The Holistic Herbalism Podcast

This winter elixir is our #1 cold & flu remedy! We make a big batch every year around this time, when most of the plants that go into it are fresh and ready to harvest. They need about a month to extract fully into the elixir, so we can’t wait until we’re already sick to start putting our elixir together. Preparing it now means it’s ready for us when the first respiratory infection of the season strikes. Holistic herbalism means thinking ahead sometimes!

Our herbal elixir is designed to be general-purpose, to cover all the most important bases. When you have a cold or the flu, you don’t only need to “kill” the virus. You also need to keep your inner waters flowing, help fevers be effective & efficient, maintain mucous membrane function, and provide your immune system with the support it needs to function optimally. From the marrow on outward, our winter elixir is a full-spectrum solution to respiratory infections.

PS: If you don’t have all the ingredients we discussed in this episode, work with what you’ve got! Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. 🙂 And remember that you can work with what the landscape gives you in your own bioregion – wherever you are, there are herbs that can do these jobs.

Herbs discussed include: loosestrife, elderberry, ground ivy, mullein, boneset, sumac, goldenrod, st john’s wort, japanese knotweed, catnip, & blue vervain.

If you want to learn more about how to manage cold & flu with herbs and holistic strategies, our newest online course is for you! Herbal Remedies for Cold & Flu teaches you everything you need to know to conquer a cold or fight off the flu. We teach you how to work with herbs that are safe and effective for all aspects of the illness. Throughout, the focus is on finding ways to support what your body is already trying to do as it works to restore balance. Winter is coming, so get ready now!

As always, please subscribe, rate, & review our podcast wherever you listen, so others can find it more easily. Thank you!!

Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

Support the show

You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!

Samhain, Halloween, the death of the year – this is a good time to talk about grieving, and about how herbs and grief can go together. It’s a universal human experience, but one we don’t often allow ourselves to experience and explore, because it is painful and difficult. It can often seem like there are only a few ‘approved’ ways to move through a grieving process, but everyone grieves in their own way. Learning how to respond, rather than react, to our grief is something we must each navigate.

A Halloween that is only about sugar and sweets doesn’t teach us these skills. But the plants are there to remind us: this is a time to die back, to go underground, to process the deep dark parts of ourselves. This is what allows transformation, new growth. When we work with herbs and grief rituals, the focus is on letting go of what’s no longer serving us: allowing death to what has run its course. That includes our own ideas of ourselves which are no longer serving us, too.

There are a lot of places where herbs and grief come together. Some herbs help us get into that introspective place, some help us feel protected while we’re there. Some herbs protect the heart, or circulate our inner waters, or open up our lungs – traditionally associated with grief in many cultures. Other herbs help us move through liminal spaces like dreaming, or to access our own inner wisdom from those realms. Whatever kind of support you need, there’s an herb who can help you.

Herbs discussed in this episode include: calamus, rose, hawthorn, linden, heather, self-heal, elecampane, lungwort, catnip, chamomile, yarrow, st john’s wort, vervain, goldenrod, jiaogulan, mugwort, bittergrass, bittersweet nightshade, vanilla.

This material is part of our Neurological & Emotional Health course! It’s a user’s guide to your nerves & your emotions – including the difficult and dark ones. We discuss holistic herbalism strategies for addressing both neurological & psychological health issues, and it includes a lengthy discussion of herbal pain management strategies, too! This self-paced online video course includes access to twice-weekly live Q&A sessions so you can connect with Katja & Ryn directly.

As always, please subscribe, rate, & review our podcast wherever you listen, so others can find it more easily. Thank you!!

Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

Support the show

You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!

It’s not just coronavirus, there’s a lot going on right now! Between the usual circulating strains of flu, some spring colds, and the stirrings of allergy season, plenty of folks are feeling rough. But it’s up to all of us to reduce strain on the medical system right now, so it’s more important than ever that we learn some herbal home nursing basics. These skills can help us to deal with minor issues on our own, so the health care workers can focus where they’re really needed.

Staying hydrated is super important, and herbs can help the water to “stick” much better than plain water on its own. Managing fever is another key function that herbs can support – and these don’t need to be “fancy” herbs, either! Garlic, lemon, ginger, and thyme are enough to cover a lot of bases. A dry cough with a hot fever might mean COVID-19, or it might not, but either way, common herbs and kitchen items can help to relieve the symptom and address the root cause of it.

