You are in the in-between state of here and there…
As you feel your eyes gently closing and your head resting back onto the pillow
The world isn’t as it was only a moment ago..
Now – it is something different.
Iridescent fractals spiral around you like geometric rainbows as your body is no longer here nor there…
A memory from once before returns to remind you of what you might have forgotten – so you can remember, once again.
This is a brief glimpse into what I experienced during my first Bufo Retreat.
What is Bufo Alvarius?
Bufo Alvarius, also known as the Colorado River Toad or the Sonoran Desert Toad, consists of a chemical composition of 5 MeO-DMT + bufotenine (5-HO-DMT).
It falls under a substance categorization titled ‘Entheogen’ – ‘en-theo-gen’, which means ‘generating the God within’.
Indeed, the Bufo Alvarius experience sure does live up to that name.
The psychedelic substance is secreted by the venom glands of the toad, and then dried into a crystalized form in order to be smoked or vaporized.
It gives a whole new meaning to the idiom often referenced… ‘’The medicine is found in the poison”.
How does Bufo Alvarius Work?
During a Bufo retreat, ceremony, or sitting, a dosage ranging from 10-60+ milligrams is administered by inhalation.
The experience can start setting in within 15 seconds to a minute, and last anywhere from
30 minutes to an hour.
In this way, it moves very quickly out of the blood stream.
5-MeO-DMT shares a similar chemical structure to the neurotransmitter serotonin, which plays a significant role in our mood regulation and our emotions.
These similarities in chemical structure allow the 5 MeO-DMT to fit into the serotonin receptors within the brain, and stimulate them – which is what initiates and sustains the psychedelic effect and the altered states of consciousness.
Serotonin is a neuro-modulator, a facilitator of different regions of the brain.
When working with 5-MeO-DMT, the regions of the brain usually regulating survival and the focus needed to operate efficiently in day-to-day life, start to take a back seat.
And other regions of the brain which are responsible for higher perception and greater understanding, become activating – hence allowing for the expansion of awareness which is then reached from the psychedelic effect.
What will I experience working with Bufo Alvarius during a Bufo Retreat?
It is always recommended to take the time to do the research in order to find the ideal experience for your Bufo retreat.
The shaman, space-holder, or facilitator which you work with will greatly impact the experience of the trip overall.
From years of experience in facilitating these psychedelic transformations – we ensure that all of our retreat attendees are met with the care, spaciousness, and the consideration required to make the best of their experience. We also ensure that each participant is supported with the most integrated transformation through the space that we hold throughout the entire process of the Bufo ceremony.
After the initial administration, the Bufo Alvarius medicine usually sets in from anywhere between 15 – 30 seconds. As you are inhaling, you will be instructed to hold it in as long as you can before exhalation.
This is when the shaman, or space holder facilitating the process, will either have a drum, a rattle, various instruments, or another ambient soundscapes to support the energetic space which is created through the medicine, in order to allow the individual to go deeper into their Bufo Alvarius experience.
During the trip, you might experience:
- A significant dilation in your perception of time.
- Intense states of expansion and euphoria.
- Visions of other worlds and realms.
- A deep visceral feeling of interconnectedness to all things.
- A glimpse and experience of union with Source consciousness.
- Memories from the past in this life or other lives.
- And a wide array of other sensations and visions which go much beyond the general scope of day-to-day consciousness of reality.
This experience initiates an expansion of consciousness which greatly increases the bounds of perception.
Not only mental perception, but also physical, emotional and spiritual.
It is a medicine which will guide you to the gateways of reality.
A journey to the thresholds of matter, space, and time.
It is an opportunity, an access to that which is infinite – that which moves through you, through me, through all of us, but that which normally evades our senses due to the denser perceptions of our day-to-day consciousness.
Some people claim to have experienced a connection and knowing of ultimate oneness – and others have claimed to have gotten a peek into the void – the space of serene nothingness.
After about 15 minutes to an hour – you will come out of the experience and snap back into your normal state of consciousness relatively quickly.
If you are interested in learning more through connecting with people who have had, or are planning to have this experience for themselves, please feel free to join our Global Community.
What will I experience after a Bufo Retreat?
The individuals who have participated in a Bufo ceremony have claimed to have experienced several benefits from the medicine.
Some people experience a greater meaning and purpose
in their life and their life path. Others have had their perception of reality and life here on earth completely shifted after having such an experience – feeling a greater clarity and connection to the bridge between the spiritual world and the physical world.
Studies have also shown that Bufo is known to help and alleviate symptoms of mental illness such as depression, anxiety and PTSD.
Bufo Alvaruis is also known to support individuals who are experiencing addiction; some claims have been made to state that working with Bufo alvarius even supported individuals in healing and eradicating their addictions completely.
As you can see, this powerful medicine is known to have a way of rewriting thought patterns, and rewiring brain chemistry, supporting individuals in shifting their perception of reality on a physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual level.
Is Bufo Alvarius Legal?
There are regions in the world where Bufo alvarius is legal and has been used for centuries to support the expansion of awareness, as well as support with healing various issues and ailments.
We don’t encourage the use of Bufo in regions where the usage of the medicine is penalized, but we do encourage the use of it in areas where it is legal, honored, and utilized in a safe, responsible, intentional, space.
If you are interested in experiencing a Bufo retreat in such a place, check out more information about our medicine retreats.
What is the history of Bufo Alvarius?
It has been suggested by anthropologists and historians that the Toad (Bufo), in its many variations has been utilized by the meso-american culture for many generations.
Skeletal remains of various Bufo species have been dated back to 1250-900 BC, with an emphasis of cultural depictions on the parotid glands of the toads – which is where the psychoactive substance of the toad originates from.
Woven into their stories, their culture, their art, and their textile design, the toad has had significance not only from a medicinal perspective, but also from a spiritual perspective relating to ancient cosmologies and creation mythologies.
Why should I try Bufo?
Well, just like all medicines, Bufo is not for everyone.
But if you are here reading this, and you have gotten this far down the article, I take it that there is a deeper reason for it, and that there might be something here in the medicine for you.
From my personal experience working with plant medicine, people don’t necessarily go to the medicine – more so, it comes to them.
So if the awareness of this medicine has come to you, either through word of mouth, synchronicity, or by any other unexpected means – this might be something for you to seriously consider.
These substances really do have an intelligence of their own – and they do reach out to people in different ways through the greater network of consciousness which we are all connected to.
And even if it hasn’t reached out to you in more obvious ways yet, your being here counts for something.
Whatever your reasons may be – to expand your awareness, to experience greater states of consciousness, or to experience healing – Bufo is a powerful tool to be used with reverence, humility, and intention.
It will shift the way you perceive reality – which may also shift your values, as well as provide a deeper and more expanded meaning and purpose to your life.
If you are seeking a place to dive into working with this medicine within a conscious, safe, and intentional space – then look no further.
We genuinely believe that when used in a responsible way – this medicine can truly change lives – and we are here to support the unfolding of that reality for those in resonance.
Check out our medicine retreats– and feel free to reach out if you have any further curiosities.
Sending you grace, awareness, and opportunities for deep healing.
[To be continued..]
In deepest service and prayer, from the Strength of All I AM,
Trinity de Guzman & Your Highest Truth

PS – A Gift For You
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