As featured in SPIN Magazine: From GLP-1s to Ayahuasca: The New Frontier in Longevity
In 2026, roughly one in eight American adults is on a GLP-1 like Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro. These drugs mimic glucagon-like peptide-1, a hormone the gut releases after a meal. They prompt the pancreas to release insulin when blood sugar rises, slow stomach emptying, and act on appetite centers in the brain. Originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes, where they reliably lower blood sugar and A1C, they turned out to be remarkably effective for weight as well. In clinical trials, semaglutide users lost around 15 percent of their body weight and tirzepatide users closer to 20 percent, results that were previously only seen with bariatric surgery. The US obesity rate is falling for the first time in decades, and the conversation around health is evolving beyond weight loss to full-spectrum optimization, which includes peptides, NAD protocols, longevity clinics, and a booming biohacking movement focused on extending healthspan.
SPIN Magazine recently explored in a feature on this trend, and about what we here at Rythmia have seen first hand as well, the same people optimizing their bodies are discovering that the inner work matters just as much (if not even more). You can perfect your labs and still feel unwell in the ways that matter most. That's why psychedelic therapies, and ayahuasca in particular, have surged right alongside the GLP-1 boom. Our guests consistently describe a single week with the medicine as experiencing the work of ten years of therapy, with treatment-resistant PTSD, addiction, depression, and anxiety finally loosening their grip after years of feeling hopeless.
If you're on a GLP-1 or a longevity protocol and considering ayahuasca, here's what you need to know before you book.
Why GLP-1s Require Special Preparation
Most longevity compounds, including BPC-157, NAD and its precursors, and other common recovery peptides, are not serotonergic and carry no documented dangerous interaction with ayahuasca. GLP-1s are the exception, for two reasons:
They slow gastric emptying.
So, when this happens, the medicine lingers in your stomach longer, which can either blunt or delay the experience. More importantly, your stomach can still hold its contents even when you're certain you've fasted, which matters in a ceremony where purging is often part of the individual healing journey.
They lower blood glucose.
Preparation for ceremony typically involves fasting for a period of time beforehand and, while not everyone will purge, purging is a very common experience associated with medicine work. The purge most often takes the form of vomiting or diarrhea, though it can also move through the body as crying, laughter, sweating, shaking, or yawning. With little food on board while the medicine is still active, blood sugar can drop too low, and in an altered state the warning signs of hypoglycemia, like shakiness, confusion, and sweating, can be easy to miss or mistake for the medicine itself.
How to Prepare
For weekly GLP-1s like semaglutide or tirzepatide, the current guidance is to pause about one to two weeks before ceremony, with newer data leaning toward the longer end. Daily formulations clear faster and usually need only a day or so. Because stopping a GLP-1 affects your blood sugar, the timing should always be planned with your doctor, never left to guesswork.
The broader rule for any new healing modality is to disclose every single compound you take, prescription, supplement, or otherwise, and let a medical professional have the final say. Ayahuasca is a powerful MAOI, so SSRIs, SNRIs, and other serotonergic medications must be tapered well in advance, always under a doctor's care.
Why Medical Oversight Is Non-Negotiable
This is exactly why Rythmia operates the way it does. Rythmia Life Advancement Center is the only medically licensed plant medicine center in the world, holding a General Medical License from the Costa Rican Ministry of Health. Every guest is medically screened before and upon arrival, and our on-site clinic is staffed by a 24/7 clinical team of doctors and nurses.
For anyone doing this work on a GLP-1, a peptide protocol, or any longevity regimen, that level of oversight is the difference between guessing and knowing. It's also why Rythmia is ranked #1 in its category on TripAdvisor, with the majority of guests self-reporting a miracle after their stay.
The Epi-Center of Health and Happiness
Rythmia is located in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, which is one of only five Blue Zones on earth, where people routinely live past 100. These communities teach what the biohacking world often overlooks: the longest, healthiest lives are built on a sense of meaning, purpose, deep-connection, and community, not by diet and supplements alone. Those are exactly the things guests describe realizing through plant medicine.
You can optimize the body almost anywhere, but Rythmia is where you optimize the soul, too.
Ready to Begin?
If you're prepared to do the inner work with the safest medical infrastructure in plant medicine, our team will walk you through screening, preparation, and everything you need to arrive ready.
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