Kambo: The Gift of Discomfort

Kambo: The Gift of Discomfort

           

Pain and discomfort provide some of our greatest lessons as we journey through life.  People often ask me why anyone would want to burn themselves intentionally and apply a frog venom to their skin, being fully aware that for the next half hour they will be experiencing extreme, delirious, uncontrollable discomfort throughout their entire body.  They will likely vomit, possibly faint, and have a deep experience with some form of pain.

To this day, even after numerous treatments over many years, I still hear a tiny voice inside me which asks  “Why am I doing this?” Without fail, I remember the extreme discomfort which awaits me.  Despite knowing that the Kambo experience will only last a short time, and that upon completion, I will feel clean, peaceful, and strong—the thoughts of discomfort are always there. 

 I have come to accept this voice from within.  We as humans instinctually steer away from anything that brings discomfort, unease or pain.  This is a simple, primal truth.  

In these busy and distracting times, many of us succumb to the common lifestyle pattern of choosing to ignore and not tend to our self care.  Things slip by in our day-to-day routines and pile up causing stagnation and obstruction to a healthy flow.  We get bogged down, progress on our path slows, which leads to some form of discomfort and/or dis-ease.  Physical pain and ailments arise, which is the way our body communicates to our mind, letting us know something needs attention; something inside is asking us to take a deeper look, to focus our time, love, and intentional awareness on our inner self.

 Instinctively we know that in order to heal and shift our lives for the better, it is necessary at times to sit with discomfort.  We are innately aware that this is a an important part of our overall process of learning and growth. 

Unfortunately many of us are prone to waiting for that discomfort and pain to show up as physical, emotional or mental illness. But what if we chose to feel discomfort before illness arose, to use it as a tool to maintain our health and wellbeing, to implement transformation and healing? 

There are many healthy ways in which we can access discomfort by working with and applying positive modalities.  Anything that furthers our growth and takes us out of our comfort zone, such as fasting, detoxing, cleansing, exercising, meditation, breathwork, yoga, the use of Kambo and plant medicines, to name a few…

Pain is a uncomfortable sensation that we try not to experience.   Kambo has a magical way of bringing our pain to the surface, so that we may access what lies beneath this pain and release it.  To fully release the pain we carry requires us to experience it and feel it again.  This may show up once again by feeling the physical pain stored in our body from an old sports injury that never fully healed.  Or it may surface as an emotional pain, with the recollection of childhood traumas and old memories buried deep in the psyche.  Psychological anguish can come to the forefront as Kambo quickly and deeply brings the realization of where we have veered from our true paths in life, revealing to us clearly what needs to be done to correct our course.  

When we take Kambo, we are able to tap into complete overwhelming discomfort.  The only choice we are given is to totally and fully surrender to its presence, Our presence…

This is where the magic resides as we take the intentional journey to sit with and feel our pain. To choose to see ourselves fully within our immediate suffering, witnessing ourselves in complete aloneness and vulnerability is truly beautiful.

It’s the great blessing of Kambo to allow us access to our pain, so that we may willingly and courageously use our own unease as a tool to heal.

And so, I go through these steps in my mind every time I sit down to do Kambo…ultimately remembering how valuable my journey through discomfort will be….