“how’s this looking?”

“Not quite, Ian” said Andres as he passed his hands over the pile of rocks heating in the fire pit, “give them another minute, maybe two.”

I had come to Huehuecoytle, a still-functioning (if not completely thriving) commune on the outskirts of the beautiful mountain town of Tepoztlan, Mexico, as a respite from some personal drama back in the States. Unlike previous moments of life chaos, however, this one was largely the good kind of madness…I had fallen head-over-heals in love and, as luck would have it, the girl, Luna, had likewise fallen for me. Generally speaking, my adventures in romance had been, heretofore, one extended run of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with the awkwardness and heartache of unrequited pining, either by me towards a less-then-smitten lass or as the recipient of unwanted advances. For the first time in my life, however, the stars had (if you’ll pardon the cliché) exquisitely aligned, jettisoning me into a state of newfound, and previously untraversed, romance-induced euphoria. 

As more experienced amour-o-naughts will no doubt have concluded at this point, no such grandly mythical heart moments come without complications (the gods wouldn’t have it any other way). The “complication,” in my case, was a guy named Johnny, aka, Luna’s boyfriend of several months. In my love-addled stupor, I had of course minimized the obstacle. In my defense, however, I had at least some good reason to. As co-workers and desk mates, Luna had distressingly shared with me on a number of occasions wrenching stories about Johnny’s abusive ways. Given the context, and my intoxicated state, I had assumed the blush of our romance would lead to a sharp break with Johnny and a clean start to our journey together. 

That, of course, did not happen. While Luna did, at least nominally, break up with Johnny rather quickly and start an exclusive relationship with me, as these things tend to go she went back to the ex about a month into our romance. This was, as you’d imagine, heart-breaking and rage inducing, leading of course to the inevitable “him or me” confrontation. As the contrast between our apparently healthy relationship and the mess she had with Johnny was abundantly clear, she assured me she had merely fallen into an old happen and, given how quickly things had changed, hadn’t quite gotten over her feelings for Johnny, which, she comforted me, was par for the course for any breakup. Despite the slip-up, she categorically committed herself to me. Until she went back into Johnny’s arms a few weekends later, leading once again to the same heated back-and-forth, and the same conclusion. 

Around the fourth or fifth time this pattern had repeated itself (I’m not kidding) I was beginning to become oddly numb to the drama, and actually stopped taking the pattern personally. I implicitly trusted our feelings for each other and recognized that her compulsive behavior had nothing to do with me, leading to a kind of sober epiphany.

“Look,” I said to her one evening, “I’m going to Mexico.”

I explained that I needed to do something dramatic to break this unhealthy cycle, and this would give her the time and space she needed to decide what (and who) she really wanted.

“The rocks look ready, Ian” said Andres, “You can put them into the sweat now. Careful though,” he cautioned, “they are heavier than they look.”  

I chose Huehue (as the locals affectionately call the commune) for a number of reasons. In my multiple previous excursions south of the border, Tepoztlan had come up many times in conversations with other travelers as a latter day mystical Mexican Xanadu. In researching living options there, Huehue popped up as a kind of eco-touristic option. The commune offered relatively cheap room and board and a basic education in sustainable living in exchange for routine upkeep services and a nominal fee. The photos of the place looked striking and one of the patriarchs of Huehue, Andres King Cobos, had a compelling bio. As a “Mestizo,” a man of both European and Indigenous ancestry, Andres was a university educated actor and poet, as well as a practicing shaman. Given my own odd combo of modern big city upbringing and esoteric experiences, Andres struck me as someone who may be able to help facilitate an understanding of, and navigate, these diverse and somewhat opposing worlds. It helped, given my functional but crude Spanish, that he was fluent in English.

The commune had long since “evolved” from its idealistic inception in the early 80s. Andres shared stories of a tight-nit group who did everything together in the early days, like one big alternative family. All-night “fiestas” were common place, impromptu music and theater performances popped up spontaneously and routinely, and intimate relations were, as you would expect, fluid. 

