- Join us on the coast of Ecuador for the first plant medicine retreat for yoga teachers.  Discover how exploring your inner world strengthens your practice and ability to share it by combining yoga and plant medicine, which compliment each other in many ways.

- Deepen and strengthen your yoga practice with workshops and daily classes in our beautiful yoga shala. There will be daily asana, meditation, and pranayama classes. You will also dive into yoga philosophy with our experienced yoga teacher, Vanessa.

- Meet with the sacred plant medicines, along with sweat lodges, rituals, meditations, and ancient wisdom workshops to learn new ways to purify and align. 

- Gain a supportive  community of yoga teachers who recognize the power of supporting each other, sharing wisdom, and growing together. 

Ayllu Medicina's Power Plant Medicine Retreat for Yoga Teachers in April 2025 is designed to help you strengthen your teaching and own yoga practice by opening up space to explore your inner world. When we open space to explore our inner world, we can then hold space for others and gain more clarity on our own path. 

This transformational plant medicine retreat is the first of its kind, combining the healing of yoga and plant medicine specifically for yoga teachers with experienced guides.

This week is full of powerful yoga philosophy workshops, classes, ceremonies, , and activities, along with nourishing food, snacks, and rest time, so you can go deep into your inner nature. 

Purifying your body, mind, and spirit can help you align with your heart, which is why we include different types of ceremonies as part of our plant medicine retreats. These ceremonies are led by our experienced guides, honoring the ancient traditions from which they come. 

Plant Medicine Ceremonies 

We will gather together two Ayawaska ceremonies and a San Pedro ceremony. Ayawaska is often compared to a wise Grandmother, and like an onion, she can help you find your center and let go of what no longer serves you. 

Grandfather San Pedro is the healing masculine energy, helping you find alignment and open your heart once more, ready to take flight. We will meet with Grandfather San Pedro twice in two different types of ceremonies; a medicine sweat lodge and a power walk. 

We will provide preparation support, and we hold circles during our plant medicine retreats to discuss any questions you may have in advance. After our plant medicine ceremonies, we also have sharing circles, so you can share any pearls from your ceremony experience. Some people have sat in ceremonies previously, whereas, for others, it is their first time meeting with the plant medicines. 

A strong yoga and meditation practice can be highly beneficial. Learn more here. Our team will also be supporting you throughout retreat preparation, the retreat week, and beyond. 

Sweat Lodges 

There will also be multiple sweat lodges (temazcales) throughout the plant medicine retreat week. Enter the womb of Mother Earth to integrate, purify, and experience rebirth. 

Our volcanic grandmother stones are heated in the fire and are placed in the womb, the sweat lodge. Different incenses are placed on the stones before the door closes, and the heat begins to rise as water is poured over the stones. We share prayers and songs to guide each round. 

There will be a variety of workshops and discussions around yoga philosophy to help deepen your practice. These workshops will also focus on integrating the experiences of the plant medicines and learning how different practices weave together. 

These workshops will also help you discover how to strengthen teaching skills such as holding space, which the week of medicine will also teach in different ways. 

Join us for daily yoga classes led by Vanessa, our experienced yoga teacher. She has over 1000 hours teaching students from around the world. She studied under the guidance of Yogi Vishvketu in the style of Akhanda yoga in Canada, is a yoga teacher trainer, has level 2 Reiki and has been studying Ayurveda for 12 years - she is a practitioner and teaches certified courses. 

More recently she has completed a Masters Program in Pranayama with over 200 hrs of study,  and is now a Yoga Nidra and Meditation Faciliator.

There will also be guided breathwork and meditation to help you connect with your true essence.  

Ayllu Medicina is based on the coast of Ecuador, in Manglaralto, situated near the world-famous surf capital of Montañita and the peaceful haven of Ayampe. 

Immerse yourself in nature in our retreat space, which is perfect for renewal. It is magical during ceremonies to hear the sounds of all the nature around, from the birds singing to the waves crashing. 

You can easily access the beach, which is a ten-minute walk from the accommodation. The accommodation has everything you need to be comfortable, feel at peace, and retreat inwards during your stay, including a swimming pool with ocean views, one of the best spots to enjoy Ecuador's sunsets! 

Rooms include air conditioning, large comfortable double beds, and hot water.  

Do you plan to stay for longer? We are happy to offer recommendations for where to stay and where to visit pre or post-retreat. 

Your plant medicine experience and healing process will be led by Aime, medicine man of the Sacred Fire of Itzachilatlan, a medicine family based in the Ecuadorian Andes, and his wife, Hwaneetah. Their purpose is to share medicine, prayers, music, and intention for healing with whoever is called to share in this journey. These two healers are well-known in the region for their music, resonant prayers, and heart-opening medicine. 

Aime and Hwaneetah speak fluent English, Spanish, and French and have been working with medicine for over 20 years, along with other healing modalities.  

Hwaneetah was initiated and certified in Sacred Geometry by Drunvalo Melchizedek, an internationally celebrated spiritual visionary who is known for defining the Merkaba and the flower of life. She also studied in the Mystery School Yotolon of hermetic sciences, which focuses on the nexus between science, philosophy, and spirit. 

In this school, she also learned about neo-shamanism, or new ways of seeking visions and healing, and directed the female part of the school for six years, developing a branch of study called the Technology of the Womb. She is currently writing a book based on her studies on awakening all of the secondary functioning of the womb with our consciousness.  

Hwaneetah is also a quantum holonomic healer, canupa carrier, sun dancer, and runs sweat lodges. She also supports her husband, Aime, during ceremonies with traditional songs, instruments, incense, and holding sacred female energy in the space of medicine. She also shares her knowledge about womb healing through workshops and 1:1 sessions.

You can watch Hwaneetah's talk on ancient womb technology on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_X9LkyK4bHw

Our yoga teacher, Vanessa, is a yoga teacher trainer, with over 1500 hours of study, ranging from 200 YTTs to a Pranayama Master Program. She is also a Yoga Nidra and Meditation Facilitator, Wisdom Years Yoga (50 and over), has her reiki level 1, and more. 

The Ayllu Medicina team will be supporting you throughout your retreat week; you can learn more about our medicine guides and facilitators on our website under 'team'. Many of us have a consistent yoga practice and some of us are also yoga teachers.

We also have a great kitchen team who will be providing nutritious food and drinks throughout the week. 

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. We will also be providing orientation support, and there are options for integration sessions post-retreat. You can also choose from other add-ons, such as a 1:1 moon session with Hwaneetah or a shamanic cleansing with Aime.