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Comment by willhinsa | Hacker News Reader

Is chemotherapy Stockholm syndrome?

Sometimes the medicine has to be pretty bad to fight off something worse!

No, because if there were a treatment as safe and effective as chemotherapy at treating cancer, but that didn't cause nausea or vomiting, we'd all switch to it in a heartbeat.

What disease is ayahuasca fighting off? And specifically what is the the clinical benefit of the vomit stage?

By that token, what specifically is the clinical benefit to the vomit stage of chemo?

The argument is that the vomiting is a necessary step of this powerful medicine, and that the medicine is curing mental disease.

I'm not defending ayahuasca, I actually do think it's a sketchy corner of the psychedelic world to be trodden on very carefully, if at all. Just trying to supply the perspective.

There's no benefit to puking you guts, it's a side effect. Chemo is basically poison.

Chemo: you might vomit, if you do it is expected, if you don't that is OK you still got the treatment.

Ayahuasca (to some people): wot you didn't vomit? if you didn't vomit, it never happened.

"What disease is ayahuasca fighting off? And specifically what is the the clinical benefit of the vomit stage?"

I have heard people describe ayahuasca purging as getting rid of mental and/or physical toxins... as getting rid of depression, emotional/psychological baggage, medical maladies, etc..

No chemo is a last chance kinda thing. Nobody chooses to have chemo, it's just the only tool left in the box.

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