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Olga Yakymenko never planned on becoming a medicine practitioner.

Born and raised in Ukraine, Olga spent ten years working within the Ukrainian court system before eventually moving to Moscow, where she continued working in the legal field. From the outside, she had built a conventional life and career. Internally, though, she had the persistent feeling that she wasn't doing what she was supposed to be doing.

Then she went to India.

What was supposed to be a short trip turned into six months after Olga threw away her return ticket and called her boss to tell him he could fire her. India opened the door to meditation, spiritual practice, travel, and an entirely different way of seeing her life.

Eventually, that path led her to South America and ayahuasca.

Her first experience wasn't particularly profound. Years later, however, she sat again—this time prepared, intentional, and within the Shipibo tradition. That ceremony changed the direction of her life.

Olga describes an experience of ego death, rebirth, and a clear message that she was supposed to leave her old life behind, move to another country, and work in service to others.

So she did.

With little English, a tiny backpack, and no real plan, Olga came to the United States, eventually settling in Brooklyn and beginning the long transition from the legal world into healing work.

In this episode, we follow that journey and dive deep into Olga's relationship with ayahuasca, Kambo, Bufo, traditional Shipibo practices, Icaros, integration, and the importance of choosing experienced facilitators.

We also get into one of the more unusual modalities Olga practices: hirudotherapy, or medicinal leech therapy—a practice she first witnessed as a child in Ukraine and later incorporated into her own work.

Today, Olga works with ayahuasca, Kambo, massage, and leech therapy and is stepping into a new chapter as a Kambo instructor.

In This Episode

We talk about:

• Growing up in Ukraine and working in the court system
• Leaving Moscow for what became a six-month journey through India
• Meditation, Vipassana, Nepal, Varanasi, and the beginning of Olga's spiritual path
• Her first experience with ayahuasca in South America
• The Shipibo ceremony that completely changed her life
• Moving to America without speaking English
• Building a new life in Brooklyn
• Why ayahuasca became Olga's primary spiritual teacher
• The role of Icaros and master plants within Shipibo tradition
• Why the person facilitating a psychedelic experience matters
• Difficult ayahuasca experiences, surrender, preparation, and integration
• Olga's first experience with Kambo in New York
• Discovering Bufo after roughly 150 ayahuasca ceremonies
• Why she eventually chose to stop serving Bufo and focus more deeply on ayahuasca and Kambo
• The problem with stacking multiple powerful medicines into a single retreat
• Why more medicine doesn't necessarily mean more healing
• Medicinal leech therapy and its history in Olga's family
• Her decision to begin teaching Kambo
• Her desire to bring properly trained practitioners into Ukrainian communities affected by war
• Advice for people curious about plant and amphibian medicines
• What to look for when choosing an ayahuasca facilitator

Olga's story is ultimately about following a path before you can see where it's leading.

From a courtroom in Ukraine, to six months wandering India, to Shipibo ceremonies in the Amazon, to arriving in America with almost nothing and building an entirely different life—sometimes the next chapter doesn't begin with a plan.

Sometimes it begins by throwing away the ticket home.

Connect With Olga Yakymenko

Website: kambo-ny.com

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Every once in a while, Jason will be stepping away from the traditional interview format to share stories from nearly a decade of working with Kambo—people he met, unusual cases he witnessed, and experiences that have stayed with him throughout his years of practice.

For the first Kambo Story Time, Jason shares the story of Solomon Page, a former NFL offensive lineman who played for the Dallas Cowboys.

After years of professional football and repeated concussions, Solomon's health began to deteriorate. He developed severe skin and autoimmune-type issues that eventually affected nearly every part of his daily life. His skin became so sensitive that normal clothing was difficult to tolerate. Sitting, sleeping, exercising, and many of the things he'd once taken for granted became increasingly difficult.

Eventually, after exhausting conventional medical options, Solomon says he was told there was nothing more his doctors could do and that he would have to learn to live with his condition.

He reached a point where he wasn't sure he wanted to.

His wife, Cynthia, wasn't willing to accept that answer.

Her search eventually led Solomon to a holistic practitioner in Dallas—and through her, to Jason and Kambo.

In this episode, Jason tells the story of their first session, why Solomon's breathing caused him to remove Kambo points during the treatment, the phone call he received a week later, and what unfolded over the following months.

It's also the story of what happened afterward: Solomon's eventual decision to train as a Kambo practitioner himself and the completely different direction his life took from there.

In This Episode

• How Jason began serving Kambo through a holistic medical practice in Dallas
• Meeting Solomon Page for the first time
• The physical toll years of professional football had taken on Solomon
• Repeated concussions and the health problems Solomon experienced afterward
• The moment Solomon says he had given up hope
• Why his wife continued searching for answers
• Solomon's first experience with Kambo
• Why Jason reduced the number of points during that first session
• The phone call Jason received about a week later
• Three consecutive Kambo sessions and the changes Jason witnessed afterward
• Solomon's decision to eventually become a Kambo practitioner himself
• Why extraordinary stories like Solomon's shouldn't be mistaken for a promise that Kambo will produce the same results for everyone

A Note About This Story

This episode describes one individual's experience with Kambo. It is not intended to suggest that Kambo cures psoriasis, concussion-related conditions, autoimmune disease, or any other medical condition. Individual experiences and outcomes vary, and personal stories should not be interpreted as medical evidence or medical advice.

Tribal Detox Podcast — Episode 9

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