When I had arrived, in the mid aughts, Huehue was much less a commune, but still a community. Wildness and shared living had morphed over time into relatively tame and traditional domestic life, with private homes, albeit eco-friendly ones, replacing shared living spaces. There were clear signs of affectionate old friends, and a few lingering old wounds…just as you would expect. Despite the decades-long trending towards more conservative, and private, lives there was one vestige of the old days and the old ways that kept the inhabitants of Huehue still stitched together: the sweat lodge. 

“Very good, Ian, thank you.” Andres said to me as I placed the last of the hot rocks into the pit in the middle of the sweat lodge “You can have a seat with the others now, I’ll take it from here.”

The ritual always started with a respectful but informal air. Participants filed in and softly exchanged greetings and pleasantries as they took their seats around the circular clay enclosure. Andres always began the proceedings at dusk, going in and out of the lodge multiple times to prep for his work and properly calibrate what was to come before the sun fully set. While at Huehue I had assumed this starting time was the norm for sweats, however in subsequent experiences and in my readings on the subject I discovered that this was Andres’ personal preferences and, I would go so far to say, his innovation. The disorientation and fear that was naturally evoked by the near pitch-black conditions of the sweat experience was softened by the gentle transition from the poetic sunset light. Given Andres’ background in theater I suspect he was keenly aware of the impact of lighting on mood, and that this feature of his ritual was no accident.

Once fully enveloped by darkness, the soft chatter naturally petered out until only Andre’s shuffling around us could be heard. Before long the shuffling ceased, replaced by the rhythmic shaking of Andres’ rattle accompanied by the haunting beauty of his medicine songs and the occasional hiss of steam produced by the spritzing of the hot rocks with fragrant herb water. With the entrance flap now closed the intense heat emanating from the floor before us began to rise and flood the domed room and the senses, feeling at once soothing and alarming. My body entered a state of deep relaxation as the rock’s hot vapors seemed to penetrate deep into my pores and muscles while cleansing, and cooling, sweat began to drip from head to toe. My mind, however, was keenly aware that this was the hottest condition I had ever experienced, and Andres had warned me that I may not be able to bear the full brunt of it. He had likewise communicated that there was no shame in stepping outside if necessary, though he challenged me to stay in as long as possible not only to get the full effect of the sweat but to keep disruptions of the ritual to a minimum.  Perhaps because Andres was going easy on me as a newbie, in the dozen or so sweats I participated in at Huewei I was never overwhelmed by the heat and managed to stay seated inside the lodge through the conclusion of each ceremony.

I found, in fact, that duality, such as the aforementioned experience of deep relaxation and heightened anxiety, was actually a significant feature of the sweat experience. There was informality coexisting with formality, personal warmth and comradery coexisting with profound solitude, womb-like security coexisting with vast unending darkness, earth-bound groundedness coexisting with dream like flights, and so on. And I suspect that it is the spanning, and bridging, of these poles that accounts for at least some of the tradition’s impact on body, mind, and spirit. Whatever the reasons, the sweat lodge experience consistently had a positive, even at times profound, impact on me. No matter my mood going in, I almost always left feeling good, even euphoric on occasion. I noticed, as well, my dreams were more pleasant and vivid following one or two sweats. 

I wondered at the time if the sweat lodge represented a kind of “consciousness technology” that could have a broadly positive impact if more widely used in society. When I got more involved years later with my brothers and sisters on the streets, I recalled my Huehue experience and started thinking more seriously about trying to incorporate sweats, or some variant of it, into the local support options. It could at the very least provide much-needed and all too rare solace space for those without access to private and personal shelter. And if my obviously small sample size of experience was an indicator of the deeper healing potential of the sweat lodge, there could be more profound implications of a proliferation of the “technology.” 

