Harnessing the Power of Microdosing for Women's Health and Wellness

Alara Sage (00:00.594) Hello, hello, and welcome to another episode of the Ecstatic Woman podcast, where we activate and inspire women in their power, in their authenticity, and in their bliss. I'm your host, Laura Sage, and my fellow ecstatics, perhaps you've heard of microdosing. Perhaps you've heard of these beautiful plant medicines and really how we can work with them. Leslie Draffin (00:10.724) in their office. Leslie Draffin (00:23.203) ...of the beautiful plant medicine... Alara Sage (00:28.274) to evolve ourselves, to transform trauma, transform limiting beliefs, and really just up level. But how is it relative specifically perhaps to the ecstatic woman that you are, to your woman, your feminine, your primordial femme, your womb? How can you use these beautiful medicines as a woman? We're going to take it into this delicious conversation today. Leslie Draffin (00:54.082) We're going to take it into this delicious conversation today. Alara Sage (00:57.682) with our wonderful and powerful guest, Leslie Draphin, who is a somatic psychedelic guide and sensual embodiment coach focused on helping women embrace their bodies. Sex and psychedelics. Leslie, welcome, welcome. So just in case some of the audience members aren't really familiar with the term microdosing, Leslie Draffin (01:02.389) Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here. Alara Sage (01:25.714) What is that terminology? How do you define that? Leslie Draffin (01:29.027) Yeah, so microdosing is when you take a really small amount of a psychedelic substance most of the time that has to do with magic mushrooms. And it's such a small dose that you're not tripping, you're not hallucinating, you're not intoxicated, but you're still able to reap a lot of benefits from this sacred medicine, like you said. And what are some of the benefits from microdosing? You know, some of the benefits that we're really seeing not only in my own clients, but when we look at Alara Sage (01:42.66) And what are some of these benefits from microdosing? Leslie Draffin (01:58.883) the citizen scientists that are all around the world, things like improved mood. It's a huge one. Things like the ability to focus, more creativity, more patience. Parents who I work with are loving the fact that they can feel a lot more patience and presence with their kids. And what I have noticed really, which is so fascinating, is that it's improving cramps, helping cramps go away with clients that I'm working with, lessening mood swings. Alara Sage (02:03.986) Hmm. Alara Sage (02:28.786) That is so beautiful. I have so many things I want to touch on there because. Leslie Draffin (02:29.091) so problematic for some folks, especially in the pre -PMS stage of life. And then I just really feel that it brings us back home to ourselves and allows us to connect with this idea of oneness, not only with who we are, but with the universe and with everyone around us. Alara Sage (02:54.162) When Leslie and I were first connecting to this, we were really, Leslie brought through this beautiful topic of using this medicine in our cycles as women, which really drew me in, because I'd never heard of that. And I was like, yes, yes, yes, let's dive into that. Simultaneously, we wanted to make room for wherever we wanted to go in this conversation. And I've spoken many times of the importance of coming back to our cyclical selves, not just as women. Leslie Draffin (03:08.067) Yes, yes, yes, let's dive into that. Leslie Draffin (03:13.667) I've spoken many times of the importance of coming back to our cyclical self, not just as women in our cycles, in our glee, but that we are women, the feminine is cyclical in her nature, first. Alara Sage (03:22.866) in our cycles, in our bleed, but that we are women. The feminine is cyclical in her nature. Birth creation is cyclical in its nature. And I always love to point to Mother Gaia because, you know, even in parts of the world that I have lived where there's not necessarily four seasons, there's still seasons. You know, there still is movement. There still are cycles to the seasons, cycles to... Leslie Draffin (03:35.202) and I always got to work with Mother Daya because you know even in parts of the world that I have lived where there's not necessarily four seasons, there's still seasons. You know there still is movement. There still are cycles to seasons, cycles to seasons. Alara Sage (03:51.602) life and largely, you know, humans have just been walking up the river against all of this movement against the flow of the feminine. And so to me, this is a really delicious conversation about coming back into union with that those cycles. And what I find really important, what you mentioned about easing cramps and easing moods and PMS is. You know, the truth of it is, is that yes, you know, that first day of our cycle, you know, there, our body is literally cramping and releasing that lining. But, and however, the majority of women's symptoms that are PMS and even during menstruation are really not truth. I mean, they're experiencing it. Their experience is valid. But what I mean by it's not truth is that's not. Leslie Draffin (04:33.154) The majority of women's symptoms of that are PMS and during the... Alara Sage (04:46.738) actually what needs to happen when we are menstruating, when we're in our bleed, when we have released a lot of trauma, emotional energies, sexual distortion, shame out of our sexual energy, out of our womb, out of our sacral chakra. Wow. Like the shift in my own menstruation was very radical. And so let's. Leslie Draffin (05:10.658) You know, when I first started my journey as a coach, it was as a menstrual cycle coach and a menstrual cycle educator. And so I