About Herbal Medicine
Plants and herbal medicine are vital allies in supporting the body’s innate resilience, widening our capacity to show up for ourselves and our fellow beings in the living world.
Plants were here long before other life forms. Our human bodies, our senses, the interconnected function of our organ systems evolved with them, in rhythm with cycles of light and dark, climate and season, eating wild food, cohabiting with other beings – animal, plant, and microbes.
For most of human existence, this has been true.
Today, those relationships are challenged in many aspects of life. That rupture is deeply intertwined with the rise in chronic stress and illness.
Reweaving ourselves back into a more intimate, reciprocal relationship with the earth can be a transformational journey.
What is Herbalism?
Herbal medicine, at its simplest, is working with whole plants to support wellbeing. It is an ancient and varied practice that has existed as long as humans have walked the earth. Herbal medicine aims to get to the root cause of imbalance, considering all aspects of ourselves – mind, body, spirit – offering deep, integrative, and holistic healing.
Because our bodies evolved in an intimate relationship with plants,
they can play a role in shifting both acute and chronic conditions, supporting us wherever we find ourselves in our healing journeys. Physiologically, plants interact with body systems via complex chemistry, as well as providing deep nourishment and nutrition.
Plants support us emotionally and spiritually, calling us back into greater connection with the earth. Our body’s innate capacity to heal is mirrored in the resilience of nature. When we observe patterns in nature, we begin to see them reflected in the body — a powerful reminder that we are nature. And that we belong, as an integral part of the whole.
Herbal medicine is the peoples’ medicine. We’re up against many systemic and intersecting challenges rooted in collective societal trauma histories, the fracturing of societies and the uprooting of values systems that honor our interconnectedness and reciprocity — all of which become barriers to healing. Disrupting these systemic challenges is inseparable from the work of healing and herbalism. As an accessible form of care, herbalism is a powerful tool for community empowerment, offering us greater agency and autonomy over our healthcare.
