I remember being on the linoleum tile floor of a Thai restaurant in LA only hours after I had my copper IUD put in.
The entire restaurant had a constant smell of spring rolls wafting through it. I could hear a medium-sized rush of traffic in the main restaurant. I hobbled my way over to a gas station across the street and tried to get as much Advil as they had. Taking just enough so that it wouldn’t be dangerous for me, I proceeded to feel level 10 contraction pain in the backseat of a rental car.
I was driven to a colleague’s girlfriend, who thankfully had leftover prescription Tylenol that I could bum off her. That was the only way I could get to sleep that night and by some miracle, I was okay in the morning.
It’s hard to remember the exact pain level I felt, but I definitely knew that going to the emergency room was a definite possibility in my mind. I don’t have a daughter at this point in my life but, if I did, I would tell her these stories with a weary shake at my head, exclaiming that this is just one of a dozen horror stories of menstruating across the lifespan.
While I’m not here to whistleblow on the birth control industry, I am here to explain what it can be like to operate in this world as a woman. I have no choice but to care about my health.
Silent Struggles
Over 90% of women experience premenstrual symptoms (PMS), including bloating, headaches, and mood swings. While some symptoms are mild, others can disrupt daily life. And that’s only the beginning of the health challenges unique to women.
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a condition that affects six million people worldwide, and while it causes extreme mood shifts that are said to be correlated to hormonal change, the exact cause of this condition remains unclear.
PMDD, a severe form of PMS, affects about one in 12 women today, up from one in 20 just a few years ago. It brings intense mood swings, depression, anxiety, and physical symptoms that can make everyday life unbearable.
Ovarian Cysts
I have a girlfriend who angered her chiropractor (slash boyfriend at one point) because she didn’t tell him she was suffering from ovarian cysts. These fluid-filled sacs on the ovaries are common in women of reproductive age. Many cysts are harmless, but some can cause significant pain and complications, and for her, they were troublesome to hear about and undoubtedly difficult to endure.
Like many women’s health issues, ovarian cysts are often overlooked or misdiagnosed, leaving many to suffer needlessly.
Endometriosis
Endometriosis is a painful condition where tissue similar to the uterine lining grows outside of the uterus. This affects approximately 10% of women globally. Endometriosis is the cause of chronic pain, heavy periods, and infertility at times. Many women suffer without proper diagnosis and can endure years of pain before receiving appropriate treatment.
With many women facing years of pain before receiving a proper diagnosis, endometriosis is a stark example of how women’s health issues are often minimized or ignored.
The List Goes On
Women’s healthcare faces not only political challenges but also a widespread lack of awareness. From the complexity of menstrual cycles to the stigmas surrounding menstruation, we must work to understand these experiences and ensure proper care and support.
Looking For Answers
A few years ago, I wanted to end the mystery. I set up an online conference in the era of COVID, simply titled Psychedelics for Women’s Health. Afterward, I spoke to one of the speakers and one of the most approachable experts I’ve met on women’s health one-on-one.
I asked Dr. Julie Freeman how she balances her hormones: “The endocrine system is such a delicate balance of hormones that can affect everything from your sleep cycle to your emotional health. Managing this system naturally through diet and lifestyle changes, alongside mindfulness practices, can be more effective than some pharmaceuticals.”
So you are what you eat and we should focus on our gut? “People don’t often realize how much gut health impacts mental well-being. In cases of anxiety or PMDD, I always start by looking at what’s happening in the digestive system,” she added.
While diet and mindfulness play an essential role in regulating hormones, an increasing body of research is exploring psychedelics as a potential treatment for conditions like PMDD and menstrual pain. This brings us to the discussion of how psychedelics might offer unique pathways to healing.
The Psychedelic Remix
I spoke to another panelist, Dr. Cresencia Felty, whose holistic approach stood out to me. I asked her if gut health is something you should prioritize as the first line of defense. She responded, “Healing chronic illness requires more than just treating symptoms. We need to look at toxins, diet, lifestyle, emotions, and unresolved trauma to truly uncover the root causes of disease.”
When we get to the topic of psychedelics, she advises me: “Psychedelics, when used with intention and proper guidance, offer us a way to access deep layers of the psyche and heal trauma that’s often unreachable by traditional methods.”
This perspective aligns with what many experts in women’s health are now exploring: how unresolved trauma and imbalances in gut health can exacerbate menstrual issues like PMDD and chronic pain. By addressing these root causes, psychedelic therapy may hold the key to long-term healing.
Traditional Remedies: Learning from the Yawanawá
When I spoke with the Yawanawá princess, Kenewma, she explained that her tradition involves using plants to help with fertility and balance within a woman’s body.
I met Kenewma, a legendary matriarch in Amazonian ayahuasca retreats, shortly after she became a mother. Before the ceremony, I used Google Translate to prepare for our conversation, as she wasn’t confident in English, and I don’t speak Portuguese. Despite the language barrier, she graciously shared the power of the plants they have in their backyard—plants with healing abilities that we in the West often overlook.