naturally, when I began working with psychedelics, was already living cyclically. And so I had this aha moment one day after meditating with the mushrooms. And I was like, OK. Alara Sage (05:14.098) Let's dive into this a little bit as far as how does the microdosing help with that. Alara Sage (05:35.026) you Leslie Draffin (05:39.97) If everything in my life improves based on my cyclical self then the schedule to which I take these mushrooms will absolutely impact my cycle and vice versa and so I started to play around with you know the dose and and the frequency of how someone would microdose in sync with their cycle and what I really found is that it like all things again that you you're beautifully putting, like all things that are impacted by our cyclical nature. The medicine really seems to, in the first half of your cycle, improve your mood and your creativity and your focus. And in the second half, when we know cyclical challenges like pain and PMS and mood swings come up, also speak to those things. And I speak a lot about this in a very intentional way. I think you have to have the intention around communing with these sacred medicines. Alara Sage (06:23.538) you Leslie Draffin (06:37.792) But when your intention is to connect with your cycle or improve your cyclical challenges or cyclical problems, and you reach for an ally like fungi, like these psilocybin mushrooms, I really have found that the method that I created is about 95 % effective at helping women not only have better periods, but just have a better life. Alara Sage (06:44.274) you Alara Sage (07:00.498) Hmm. I love how you speak to the communion side of it because it is communion and One of the things that I have learned time and time again is you know that with power comes great responsibility It's a it's a quote from spider -man Leslie Draffin (07:09.696) you Alara Sage (07:20.786) And you know, it's a powerful medicine. And so when we are intentional with it, and when we are working at it in communion with this power, right, just very much like what we can, what's available to us, as we learn to work in communion with Mother Gaia and her cycles and her rhythm and her heartbeat, when we learn to work. just in communion with our bodies, right? And our wombs and our sexual energy, all of this is about communion and having that relationship. And we are co -creating this together. And that is very beautiful from my perspective of bringing that into the conversation of, you're not just taking this medicine, you're not just using it, you're in communion with it. And the more that you can really understand that and, forever that relationship, the more you can really hear the conversation. Because communion is all about communication, isn't it? So just as much as we want to communicate to the plant our intentions, we also want to be open to listening to the plant of how it can assist us. Leslie Draffin (08:39.07) 100%. And I think that that's really just part of learning to live in sync with your female bodies. Communion is such a key aspect of learning to work together with your hormones or working together with what your womb wants to tell you. And I believe that these fungi teachers, this fungi medicine too, it's a sentient being that when we start to talk to it and allow it to speak back to us, That's truly when that relationship forms and that's when the most benefits happen because you see folks online talking a lot, a lot about this. We're in a psychedelic Renaissance and a lot of times what I'm noticing is very bro talk very much like biohack your life by microdosing mushrooms. And it's like, yes. And the way that I believe we need to meet these teachers is with respect and with gratitude, especially because of the indigenous people that have held these. Alara Sage (09:25.234) you Leslie Draffin (09:36.989) practices for millennia. And unfortunately, because of colonialism, we're not always allowed to practice their chosen religious, a lot of times, practices. And so for me, as a white woman doing this work, it's so important for me to meet it with respect, meet it with reciprocity, and to make sure that the people that I speak to hear that from me and the clients I work with also adopt those similar beliefs. Alara Sage (10:04.05) Yeah, that's really very, very important. And when we do that, it really draws on the wisdom of the beings, of the indigenous and the beings that have come before us and in our lineage and the many generations that have been using these medicines in humanity, right? I want to go back to the cycle part of it a little bit as far as what do you notice? Is there a part of the cycle where you mentioned the creativity is at the beginning? And then is the, so walk us through as far as with how the mushrooms open up the cycle. Is there a part of creativity? Is there trauma that generally tends to you find be opened up during that phase or does that come into a different phase? Where is the trauma and then? Leslie Draffin (10:55.455) Hmm. Alara Sage (11:00.05) What happens in that cycle is you use the medicine. How does that trauma transform? Leslie Draffin (11:06.207) Yeah. Well, first, let me explain the cyclical microdosing method. And I think once we explain that, it'll definitely help to answer the question too. So the way that I created this protocol is to separate the cycle into the first and second halves. And so if you are familiar with the inter -seasons idea around the cycle, where spring and summer are your follicular and ovulatory phases and fall and winter are your luteal and your menstrual phase, what I took is a look at those two four separate seasons, spring and summer going together, fall and winter going together. And then I looked at two of the very popular microdosing protocols out there, the