years or so I felt the meds were not working anymore, so with the assistance of my GP I weaned myself off the meds, and then started a slow spiral down into a very dark place.
I experienced extreme feelings of disconnection and alienation, found it virtually impossible to communicate with family and friends, and began to isolate myself from the world. Since 2012 I started living like a hermit in a cottage on my parents’ smallholding, and had overwhelming negative emotions about the world and myself. I found social interaction physically exhausting and started avoiding people more and more. Towards the end of 2018 I was borderline suicidal.
Through the intervention of my parents I finally checked into the Magalies Ibogaine Wellness Centre beginning of February 2019.
Apart from the treatment with ibogaine, which left me with a profound sense of calm and of having “a clean slate” to start over, the therapy from the various psychologists and counselors was so spot-on to my specific needs.
The interaction with the Centre’s medical doctor was fantastic, and his knowledge and demeanor was reassuring and helped me to remain calm throughout the ibogain experience.
The ibogain went about it’s work of finding and ridding my body of so much negative energy stored inside me over so many years, and the one-on-one therapy and group therapy sessions enabled me to face all the trauma I experienced over so many years and process it.
The treatment and therapy cracked open a 15-year old tightly wound ball of negative thoughts and emotions, and left me not only able to speak about what I experienced for the first time ever, but actually WANTING to speak about it.
Currently I am in a space where I can see beauty in the world again as well as in myself.
I have goals and motivation, and I feel connected and part of the world again.
I cannot thank the Centre and its’ staff enough for what they did for me. How they were able to save me, help me deal with my trauma, and give me the tools to be able to cope with my daily life moving forward, to me is nothing short of a miracle.
I highly recommend the process to anybody who feels in need of assistance in fighting addiction, anxiety, depression or PTSD.
Johann