There are multiple challenges to determining the extent of, and getting to the heart of, the sweat lodge’s effectiveness. Assessing what the core elements of the experience are, for one, is not easy given how interwoven the objective and subjective are in the sweat experience. If I go into a sweat, for example, at least somewhat believing in the power and efficacy of sweat lodges (as was generally true for me at Huehue), how much of my belief going in determined its impact on me? And what of the cultural components? The use of extreme heat for social and personal benefit has expression in multiple cultures, and trance techniques such as the prolonged use of rhythm via rattles, drums, or other such instruments, are likewise universal psycho-spiritual practices. However Andres’ ritual had multiple components with indigenous origins, such as praying to the four directions, and this is no doubt the norm given that the sweat lodge is, by and large, a practice with deep Native American roots. Does belief in these spiritual components likewise impact the sweat’s efficacy, and is there an even greater benefit to those who have cultural roots in the ideology? 

To be quite honest, I don’t believe it is truly possible to do a comprehensive and objective analysis of the nature and efficacy of the sweat lodge experience IN TOTALITY precisely because belief and cultural identity are themselves so hard to pin down, and so intertwined into the sweat lodge experience. There are also elements of personal creativity (like Andres’ dusk component) that factor into the expression and efficacy of the sweat lodge experience. Another way to put this is that the sweat lodge experience is both a science and an art. We can break down, to a degree, the nature and efficacy of a sweat’s “scientific” components (intense heat, shared communal experience, prolonged sensory deprivation, trance-inducing rhythms, etc), but the subjective / creative aspects, such as prayer and song, will likely remain as elusive and challenging to analyze as the beauty of a Cezanne painting.

With that caveat in mind, what can be determined about the “scientific” aspects of the sweat lodge? The most obvious and significant element is, of course extreme heat, specifically in a communal setting, so that’s a good place to start an analysis. Given its ubiquity across cultures, one can fairly easily surmise that there is at least social, and likely personal / therapeutic, value to a shared heat experience. And there is hard data to validate this assumption.

Note: unless otherwise indicated, the participants in the various referenced studies spanned the demographic spectrum in terms of age, race, gender, etc.

The science of communal heat baths

It is known by many names around the world. In Russia it is called a “banya,” in Jewish culture it is know as a “schvitz,” Islamic cultures have the “hammam,” and of course the Finns are famous for their “sauna,” a term which has become broadly associated with heat baths in English speaking countries. Though there are slight variants to the practice, the core experience remains the same: participants strip down to culturally acceptable basics (sometimes complete nudity, though generally a towel, robe, or some other article of clothing covers up the sexual organs) and enter a relatively small room filled with intense heat, which can be either dry or humid. The social atmosphere can range from quiet and contemplative to boisterous and bawdy. 

Physiological Effects

In terms of the pure physiological impact, there is evidence to suggest there may be significant health benefits to heat baths. In 2005, a study led by licensed psychologist Stephen A. Colmant noted that the increased body temperature (from the normal 98.6 range to between 102 degrees and 106 degrees) induced by saunas led to a host of physiological benefits. In a subsequent study published in 2009 titled “Crying for a Vision: The Native American Sweat Lodge Ceremony as Therapeutic Intervention,” researcher Michael Tlanusta Garrett et al. summarized Colmant’s findings as follows:

The sauna or sweat lodge…promotes healthier skin, aids in eliminating toxins, enhances immunity, and promotes deeper sleep, pain relief, and muscle relaxation. Neurologically, sweating from these practices activates the sympathetic nervous system and stimulates the hormonal system.

In addition, sweating removes excess salt, which creates a benefit for those with mild hypertension. Sweating also flushes toxic metals such as copper, lead, and mercury from the body, while dilating the capillaries, increas­ing blood flow to the skin, and relieving stiffness and soreness.