Fadiman and the Stamets Protocol, and said, in the first half of your cycle, spring and summer, when oftentimes the cyclical challenges are not that extreme, we will sit with medicine one day on, two days off. Excuse me. In the second half of the cycle in fall and winter when those cyclical challenges are often more present, we would sit with medicine three days on and two days off. And so it allows you more time with these teachers in the second half of your cycle and a little bit more time to integrate in the first half. Alara Sage (12:22.898) And integration is important. And I feel that often oftentimes it's not really, I mean, I think it's spoken of, but I, from my experience with plant medicine, I've watched a lot of people, you know, do their plant medicine. This is not in reference to microdosing. This is more ceremonial experiences, but they'll go and have the ceremony and then they don't really grant themselves the time space for integration. And then what? Leslie Draffin (12:25.501) Absolutely, it's so important. And having time to... Alara Sage (12:50.61) I've seen time and time again is it takes them much longer to process and integrate. Leslie Draffin (13:00.669) 100%. That's why I think there's so much goodness in this cyclical microdosing protocol, because you have days baked in that allow you that time to really process, to feel the benefits when you're not actually sitting with the medicine, which is such an important part of microdosing. Because we don't want to take this medicine daily. We don't want to ingest mushrooms daily. for a couple of different reasons. But the biggest one is exactly what you're saying, because if we do, we don't have the time and the space to notice how much it's working on ourselves and our lives. And so to answer your first question about where does the trauma come in or where am I seeing that aspect of the medicine help in the cycle, what I really have found is that when we're sitting with the medicine for three days in a row and then taking a few days off in the second phase, the second half of the cycle, Fall and winter. That's usually when we're naturally having more cyclical problems. And we may naturally feel more triggered, especially if we're processing healing on a different level, right? Like, let's say you're already in therapy and you add in this medicine work as well. It is not uncommon for the week before your period for you to feel all of your triggers, for you to feel extremely elevated and activated. for you to feel some of the worst that you're going to feel. And so what the beautiful aspect of microdosing does is it supports you through that. And this isn't a panacea. It's not a magic pill, even though microdosing, I think, is very magical. But what I say that it does is it opens the door and helps you walk through to look at some of the things that are bringing your triggers to the surface in the week before your bleed, when we know that we're tend to be more elevated. But one thing I've noticed, and this is something that goes against some teachings around psilocybin and the cycle, well, around psilocybin, is that I really love to microdose when I bleed. You know, I already see my bleed as a time when I am very much an open channel. I get all of my best ideas, it seems, when I'm bleeding. And so when I and my clients add in several days of microdosing while we're also bleeding, it's just like you're an open, Alara Sage (15:09.65) Mm -hmm. Leslie Draffin (15:20.252) book like a straight line to the divine assisted not only by this sacred medicine but the sacredness that is your bleed and your blood because I really think that being a woman itself is a psychedelic experience it's all death and rebirth just like when we are commuting with psychedelics and the cycle itself is such a death and rebirth time so you're combining three big elements being a woman being in your cycle being with this medicine together it is truly transformative. And the trauma, I think, that we can look at and we can process when we do it with support around the bleed itself for me and what I have done with my own coaches and what I've done with the people that I coach. It's just like it comes out so much more easily and it feels less shitty, honestly, to look at when you have that support. At least that's what I'm seeing right now. And then as the cycle naturally flows, you've got those days of bleeding, and then that energy goes up. And it's like, I think everybody who has a bleed gets the day or two after your bleed is over, your energy is rising, and you feel like you just threw off your coat, and it's finally spring. When you get into that phase, and your energy is so naturally high, and your energy and your mood might already be really elevated, That's another time when you can look back, because you've got so many more integration days at what you just did, the deep work you did of releasing during the blood time and the time that you sat more with medicine. You have that next few weeks to really look at that and make actionable steps to change your life, make shifts, journal, and really begin to notice how much this is shifting you. Alara Sage (17:13.906) Yeah, that is really, really beautiful. And I actually really like that you speak to it during the bleed. I also, you know, there's, there's several different things. One of the, my first experience was with yoga, uh, doing Ashtanga yoga, where they say not to, you know, do a lot of it when you're in your bleed. Um, and I'm not disagreeing or agreeing with that, but I've just had several reflections of that in the spiritual, uh, community around that time is, is kind of. off, you know, you stop a lot of the things that you're naturally doing. And when you're speaking to this, it's quite beautiful. Cause