psychedelictown
Rising Star
I wanted to share my experience at Huachuma Wasi as during my time there I witnessed some disturbing events and behavior from both Sergey (the owner) and two guests which were close friends of his.
An Ayahuasca ceremony took place at the retreat during which Sergey was assisting people to the bathroom. A guest Joan required the facilities but Sergey was not available at the time as he was inside his house having dinner so Joan attempted to solely navigate the cactus filled gardens to make her way to the facilities and fell face down on the concreate resulting in a nasty cut on her forehead. When she regained consciousness she made her way back into the ceremony room and laid down.
It wasn’t until the end of the ceremony Sergey appeared and noticed all the blood on her face; he became distressed and was concerned she would require a trip to the hospital unsure what to do he asked Rick another participant in the ceremony and an ex-nurse to assess her wounds. Due to the lack of lighting and limited space in the small room Rick lent down over Joan to get a clearer look at the wound and in the process whispered encouraging words in her ear (telling her she is strong & she’s going to be okay etc.) as he was concerned Sergey’s distress was frightening her and this was her first Ayahuasca ceremony.
After this incident Rick was viciously attacked by Sergey and two other guests who were his close friends. He was called a predator, a creep, told he was possessed by lust, a lost soul beyond redemption, a sociopathic pervert, he's full of darkness, he exuded toxic masculinity, and his marriage was doomed.
I know this because for some reason Sergey felt it was appropriate to upload the disturbing text messages he sent to Rick into our group chat. Rick did not understand this level of aggression and left Huachuma Wasi shortly thereafter. The treatment of Rick over this incident confused us all as this was a man with a wife and children who had the biggest heart of anyone I have ever met and genuinely cared about everyone.
After Ricks departure we were told by Sergey that Joan said when he was leaning over her he touched her breast and she felt like a demon was on her. Many of us contacted Joan to confirm this (as she had departed to go back home by this stage) and Joan confirmed she did not say this and she contacted Sergey asking him to clarify with us she did not say these things in which he never did.
Sergey even went as far as to contact people Rick knew and had done ceremonies with before to spread these stories.
I even overheard one of the guests (Sergey’s friend) telling another that I said Rick was watching me while I was in my underwear swimming in the river during a Huachuma ceremony which was not true. The amount of lies made up by Sergey and these two guests relating to Rick were unbelievable it was honestly one of the most bizarre occurrence’s I have ever witnessed.
To make matters worse after Rick’s departure another of the guests was verbally attacked by these two men viciously for hours on end in front of all of us and the level of aggression displayed by these men was very disturbing. Multiple people were distressed by this incident and contacted Sergey to notify him of this behavior and his response was to send us a group message stating he would not be discussing this matter.
I did not feel safe or supported in this environment I attempted to move on from this incident but eventually departed early as I could not condone such behavior from Sergey and his friends towards his guests.
*Guests names have been changed to protect their privacy
An Ayahuasca ceremony took place at the retreat during which Sergey was assisting people to the bathroom. A guest Joan required the facilities but Sergey was not available at the time as he was inside his house having dinner so Joan attempted to solely navigate the cactus filled gardens to make her way to the facilities and fell face down on the concreate resulting in a nasty cut on her forehead. When she regained consciousness she made her way back into the ceremony room and laid down.
It wasn’t until the end of the ceremony Sergey appeared and noticed all the blood on her face; he became distressed and was concerned she would require a trip to the hospital unsure what to do he asked Rick another participant in the ceremony and an ex-nurse to assess her wounds. Due to the lack of lighting and limited space in the small room Rick lent down over Joan to get a clearer look at the wound and in the process whispered encouraging words in her ear (telling her she is strong & she’s going to be okay etc.) as he was concerned Sergey’s distress was frightening her and this was her first Ayahuasca ceremony.
After this incident Rick was viciously attacked by Sergey and two other guests who were his close friends. He was called a predator, a creep, told he was possessed by lust, a lost soul beyond redemption, a sociopathic pervert, he's full of darkness, he exuded toxic masculinity, and his marriage was doomed.
I know this because for some reason Sergey felt it was appropriate to upload the disturbing text messages he sent to Rick into our group chat. Rick did not understand this level of aggression and left Huachuma Wasi shortly thereafter. The treatment of Rick over this incident confused us all as this was a man with a wife and children who had the biggest heart of anyone I have ever met and genuinely cared about everyone.
After Ricks departure we were told by Sergey that Joan said when he was leaning over her he touched her breast and she felt like a demon was on her. Many of us contacted Joan to confirm this (as she had departed to go back home by this stage) and Joan confirmed she did not say this and she contacted Sergey asking him to clarify with us she did not say these things in which he never did.
Sergey even went as far as to contact people Rick knew and had done ceremonies with before to spread these stories.
I even overheard one of the guests (Sergey’s friend) telling another that I said Rick was watching me while I was in my underwear swimming in the river during a Huachuma ceremony which was not true. The amount of lies made up by Sergey and these two guests relating to Rick were unbelievable it was honestly one of the most bizarre occurrence’s I have ever witnessed.
To make matters worse after Rick’s departure another of the guests was verbally attacked by these two men viciously for hours on end in front of all of us and the level of aggression displayed by these men was very disturbing. Multiple people were distressed by this incident and contacted Sergey to notify him of this behavior and his response was to send us a group message stating he would not be discussing this matter.
I did not feel safe or supported in this environment I attempted to move on from this incident but eventually departed early as I could not condone such behavior from Sergey and his friends towards his guests.
*Guests names have been changed to protect their privacy
