When
Friday, 7 Feb. 2025
Where
MIND Foundation Office, Boxhagener Str. 78, 10245 Berlin, Germany
INSIGHT Forum (EN): The gender perception gap: women, embodiment, and altered states of mind
In our second INSIGHT Forum event of 2025, we delve into a critical yet underexplored dimension of psychedelic research: the structural underrepresentation of women’s bodies, experiences, and gendered perspectives. Our speaker, Julia Mándoki, will examine the gender data gap within the field, uncovering overlooked connections between hormonal cycles, reproductive phenomenology, and the effects of psychedelic substances.
Psychedelics are known for their ability to alter perception and amplify subjectivity, yet much of the research to date has approached these phenomena with a gender-blind lens. Such an approach neglects the unique lived experiences and embodied changes associated with pregnancy, child loss, menstruation, and menopause — profound and cyclical phenomena that often carry existential significance.
In her presentation, Julia Mándoki will discuss parallels between the cyclical nature of these life stages and the psychedelic experience, which is frequently described as a journey through contexts of birth, death, and the encounter with otherness. We’ll also explore potential biochemical interactions between psychedelics, hormonal cycles, and the uterus — questions that remain largely unexamined yet hold significant implications for the future of psychedelic-assisted therapy and research.
Beyond biological aspects, the presentation reflects epistemic injustices that arise from gender blindness, not only in psychedelic research but also in broader scientific and medical contexts. By calling for a more inclusive and interdisciplinary approach, Julia Mándoki aims to illuminate how gender, as a variable, might shape subjective experiences, perception, and identity during psychedelic therapy.
We invite you to engage critically with the intersection of gender, feminism, and psychedelics, to foster a conversation that bridges gaps and to advocate for bioethical research that recognizes the diversity of human experience.