actually what I see is for one, like, just like you said, you're just this open channel, right? So you're just emphasizing that and you're in that communion with the spirit simultaneously where you're really in this open channel. And also, you know, there is a lot of magic to blood and we could even, you know, it's, it's, it's, Leslie Draffin (18:08.988) here. Alara Sage (18:11.954) It's like bloodletting, right? I mean, that is what we're doing is we're letting blood. And there is so much, I mean, for one, there's obviously a lot of creative energy, creative life force energy, regenerative energy in blood, right? And then simultaneously, there's all of this information. I've been shown many times by my higher self, the... Leslie Draffin (18:13.532) Mm -hmm. Alara Sage (18:38.45) just the amount of information and sacred geometry in the blood. And so for me, when you talk about that, what I see visually and experience in my body is, again, the communion with that information of the blood, of that creative life force energy, of that regenerative energy. And it's also the practice of... the releasing of that, you know, there's many rituals that you can do of releasing that right into Gaia, you know, bleeding into Gaia, using your blood for various different creative practices or even magic. And so to me, when you bring in the mushrooms, it just really adds more depth, more communion with that aspect of the woman, right? Cause that's what women are. That is what we get to do is we get to. Leslie Draffin (19:06.138) Yeah. Alara Sage (19:31.602) have that magic of bloodletting. Leslie Draffin (19:34.458) Yeah. And I love that you mentioned this too, because part of my practice as a witch is blood magic around my cycle specifically. And what was so fascinating last year, I did a full dose journey, right? So a full dose on psychedelics where I was tripping and hallucinating and intoxicated, which is not what happens again whenever we're taking the tiny microdoses. And my bleed started in the midst of that journey. And it was like I. I was actually in this room where I am right now. And I just like reached down and touched it and looked at it. And like in my, you know, psychedelic journey I was on, like seeing that blood very much what you're saying, very much the sacred geometry. Like I've seen it very much like feeling so connected to the primordial goddess. Um, and again, like the bloodletting, I just love that imagery because it's a release. And so are our journeys when we are intentional about. Alara Sage (20:22.418) Mmm. Mmm. Leslie Draffin (20:32.826) our psychedelic communion, either on a full or a micro dose, like so often that can also be about releasing what it is that is holding us back and those little dark things in the shadows of our subconscious that we may not even be consciously aware of. When we look at them with intention through psychedelics, we release those too. Alara Sage (20:53.746) Mm, yeah. So bringing that back, that's kind of that week before your cycle, where you could then maybe dive a little bit deeper intentionally into communicating with the spirit and the medicine and your womb. And even I get the image of your ancestors. To the women listening to this, you all have this power. Leslie Draffin (21:19.322) You all have the power. Alara Sage (21:21.81) Right? Like I always remind women, you are so freaking powerful. And I refuse to have anyone, women tell me that they can't do this because you can. And you may not feel it. You may not hear your ancestors, but I, I, you know, I will remind you that if you call upon them, they are there. If you call upon the ma, you know, she never leaves you to be honest. But when you call upon her, she reminds you of her presence. Like you have this power, my loves. And so what I'm hearing is with the medicine and leading up to the cycle is calling upon your ancestors, calling upon the wise women, calling upon whoever resonates with you. Maybe it's a spirit animal. Maybe it's a goddess. Maybe it's a deity. Call upon her and ask them to assist you. What do you need to release? What is ready? What are you holding onto that this medicine can help you literally? Let go through your cycle. Leslie Draffin (22:21.914) Yeah. I also love to play around the archetypes of the cycle when we think about ways to just boost these microdosing protocols. In the first inner spring, very much that maiden, that play, a wonderful thing to do when you're microdosing around your cycle in that phase is to go outside, is to go spend time in nature, it's to play, it's to do art, it's to have fun. And when we're in summer, which is very much mother energy, but I also see that as very sexual energy, We're doing self -pleasure. We're having sacred sex with our partners. We're feeling ourselves, literally and figuratively. And then just like you mentioned in the week before the bleed, where we are very much in our, I see that as like the wild woman archetype where we take no shit. Again, that's when we deeply look at our own shit and allow that archetype to really help hold us and embolden us so that we can, again, then turn to crone and look at that. the things were truly ready to release. And then we get to start again. So I really found when I started to pair these two things together, one, there weren't any protocols like this, because of course there aren't. And two, it just made so much sense, because I was already playing in the archetypes. I was already playing in the cyclical living and learning the language of my womb. And mushrooms are such amazing, I believe, feminine types of energy. that they connect deeply to the womb of the earth. So of course they're going to connect us to our womb and our sacred power. Alara Sage (23:56.562) Yes, yes, yes, yes, absolutely. And