"Can/should I sit in ceremony while I'm bleeding?" is a question many women are curious about. And like most things, particularly in these spaces, the answer isn't black and white. Also, like most things in this space, my belief is that ultimately the decision comes down to you and what your own intuition tells you. Regardless, understanding various aspects of this question is helpful... So here are a few perspectives gathered from both my own hands-on experience with medicines in different stages of my cycle, as well as what I have learnt from others with regards to this topic.

While bleeding, we are more sensitive in general... So we are likely to be more sensitive to medicines.

While bleeding, our sensitivities are heightened - physically, emotionally and spiritually. It isn't uncommon for a woman giving space and time to her bleed to feel so close to the other side, so raw in the truth of her emotion, so clear in her capacity to see through illusion, so magical in her manifestation abilities... that the idea of adding psychedelic medicine is just too much. Of course, every woman is different, every month is different, and every medicine is different. So whether or not working with medicine while you're bleeding will be too much for you, or perhaps just not rightly timed, is truly a question for you to ask yourself. Do keep in mind that if you're new to medicines, and particularly if you tend more towards the sensitive side in general, it could be a good idea to lower the dose a little if you're bleeding and see how you go. Sometimes, space holders want you to let them know if you're bleeding - both for this reason, and the reason discussed below.

You are very energetically potent and magical during your bleed... So much so, that it can influence the energy of the entire ceremony space.

During and just before our bleed, we are closer to the 'other side'. The veil is thin as our portal widens and the universe pours through us. It is for this reason that some space holders and shamans will either not allow a woman to sit during her bleed, or will seat them in a particular space in the circle - such as further away from the altar - so as to mitigate her powerful energy disrupting the anchoring of the space. I think sometimes we can be quick to judge certain decisions like this as "patriarchal" and bigoted - and sure, maybe sometimes they are - but other times, for the betterment of the whole space, you might be asked not to sit, or to sit somewhere in particular - not because you are less in any way while you're bleeding... but because you're powerful.

My personal experience with medicine and bleeding:

Overall, I don't have a strong 'yes' or 'no' to working with medicines while I'm bleeding. My pattern is that I will tend not to book a ceremony with strong medicines like Aya, Peyote etc. if I know I will be bleeding, but if a certain date and moment feels really aligned to sit, I will sit. I have had one experience of sitting on the second and most intense day of my moon, which was by far the most I have ever purged in any ceremony. I purged so hard for so long I pushed out my moon cup full of blood. It was messy, but hey, that's ceremony. It was a strong one in general, with almost everyone purging a lot - so perhaps I would have been the same, even if I wasn't bleeding. It's hard for me, at least at the moment, to put my finger on my own particular patterns with bleeding and sitting, especially because in general I have felt intuitively to not really do it.

Usually, if I'm micro-dosing mushrooms, I naturally don't feel to take the medicine on the first couple days of my bleed, and also in the days leading up, as I usually feel more than sensitive enough already. Personally, I also don't really feel called to smoke Ganja while bleeding, and it is also rare for me to sit with Hapé on the first days of my bleed. During dieta with non-psychotropic plants, my experience has been that the plants meet me in the depths that I am naturally in in that phase of my cycle. I have loved bleeding while in dieta because I have felt that my extra-sensitivity during that time has aided my capacity to feel and connect with the plant.

I hope these insights have been helpful for you in some way. Sister, you are a powerful, sensitive and far-sighted Goddess while bleeding, medicine or no medicine. Listen to yourself and trust your instincts!

Lots of Love,

Emma