She spoke to me about all the different plants they literally have in their backyard. Their spiritual leaders have knowledge and access to many more psychedelics that we in the Western World simply don’t know about. She has relied on plants to help her with everything from rotating the baby in her stomach to decreasing pregnancy pain. She says, “Remedies [that] remain unknown to the Western world … are powerful.”
She also talked about ayahuasca’s significance for women: “Ayahuasca teaches us respect and harmony with our bodies. For women, it has a special power, helping us reconnect with our cycles, heal reproductive issues, and even assist with childbirth. These medicines are sacred, and they teach us how to live in balance with our health and the Earth.”
My Psychedelic Awakening
Soon after speaking with her, I collaborated with a very new fixture in the Vancouver business scene: Field Trip Health. Field Trip Health was a ketamine clinic in Vancouver for a few years that enticed many and appealed to me. Amidst the warnings of ketamine addiction and knowing that it is not a classic psychedelic (it is a dissociative), I personally know ketamine to be a helpful, seemingly psychedelic aid to alleviate period pain for me. In addition, I think it makes me a great dancer.
Period pain for me used to be so excruciating in high school (when I started The Pill) that I had to stay home from school and simply bite the bullet for day one of my flow: with my head in the toilet and a hot water bottle on repeat. Naturally, I felt like I was existing in the Middle Ages, shuddering all my windows and doors to hide myself as an outcast who would bleed for seven days and not die.
As I explored my psychedelic journey, I found that substances like ketamine and LSD offered relief from my period pain, acting as powerful tools for both physical comfort and emotional release. While not a long-term solution, microdosing LSD has helped me manage debilitating symptoms, offering a glimpse into the potential of psychedelics for menstrual health.
Expanding My Options
During my collaboration in putting on events with Field Trip Health, I also spoke with a friend of mine who once sat on the board of MAPS Canada, the foremost nonprofit research organization for psychedelic-assisted therapy and research in Canada. I knew he was operating Quantified Citizen, a platform to showcase and collect data for citizen science. I knew he was responsible for connecting the dots to conduct the largest microdosing study ever in collaboration with well-known people like Paul Stamets.
When asked what I had been up to since graduating from the University of British Columbia with my psychology degree, I said that I had graduated from being a research assistant to being more of a grassroots psychedelic educator and harm reduction event organizer. I have perpetually defined myself by working in the gray rather than the black and white.
He proposed that I help bring my community to Psychedelic Salons to assist with data collection for a study of my choosing. In talking with the team at QC, I got into a long conversation about my personal experiences and observations on the effects of psychedelics on PMS and PMDD. I had just completed the Psychedelics for Women’s Health online event, and they were on board.
Code Red
Code Red is a community-led study hosted by Quantified Citizen to track the menstrual cycle and understand the effects of substances like ketamine, MDMA, and classic psychedelics on PMS and PMDD. Participants simply download the app and provide data for six minutes per session, 12 minutes per month, up to three months.
We’ve received data from over a thousand women, and we hope to get more information on our observational and naturalistic study type.
We are investigating the potential effects of ketamine, MDMA, or classic psychedelics on menstrual cycle-related and PMDD symptoms. We’ll also ask about a range of substances like alcohol, coffee, exercise, and meditation.
After all, I’d like to echo what Dr. Cresencia Felty said in my conversation with her: “The future of medicine will include psychedelics as a mainstream treatment for mental health, but it will be essential to combine this with other holistic approaches to achieve full-body healing.”
We aim to identify patterns and data that may help inform future therapies and treatments. If you are menstruating and above the age of 18, I would love for you to take part in the study. We will benefit folks who menstruate worldwide and empower people with in-depth knowledge of menstrual health.
Healing Cycle Trauma
My journey toward understanding menstrual health has shown me the immense value of both ancient wisdom and modern psychedelics. Whether through traditional plant remedies or emerging therapies like ketamine, there’s great potential in reconnecting with our bodies and healing the cycles that shape our lives. Together, these approaches could offer new hope for those suffering from menstrual health issues.
Acknowledging and working with my body’s natural cycles has been a journey of self-discovery. Psychedelics have played a big part in my healing, and I know that if you take control of your health with the right tools, you will be much more informed about what’s going on under the hood for you. Let’s see if integrating natural remedies and psychedelics can benefit us like they are benefiting wisdom keepers on the other side of the world.
My journey toward understanding menstrual health has revealed the immense value of both ancient wisdom and modern psychedelics. By embracing these tools, we can reconnect with our bodies and begin to heal. If you’re suffering from menstrual issues, know that solutions—both traditional and modern—are within reach.
I would love for you to download Code Red and share your information to help us continue our research and bring more awareness, education, and solutions to women around the world.