so bringing it really back, I love the archetypes and I love all of that is just really beautiful. And actually before I bring it back, I just wanna say again to the audience that we get to be all of it. And when we allow ourselves again, that cyclical nature, right? Like you don't have to be the maiden all the time and you don't have to necessarily be the wise woman or wild woman all the time. And you don't have to be, you know, like we get to shift and change and move. And that is the feminine. She's, she's rarely, you know, standing still. She's constantly shifting and moving, you know, and, and allowing ourselves that process. through the cycles as well as the evolution of our life, right? Because we also go through those cycles in the bigger picture of the evolution of ourselves as a woman, right? And I would imagine this is also very powerful. I don't want to get too much into it, but I would imagine it's very powerful for women also going through perimenopause into menopause and the reclamation of their wise woman, the initiation into the elder. Leslie Draffin (25:10.615) Yeah, I think that we are seeing so many people of those ages turn to psychedelics because they want to step into this new phase of life, but also look back at all the trauma that they have refused to look at for the whole of their lives. That's one of the most fast growing populations of people spending time with this medicine is those 50 and over. Alara Sage (25:35.57) It's really beautiful. I love that. Because yeah, we need those elders, you know, like I want those wise women in their power and owning it and you're not shriveling away, but like a radiating with the fountain of youth that is the Shakti. I was going to ask just to be really specific. So I know that, you know, psychedelics can really. Leslie Draffin (25:37.078) Mm -hmm. Yeah. We do. Alara Sage (26:01.938) just help with such a wide variety of things. But in this conversation individually with the women, with their cycles, and kind of with your work, why don't you just go ahead and really name off some specified issues, problems, things that this can really address. Leslie Draffin (26:21.047) Yeah, so the things that I have either witnessed in myself and my clients or heard about from other women who are speaking online about their own psychedelic experiences, we're looking at things like decreased pain, most likely because psilocybin, we believe, is anti -inflammatory. We're looking at improved mood. We're looking at more stable mood over time. We're looking at benefits like making you feel more present. The numbing out that our society tends to do when we feel uncomfortable around our feelings, that seems to lessen. And maybe you still choose to numb out in your own coping mechanisms and coping methods, but the awareness is certainly there. I've seen people have better sex, me included, because of the way that it allows you to speak, I think, to your own boundaries and your desires because you are getting into that. Alara Sage (27:07.474) Mmm. Leslie Draffin (27:19.03) part of yourself. But one thing that is it's not necessarily a physical benefit, but it's so fascinating when we look at the neuroscience of how these psychedelics are working in the brain. It's literally helping to reprogram the very rigid part of our brain, the highest part of our brain that that is where our our. rigid self -limiting beliefs are it's where our internal subconscious programming lives and so if you're someone who has been trying to Affirm and use affirmations to manifest your life and it's just not working that's where I'm seeing a lot of people have these amazing breakthroughs because psilocybin tends to thaw that rigidity and allow for more flexibility so that you can begin to naturally question and again rewire the parts of yourselves that have been stuck for possibly decades and decades. Mental health vastly improved. I was someone who suffered with anxiety and depression, burnout, and PTSD. I can say all of those are greatly improved because of my work with the medicine. Other things like focus, you know, I have ADHD and so I find that my inner spring is very challenging for me. I also have PCOS, so my inner spring is very long. It's my least favorite of all of the seasons. And so psilocybin really does a wonderful job of helping me tune into what I need to be doing during those weeks to run a business and to see clients and to just live the life that I want to live, while also allowing a bit more turning inward when I need to give myself grace and peace. Alara Sage (29:02.578) Yeah, that's I think you touch on such a variety and I really love the increase of the sexual pleasure. For me, my experience just with my own sexual trauma and my sexual energy and really my erotic self is that I had shut down parts of myself and really numbed them on a... a mental and emotional level. And so first off, a large part of my body wasn't even able to receive sensation. It was literally numb. And then I couldn't be present in that part of my body because it was numb and I had subconsciously deemed it unsafe. So I can see how the medicine would assist as you're speaking to giving the feeling of Leslie Draffin (29:40.18) Mm -hmm. Alara Sage (29:59.986) presence has been, I haven't microdosed mushrooms. I have microdosed ayahuasca and I've done most of my work with ayahuasca. I've done some mushrooms more in my earlier years than now. But that space of being fully present and being able to really give yourself the permission to feel, right? I can really see again, just simply through my experience, how that would radically shift. Leslie Draffin (30:11.284) Yeah. Alara Sage (30:28.082) your sexual life because now you start to feel like my sensation just you know radically shifted