Psychological effects

A handful of studies have also suggested that sweat baths could be a boon to traditional psycho-therapeutic treatments. In a subsequent 2006 report, Colmant conducted a study of 85 college students wherein half of the students participated in group counseling sessions in a traditional office setting, while the others participated in group counseling sessions in a sauna. Those students whose sessions were conducted in the sauna showed a range of improved results, as measured by a variety of industry-standard indicators, over those in the non-sauna setting. Specifically, as compared to their peers in the office setting, those in the sweat therapy group:

• Indicated they were more receptive to therapeutic practices

• Considered their sessions more useful

• Showed up more often to therapy sessions

• Had lower dropout rates

• Had more physical and mental energy

Trance and healing

Since rhythmic sound in various forms (rattles, reeds, singing, etc), sensory deprivation in the form of extreme darkness, and fasting are staples of the sweat lodge experience (Andres had me fast on sweat lodge days), and all three experiences are noted to trigger and / or facilitate entrance into a trance state, I thought it might be valuable to research the efficacy of the trance experience in regard to improving physical and / or psychological health. One question I was hoping to gain some clarity around was whether or not the trance state has psychotherapeutic benefit outside of cultural context. The answer is, as I suspected, complicated. 

In a 2017 article in Cognitive Science & Neuroscience titled “Altered modes of consciousness, hemispheric laterality, and systemic psychobiology,” the authors Pierre Flor-Henry, Yakov Shapiro, and Corine Sombrun conducted a comprehensive neurophysiological study of a Mongolian shaman. They concluded, firstly, that the trance state is not pathological, and secondly that shifts in brain hemispheric activity from left-dominant (“theoretical” region) to right dominant (evolutionarily older region) during the trance state may:

help transcend the established left hemisphere “theoretical” constructs informed by our developmental and cultural interactions, and allow for a novel, gestalt experience of physical and social reality leading to qualitatively different awareness of the problem under consideration 

Indicating strongly therapeutic potential for the trance state. They did, however, also offer the following cautionary conclusion: 

Our model suggests that subjective conscious experience in ordinary and altered domains, and the brain mechanisms that give rise to them, cannot be understood in isolation from each other and their larger social and cultural contexts. Both brain scientists and clinicians as well as cultural anthropologists have to resist the temptation of reductionist linear models, whether brain, mind or society based. To understand the individual, we must integrate the fluid dynamic of objective third- person data with subjective systems of meaning and the cultural context that gives rise to them. In this view, individual conscious processes are inseparable from their intersubjective milieu and relational, social, and cultural contexts 

Meaning, as I speculated earlier, it’s dang-near impossible to separate out the social context from the trance component of the sweat lodge experience. A different study, however, offered a somewhat contradictory conclusion. In their article “An assessment of contextual mediation in trance states of shamanic journeys” published in the July 1997 edition of Perceptual and Motor Skills, authors James Houran, Rense Lange, and Michelle Christ-Houran studied 30 experiences of shamanic journeys and concluded that the trance state actually suppressed contextual effects, meaning there is a shift in consciousness experienced in the trance state that is at least somewhat independent of culture, preconceived beliefs, etc. 

Ultimately I’d say the research confirms my suspicions that there is psycho-spiritual benefit to the trance component of the sweat regardless of ones relationship to the spiritual modality and cultural background of those conducting the sweat. However, there is likely added benefit to having a strong cultural and ideological connection with the ritual. 

THE SWEAT LODGE

Note: all studies referenced followed strict ethical guidelines that met or exceeded Goddard’s IRB standards. 

The complexities and difficulties of assessing the efficacy of the sweat lodge experience on mind and body not withstanding, there are a handful of studies that do offer scientific validation of their benefits. 