The core of herbal home nursing basics is to keep vigilant, or attentive to the needs as they change and evolve over time. That, and some simple, easy-to-forget stuff like changing the sheets! Knowing all about these likely needs ahead of time will enable you to prepare with what YOU have for what YOU need. Nothing better than that!

Mentioned in this episode:

• The Holistic Herbalism Podcast, Episode 108: Herbs to Supercharge Your Bone Broth
• Florence Nightingale, Notes on Nursing & Notes on Hospitals – Two excellent & essential books – and not merely for “historical interest”, either! We think every herbalist should read these.

Herbs discussed include: hibiscus, marshmallow (and common mallow and hollyhock), lemon, ginger, elderflower, lemon balm, mint, skullcap, yarrow, pleurisy root, wild cherry, garlic, onion, & thyme.

You can learn more about supporting sick people with herbs in our Immune Health course. Get beyond echinacea and learn the full complement of herbal actions and nutritional strategies that can build immune resilience, fend off pathogens, or reign in an overactive system.

As always, please subscribe, rate, & review our podcast wherever you listen, so others can find it more easily. Thank you!!

Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

Support the show

You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!

Pain is complex. Many factors can contribute to pain, or worsen it, including the food we eat, the sleep we do or don’t get, and the stresses we experience in our lives. When pain is chronic, we need to think outside the “painkiller” box and think more broadly. This is also the best method of working with herbs for chronic pain conditions. Herbs with anti-inflammatory effects might achieve this by nourishing, improving digestion or circulation, or supporting specific needs in a particular body. To choose the right one for the person in front of you, you need to know their whole context – more than “where does it hurt?”

Moreover, from the perspective of your cells, pain itself is not a single state with a single cause. A sprained wrist may involve tissue swelling, stagnation of fluids, nerve impingement, and of course, inflammation. Awash in this complex context of states, the nerve sends a pain signal to the brain. If all we do is “kill the pain” at the nerve, without correcting any of those other states, the pain will come back as soon as the herb wears off! Instead, we can combine analgesic or anodyne herbs with others that address stagnation, tension, and agitation; addressing both the superficial symptoms and the fundamental causes at once.

All that and more, in this episode!

Herbs discussed include: cayenne, goldenrod, kava, ginger, chamomile, tulsi, kelp, meadowsweet, willow, alder, birch, wild lettuce, passionflower, Jamaican dogwood, clove, & ghost pipe.

As you can see, so much of your success when working with herbs for chronic pain effectively depends on your familiarity with a diverse array of herbs to help you target the specific tissues and states contributing to the pain. So you’ve got to really know your herbs – and our Holistic Herbalism Materia Medica course can help with that! It includes 89 video plant profiles, along with printable monographs and quizzes to check your learning. Plus, you get access to our twice-weekly live Q&A sessions so you can get direct contact with Ryn & Katja. Dive in and get to know these herbs personally!

As always, please subscribe, rate, & review our podcast wherever you listen, so others can find it more easily. Thank you!!

Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

Support the show

You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!

Happy mother’s day, 2020! The truth is, any herb could be an herb for moms, because not all moms are alike, in their needs or their preferences. These four, though – linden, dandelion, yarrow, and violet – are really worth knowing and sharing with the mothers in your life.

These plants are abundant, so you know you’re being sustainable and responsible. They’re resilient, and can pass that resilience on to us when we work with them. And they’re especially relevant to a mom’s life in the world today, too! Linden can help us release tension in the body and in the mind, and soothe frazzled nerves. Dandelion is irrepressible and sunny, and provides rooted nourishment when you’re feeling trampled. Yarrow is a warrior’s herb, and sometimes moms need to put on their armor and go to battle – whether that’s for the kids, or against them! 😉 And violet helps you soften your heart, remember yourself, and take delight in simple pleasures.

Whatever kind of mother you have – or whatever kind of mother you are! – we’re sure that one of these herbs for moms will be a welcome gift and become a lifelong ally.

Mentioned in this episode:

• The Holistic Herbalism Podcast, Episode 079: Motherwort for Mother’s Day!
• The Holistic Herbalism Podcast, Episode 016: Emotional Support for Mothers & Teens

One thing most moms could use help with is getting more sleep! Whether it’s worry keeping you up at night, disruptive midnight waking, or a mismatched circadian rhythm, our newest short course Holistic Help for Better Sleep has solutions for all your sleep troubles. Get some Zs and rest easy!

As always, please subscribe, rate, & review our podcast wherever you listen, so others can find it more easily. Thank you!!

Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

Support the show

You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!