from basically not enjoying sex to like wow it takes very like I can orgasm non -sexually all the time like I don't even need sex to orgasm like that's a big difference. Leslie Draffin (30:28.468) you Leslie Draffin (30:48.083) Yeah, huge. Huge difference. But I think, yeah, exactly what you're saying. It really, because when we look at the neuroscience, like I was saying, when we have a deep internalized shame around sex through for whatever reason, for me, it was because I was diagnosed with herpes four weeks after I lost my virginity. And so my entire sexual life was always this huge scarlet H. And I didn't think I was worthy of receiving. When that is so. Alara Sage (30:55.698) And, good. Alara Sage (31:06.948) you Leslie Draffin (31:22.484) deeply internalized and so deeply stuck in that part of our brain that is frozen in time, so to speak. And psychedelics come in and allow that to thaw. That's when we can do the work of, again, re -looking at the shame and becoming, like you were mentioning, very present not only to ourselves, but to what it is that we like, what it is that we want to experience. And I think that I just kind of see it. And I don't think there's any science to like back this part up. But from what I noticed in myself and what I've noticed in some clients who came to me with, you know, low libido was like, I just see it lighting everything up. Like you see the brain scans. Like if you even just Google like psilocybin brain, like you'll see these two side by side pathways where one looks like it's got, you know, some squiggly lines. That's like the neural normal brain. And like when you look at the brain on psilocybin, it's got like, 100 times more lines because that's how many new neuro pathways are opening up. I think the same thing happens to the vulva to the womb when that's our intention because it makes everything come back online. And I can say that, you know, I actually began working with these in order to heal my issues with sex and my issues with shame. I got a coach, began microdosing several years ago because I wanted to become open to receiving pleasure. Alara Sage (32:30.802) Mmm. Leslie Draffin (32:45.268) and the medicine will give you what you need, not necessarily what you want. And so they knew I needed to be open to receiving period before I could allow myself to feel open to receiving pleasure. So for a whole year, they rocked my world. It was such a collie moment, like tower card, everything coming down because I had to learn to trust to receive. And then finally I realized about a year after I had started this practice that like I was having more consistent orgasms. I was more interested in sex. Alara Sage (32:49.49) Yes. Leslie Draffin (33:14.579) And the issues I had had around that shame were pretty much gone. So it happened, but it took a while. And I think that some folks just need to be reminded about the fact that healing has no timeline and neither do these mushrooms in this medicine. So if you're listening to this and you decide to explore, also know that it's going to give you what you need and that might not be at all what you're consciously aware of what you want. Alara Sage (33:42.13) Yes, and it always serves the higher good. And that's what we have to totally be surrendered to. And I love how you bring that in. And also, the thing that you're kind of alluding to before with your business and my experience with my, again, my sexual energy, because our sexual energy is part of our creative life force energy. So we have the capacity to use our sexual energy, just like we use our Shakti, in creating our reality. And. You know, it's so powerful when we start to really have this relationship and this communion with that aspect of self. So as I was shifting in my sexual side of, you know, in actually engaging in pleasure sexually, you know, what happened is my availability to presence in general, you know, radically expanded. And so, you know, my shifting there, and this is again, kind of what you were alluding to when you're talking about your businesses, you're able to really be present with where you are now and what is available to you energetically now, right? Per your cycle, per the astrology, per all the things that are happening in this one moment, where are you? Is now a time to be highly creative? Is now a time to withdraw in? Is now a time to be out in nature? What do you need, right? And that's been my process of... Leslie Draffin (34:41.973) Thank you. Alara Sage (35:01.234) really, again, that opening up of the pleasure of it is you start to really come into harmony with that sexual energy, with your creative life force energy. And that goes into your business. It goes into just your home environment, your family, how everything kind of moves and evolves when things want to make radical shifts, right? There's a time for that where there's a lot of energy to support that. Leslie Draffin (35:06.791) to harmonize with. Alara Sage (35:30.162) And, you know, in my business, and I'm sure for you as well, there's a lot of creative endeavors that come through and they come through on their time and they take their time. And really the more that we can just surrender into that wisdom of our creative life force energy, hear it and move with it. It makes life just, I mean, for one, so much easier, right? But there's just that flow and it feels good. Leslie Draffin (35:52.885) Yeah. Alara Sage (35:56.722) Because what you're hearing for yourself, whether that's creative or that's go for a run or that's dive into meditation and deepen into the void, when you do that, it's like, oh, this is exactly what I needed. Leslie Draffin (36:11.187) Mm -hmm. And I love that you mentioned harmony, too, because I think one thing I've really noticed and the message