General results

In “The Impact of the Sweat Lodge Ceremony on Dimensions of Well-Being,” the authors Jeannette Wagemakers Schiff, Ph.D. and Kerrie Moore, M.S.W. used two primary indexes to measure physical, mental, and spiritual well-being: the SF-36 index and the “Heroic Myth Index” (HMI). The research, conducted on 42 Native and non-Native participants, showed no changes to physical health, however the participants had largely self-reported as being in good or excellent health prior to the ceremonies, so this result is not surprising, or significant, under the circumstances. However there were measurable improvements to spiritual and emotional well-being from the sweat lodge experience, creating “a positive change in participants’ self-reported sense of connection to life.” 

Trauma

In “The Sweat Lodge Ceremony: A Healing Intervention for Intergenerational Trauma and Substance Use,” conducted on 24 participants who self-described as Indigenous, authors Teresa Naseba Marsh, David C. Marsh, et al., wanted to assess the impact of sweat lodge ceremonies on addiction and various forms of intergenerational trauma including colonization. They used what they refer to as a “qualitative, Indigenous decolonizing methodology” called the “two eyed seeing” approach. Many of the participants reported relief from the spiritual, emotional, and physical pain associated with their substance abuse and intergenerational trauma. They also reported that the sweat lodge experience “allowed a deep connection among the participants to themselves and others,” echoing results from other studies.

CONCLUSION

There are, as frequently noted, serious challenges to drawing any objective conclusions regarding the efficacy of the sweat lodge on physical and psycho-spiritual wellbeing. However those studies that have attempted to do so, though limited in size and scope, have consistently reported positive results across a demographically diverse population, using a variety of methodologies. The studies showed that the isolated components of the experiences, specifically intense heat in a communal setting and trance, themselves have therapeutic value, as does the sweat lodge experience in totality. These results give me hope that expanding the opportunity for marginalized and traumatized populations to participate in sweat lodge ceremonies, or some variant of them, could be a welcomed service and prove beneficial in a variety of ways.

One cautionary note: the intense heat experienced in sweat baths and sweat lodges could put certain populations at risk, including and especially those wrestling with substance issues. Any service aimed at, or including, this high-risk population would need to follow strict protocols and be carefully monitored by healthcare professionals.  

ANSWERING THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION

Which is, of course…what happened with Luna? I am happy to report that my hunch proved wise and taking off to Mexico had the desired effect. In addition to making a clean break with her previous beau, Luna came to visit me in Mexico, initiating a lovely relationship that lasted many years. While the romance eventually ran its course, she and I remain very close to this day. I suspect we may have been aided and abetted a bit by a sprinkling or two of Huehue pixie dust, though that remains unsubstantiated by empirical data. 

…

Biblography

Eason, A., Colmant, S., & Winterowd, C. (2009). Sweat Therapy Theory, Practice, and Efficacy. Journal of Experiential Education, 32(2), 121-136

Garrett, M. T., Torres-Rivera, E., Brubaker, M., Portman, T. A., Brotherton, D., West-Olatunji, C., . . . Grayshield, L. (2011). Crying for a Vision: The Native American Sweat Lodge Ceremony as Therapeutic Intervention. Journal of Counseling & Development, 89, 318-326

Schiff. (2006). The Impact of the Sweat Lodge Ceremony on Dimensions of Well-being. American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 13(3), 48-69. doi:10.5820/aian.1303.2006.48

Marsh, T. N., Marsh, D. C., Ozawagosh, J., & Ozawagosh, F. (2018). The Sweat Lodge Ceremony: A Healing Intervention for Intergenerational Trauma and Substance Use. International Indigenous Policy Journal, 9(2). doi:10.18584/iipj.2018.9.2.2

Flor-Henry, P., Shapiro, Y., & Sombrun, C. (2017). Brain changes during a shamanic trance: Altered modes of consciousness, hemispheric laterality, and systemic psychobiology. Cogent Psychology,4(1). doi:10.1080/23311908.2017.1313522

Houran, J. (1997). An Assessment Of Contextual Mediation In Trance States Of Shamanic Journeys. Perceptual and Motor Skills,85(5), 59. doi:10.2466/pms.85.5.59-65