The Beat of your Own Drum (seconds quality: 10% off)

Pre-orders are now closed.

1. Playlist

A Spotify playlist of songs about drumming, women and power. Each song is associated with a specific chapter of the book, and you may want to play each song before or as you start reading each chapter, or afterwards, to tune into its energy.

2. Sophie’s guide to starting your drum microdosing practice

Drum microdosing is a practice created by Sophie Messager. You simply commit to drumming for five minutes a day, with a specific intention, for a period of four to six weeks, whilst also doing some light journaling, very much like microdosing plant medicine, but using the drum instead.

Sophie discovered this practice whilst writing The Beat of Your Own Drum. Having microdosed mushrooms for a couple of years before, she was intuitively guided to start a drum microdosing practice. Drumming for just five minutes a day with intention can rewire the brain into more positive patterns, and works in a way that is both accessible and gentle.
Sophie led a group of women through this process over the course of a month. The intentions the women had set themselves were feeling less overwhelm, more peace, presence and calm. All women experienced improvements of 50 to 70% in the area they chose to focus on.
In this guide, Sophie takes you through the all practicalities of starting your drum microdosing practice from choosing a drum to creating an altar to journaling prompts.

3. Journey to the Heart of the Drum

An exclusive 15-minute shamanic drum journey, where Sophie guides you to connect with the heart of the drum. In this sacred space, discover what healing insights, guidance, or clarity wants to come through for you right now.

As usual, all pre-orders are signed by the author and come with an exclusive bookmark!

PLEASE NOTE: any other items that you may order in the same transaction as your pre-order will be shipped along with the pre-ordered title in September.

“This is the book that many of us drummers have been waiting for!
Sophie manages to hold perspectives from the science and the woo-woo, she supports us in having a deeper “inner-standing” of the drum as a healing tool.
Backed up with scientific papers, quotes and resources, Sophie leads us through drumming for healing, for birth, death, circles, mental health, physical health and so much more. She talks about drumming for stilling the mind, for going into an altered state, for empowerment: empowering women, empowering women’s circles and drumming circles.
She helps us to remember the drum in ancient culture and where the drum has its place in future culture building community and connection.
This book encapsulates everything you need to know about sacred drumming, in fact this book should come as standard issue with every drum – bought and birthed.”

—Rachael Crow, mother, medicine drum maker and teacher, women’s circle facilitator, Moon lodge/Red Tent/ Women’s Mystery holder and author

“Watching Sophie research this book has been nothing short of inspirational! She has delved deeply into the world of drumming and created an amazing handbook for those who hear the call of the drums. It has so much to give someone on the path to drumming or as a seasoned drummer.
This book is a handbook for the drumming woman – giving the benefits, the scientific shifts that occur, guidance on drumming throughout the phases of womanhood and so much – it is a blueprint for contemporary drummers.
Her words echo my experience of reading Layne Redmond’s When the Drummers Were Women – for me too it was like I was reading something I already was part of, I already knew but at the same time reading something completely new to me. I have a feeling that Sophie’s book is going to be doing the same for its readers, a modern and timely anchor for those drumming and bringing drumming to women.
This book will be recommended reading for my Sacred Women’s Drum Circle Facilitator students.”

—Melonie Syrett, thedrumwoman: master drum maker, sacred drum circle teacher and Earth Grid worker

“Sophie Messager brings a message for our time, for all who hear the call of the drum. Bridging the science with the spiritual, she understands that rhythm is truly our Mother Tongue and literally returns the beat to the belly – its origin – as a drumming birth doula.
With a clear voice she shares her personal drum story, one that speaks to the collective yearning for the sacred in general, and rhythm specifically. She comprehensively gives nod to women’s drum herstory, offers tools for today’s healing and transformation through the drum, and envisions a future of women drumming in circle as an everyday, restorative practice.
Whether you’re just stepping onto your drumming path anew, or have been on a lifelong drummer’s journey, you’ll find plenty of information and inspiration here.
The Beat of Your Own Drum is an accessible and enjoyable read. Don’t hesitate, get this book, you’ll be glad you did.”

—Barbara Gail, founder of ‘The Rhythm Inlet’, ‘DrumRise! The Art of Women’s Drumming’ and ‘The Tambourine Path’

“The Beat of Your Own Drum bridges the neurological and practical power of rhythm as a means to forge a deeper connection with one’s self and the greater fields of consciousness. Sophie Messager’s knowledge and skill in using drumming for healing are evident: read this book and you will see the power that drumming has on its players and listeners. Heed the message from this book and your life will transform with every beat of the drum.”

—Jeff Strong, director of the Strong Institute, co-founder and music creator (drummer) of BrainStimAudio.com, and author of eight books including Different Drummer: One Man’s Music and Its Impact on ADD, Anxiety, and Autism

“From the shamanic to the scientific, this book informs, reminds and guides. From a forgotten history of women as drummers, to the science of drumming, neurodivergence, stress and drumming through rites of passage. This book invites you to experience the ways drumming can be your sail, your anchor and the beat you march to. Unlocking your emotions, regulating your systems and connecting you into the pulse of life.
As women across the world seek a more spiritual life reflecting what they feel and reaching beyond the guilt-ridden oppression of man-centred religions, Sophie leads us to a spiritual connection with the beat of a drum. The rhythm resonating with our hearts, a wisdom we recognise in our bones. Women have had the ancient rituals around life transitions forbidden, stripped, sanitised or repackaged by patriarchal systems. Sophie reminds us of the power of women in circle, the healing power of rituals and the primeval response of our body and mind to this universal sound.
From observing how the sacred can be brought of everyday life, the science of the brain and the journey of a woman through the life stages. Sophie weaves science, and a remembering of an ancient knowledge. This book is a journey of self-discovery, a lesson in women’s history and a guidebook of how to use the drum as a profound tool for the transformations of life.”

—Bridget Supple, author of The Birthkeeper of Bethlehem