that this medicine has had for me over and over again is that they want us to come into balance. They really do. And they see when we're giving too much in one place and not enough in the other. And for business owners, I think that's something that we struggle with, really. It's like, are you giving so much to your business that you forget to give to yourself? And that certainly is something that I've struggled with. And so very interestingly, like, I will have mushrooms tell me, you need to eat these foods. You need to begin to do this. And it's like, they will clean out your entire shit. They will clean all your shit out if you will let them. And if you will be present to listen to what they're going to tell you. And I think that's what's so fascinating, too, and why I see so many people have an entire world turned around. They just. Yeah, they just are so interesting about how they'll look at all the places in your life that you are not aligned and get that right back in order if you allow it. And I don't want to scare people who are listening, but for me, they showed me I needed to leave my 15 -year career. For people I've talked to, they've showed them the need to leave relationships. They need to move. And I think that, again, it's when you can trust. and understand that this is a wonderful teacher that is really just helping you remember what you already internally know. Because they don't have some huge key to your life. I think they're just unlocking blocks from within you that allow you to remember what the hell you need. Alara Sage (37:55.794) Absolutely. And, you know, I would say to anybody, if, you know, those ideas worry you or scare you or make you feel apprehensive, you know, like they're there just with we're speaking to the cyclical nature of our being. There is only change. Right. And so I find that when we resist that change is when again, we make it so much more uncomfortable for ourselves, so much more struggle and honestly suffering. Leslie Draffin (38:20.325) Mm -hmm. Alara Sage (38:24.114) from the resistance to the natural flow and cycles of life. So yeah, there are times when you have to make these big decisions. You have to make big change. You have to shift pivot, right? And like you can face all of those challenges. And really when you do that, it's amazing. I don't know if you've experienced this Leslie, but for me, I've made massive pivots in life. And every time it's amazing. The. Leslie Draffin (38:32.307) to make big change, you have to shift, limit, right? And. Alara Sage (38:52.882) Energy that shows up because I'm not making those pivots because my ego wants something it always comes to me as a message as you need to do this now I feel the potentiality via not to say I'm not scared not to say I'm like ah shit here We go, you know, and I take the action and it's amazing. It's like a wave Comes up from underneath you and carries you and yes, there is challenge and yeah, there's a lot to change and evolve But it there's flow there Leslie Draffin (39:04.402) I'm scared. Leslie Draffin (39:20.562) Yeah. Alara Sage (39:22.002) Right? There's flow there. And that's what I've already been shown. Like, OK, this is what we recommend. My higher self says this is what you need to be doing. Your choice. Don't do it. But this is going to be walking up against that river with branches and trees coming at you. That's going to be really uncomfortable. That's going to hurt more. So your choice. You know? Leslie Draffin (39:45.265) 100%. I've certainly lived many times through what you're talking about, like with the not listening. With the not listening, not seeing the warning signs, refusing to look at them. And it's just so interesting. Obviously hindsight is 20 -20, but like, yeah, when you're led to make decisions that are right for you, it's exactly like what you're saying. Like everything just feels like a light bulb has gone off and everything finally is talking to each other and making sense. Alara Sage (39:52.338) Oh, I have two, yes. Alara Sage (40:05.714) Yes. Alara Sage (40:15.122) Yes, yes. And I could really see how the mushrooms would help in particularly, like you said, of anxiety, of those kind of heightened tension, right? The mushrooms would help soften that, help people be more present so that if they're feeling these transformational pivots in life, OK, like using this medicine to help you be more grounded and more present during it. help you feel your emotions, but simultaneously allow them through you, right? Not hanging on to them, but not pushing them away. And move through those changes, you know, and it's okay. Like we all benefit from support. We all benefit from guidance, support, you know, and whether that's a medicine, whether that's a person. Leslie Draffin (40:46.641) Yeah. Alara Sage (41:06.322) what resonates to us, you know, we have to acknowledge that for ourselves and receive that support, right? Receive that help. Leslie Draffin (41:13.905) Yeah. 100%. Another thing that I find that mushrooms do so beautifully is they bring us back to love. And they bring us back to this whole idea that for me was so difficult to see and to understand. I think that's why mushrooms have been so instrumental in my healing, because I had so many wounds around love. But they really allow us to feel, I believe, a bit more comfortable being vulnerable, a bit more comfortable. feeling connected and feeling open. And my teachers are very much always talking about the fact that things like anxiety, things like depression, our life force energy is wanting to be expressed in some way. And a lot of times what it takes to heal those things is coming back to love. Alara Sage (42:04.21) Yes, yes, yes, yes. I love that so much. And so what would you recommend that somebody can start to just kind of tap into? If this is exciting them, of course reaching out to you, but also what can they start to play with in their own space to begin this process? Leslie Draffin (42:06.064) Thank you. Leslie Draffin (42:21.231) You know, there are so many amazing free tools out there to start learning more. There are documentaries that you can start to watch. There are books you can pick up. And I really think that what you could start to do is just begin to notice mushrooms in your life. The second that I started to do this work, I started seeing mushrooms everywhere. And I just planted my spring garden. And I know they're going to be in the garden. Like, I use like a mycelium compost. And so I'm just so excited that they're going to be there. But start to notice and end. Maybe if you're someone who journals or meditates or has a different type of spiritual practice, you can start to ask the mushroom medicine to come into your life because I really believe that you can begin communicating with these teachers with the mycelium network long before you ever ingest the medicine itself. And when you do that, again, you're coming to that with a spirit of reciprocity, a spirit of respect and gratitude and intention. And so once you really start to meditate or think on, is this for me or is this not for me? That's really when I think you will get the answer you're seeking. And when I would encourage you to reach out, find my Instagram or book a free call and then moving into it. Because I think for me, all it took was listening to a podcast, honestly. to know that this was for me. I found out about it on a podcast. I immediately called her to be on my show. And the second that we hung up the call, I'm like, and now I'm booking you, and now we're doing this. And so maybe the podcast is all you need to know that it's for you. And there are so many amazing other ways that you can really sit with this decision, because there's a lot of stigma. There really is. There's a lot of stigma in our country around psychedelics. I certainly had to look at my own beliefs growing up. Alara Sage (43:43.314) Ha ha. Leslie Draffin (44:11.855) post -Reagan era, very much a dare kid. And so that would be my first suggestion is to ask. Ask and see if what you'll receive is the answer that you want to begin welcoming in mushrooms into your life. Alara Sage (44:29.042) Yeah, I love that so much. I was a dare kid too, but I was also raised in Southern Oregon. So we had a lot of hippie fests and rainbow festivals. And yeah, so I was introduced to psychedelics in high school in very safe, beautiful spaces. So I've never had a bad experience through all the different methods and modalities that I've utilized. Yeah. So that's, that's very beautiful. I love how this is all coming around. for humanity. I think it is such a tremendous co -creation and you know something that. Leslie Draffin (45:05.518) Mm -hmm. Alara Sage (45:06.514) is really here to assist us in our journey. So I honor you, my love, in bringing this forward for others. And I really love your work with the cycles. I really honor you with that. I've never heard or seen that. And it's really beautiful what you've tapped into and how you're using it to assist women. Leslie Draffin (45:19.278) Mm -hmm. Leslie Draffin (45:32.015) Thank you so much. Yeah, I feel like this is what I was put here to do, to help people awaken and remember. And I'm just so grateful that this is the path that I'm on and the teachers that I've had, including the mushrooms, are with me. I see them as just help and boost me up. Alara Sage (45:51.698) Mm -hmm. Yes. And just to be clear, how can people find you? Because we kind of mentioned that, but not clearly. Leslie Draffin (45:56.206) Yeah. You can find me on Instagram. That's usually where I am, at Leslie Draphin. I also have a podcast called The Light Within. And Alara is a guest on that show coming up in a few weeks. And again, if you're listening to this and this piques your interest or you're finally feeling hopeful about moving forward in your healing journey, you can always book a free no pressure call with me. And we can explore, first of all, if you're a good candidate for psychedelic medicine. And we'll also look at what's blocking you now. how working with these medicine teachers can really help to shift your life and whether working together feels good because I think that that's really important is finding the right person. And if it's not me, I have plenty of people that I can also help you find if you're looking for this type of support. And I can give you a link to put in the show notes. Alara Sage (46:42.034) Mm. OK. Yeah, it's so beautiful because we're all in this together, right? And like when we help people find their person, that's what matters most. Or their modality or whatever it is. Like we're all in this together and when we support each other and create this space for the evolution of all of us as a race of humanity. So wonderful, my love. Thank you so much for joining us here today. Leslie Draffin (47:08.654) Thanks for having me. Alara Sage (47:11.026) And as well, beautiful audience. Remember to share this episode. Maybe you have somebody who has been interested in this. Maybe you know a woman who has struggled with cycles and with her own rhythm, you know, of herself, of her body, of her life, right? That rhythm and that cyclical self. And of course, yourself reaching out to Leslie, if this resonates with you, share this episode. And as always, I'm just really deeply grateful for you as the listener, as the audience. for your presence, for your time, and your space, your courage. And we love you very much. Until next time. Alara Sage (47:55.378) Hey!

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