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Healing & Alternative Health
Herbal Allies
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by Kami McBride |
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Something that I hear about quite often is how overwhelming the whole world of herbal medicine has become. With so many herbs available, which one do I choose? If I read five herb books, they all give different directions for making tea, varying dosages, and conflicting contraindications.
What I have noticed in teaching about herbs is that 20 years ago, most people did not have a broad vocabulary for herbs in general and what their uses are. What is happening now is that most people have heard of herbs, but in classes, the initial questions are centered around caution and even fear. My perception of the effect of the massive advertising around herbal products is that people have more awareness of herbs but this increased awareness hasn’t created more confidence in using them. Let’s dispel the fear and explore how we can develop a greater understanding of working with the healing plants. One that is rooted in a connectedness and confidence that comes with direct perception and experience with the plants themselves.
The journey to understanding the herbs and feeling comfortable working with them is an exploration of getting to know them on a deeper level. If you are attracted to using an herb, think if it like a budding friendship. Friendships take time. Put in some effort to find out more about the plant. Where is it originally from, what kind of environment does it like? Does it grow close to people or way up in the mountains? Can you grow it where you live? What other animals or plants does it live in proximity to? Who is it food or habitat for?
How does this plant reproduce? What part of the plant is used in healing? What is the best way to prepare the medicine of this plant? Each plant is an entire universe reflecting back a reality that is full of teaching for each of us. The more we inquire, the more we learn.
There are a few plants that I feel I know pretty well that I have been seeking relationship with for many years. Just when I think I really ‘know’ that plant, it shows me something new. A different layer to the taste or smell that I didn’t notice in the past or an idea of how to use it in ways that I haven’t before….when you open to the plant world you never get bored.
My sense is that the ‘herbal renaissance’ that we are experiencing is not just about having access to more jars of herbal remedies in the stores but also about our journey of re-connecting to the earth and the plant world. The green movement is not just about our health, but how do we act in a way that is respectful to the plants and the earth we live on? We are in a process of restoring the basics of a healthy relationship. We don’t leave garbage in our friends’ living room; that is just basic courtesy. For whatever evolutionary process we have been engaged in, we left a lot of trash in the place that provides us with everything that we need to live.
It is good to see us becoming more aware of the importance of our covenance with the green world. Our actions require more consideration with regard to what the future effects are for everyone. We know we need to do this but how can we make it more real, more tangible? I know that I should behave as if my actions ripple out and have effects for generations to come. But I was raised the way, my lifestyle involves lots of pollution and what was I taught about taking other creatures into consideration with my actions? How do we take all of this from a thought and concept in our heads to something that we feel and sense in our body?
What helps me with this process is to engage directly with the plants. Who are they? What do they need? How do I use them in a way that is beneficial to them and myself? There are actually ways to harvest plants that enhance their growth. There are certain times of the year to harvest that are better than others. As we hold the plants in our awareness each seasonal change brings us closer in our understanding. We percieve more with each turn of the wheel, it is a life-long deepening. As we relate to the plants, we begin to understand the intricacies of what works best for them. This knowledge becomes an agreement to work with the plant in the way the benefits us and the plant. My agreements with the herbs also involves knowing how to make the best medicine with them and promising to use the medicine. This work with the plants involves, regard, consideration, respect and courtesy; foundational assumptions for a healthy relationship.
If this all sounds too serious, maybe it is, but it is lots of fun and the pleasure that the plant world provides is endless.
The plants themselves have a way of calling you to them. They engage your senses, the aromatic smells, the vibrant colors, the various textures and their healing energy. The journey of relationship with the plants is full of pleasure, fun, healing and often delicious tastes.
When you know that you are interested in herbs and want to learn more about them, indulge yourself. I recommend beginning with one plant and doing everything you can to get to know that one plant. Think of it as developing a new relationship. When you are meeting someone new, you have lunch together, you listen to each other, spend time together and sometimes even sleep together. It is the same with plants. Yes sleep with them. Wrap your herb into a little pouch and put it under your pillow at night and see what you learn.
Visit the herb where it grows wild. Spend time sitting with your chosen plant and just observe its daily existence. The longer you sit there, the more you see. Sitting with a plant for an hour is a great way to really begin to feel the essence of who it is. Find out if the herb will grow in your yard, plant it and just watch it grow and notice how it changes with each season.
Read about your herb, ask questions from someone that already knows about it and find out what the parameters of its uses are. Find out what medicines can be made and then make medicines with it. If it is appropriate, make tea with it, is it an herb that you can put into your bath or on your skin?
When I was cultivating my relationship with plantain, there was a large patch of it outside my door. For three months I ate a leaf of plantain the first thing every morning. The taste of that plant is so familiar. No matter where I go, I always see plantain, it is like having a friend that is always there.
Choose to learn about the healing plants form direct experience instead of from media ads. It is a joyous journey.
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Kami McBride,
Teacher of Herbal Medicine
& Women's Health
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Kami McBride has taught herbal medicine and women’s health since 1988. She has studied medicinal plants for almost 20 years and has taught Herbology at the University of California School of Nursing and Stanford Hospital. Her popular course, Cultivating the Herbal Medicine Woman Within is an experiential earth awareness and herbal studies program that is taught at her beautiful school and herb gardens in Vacaville, California.
An intuitive and inspiring teacher, Kami has helped thousands of people learn to use healing plants in their daily lives in ways that are healthy, safe and fun. Her extensive knowledge of herbal medicine along with a focus on teaching herbology as a relationship with the Earth and a way of life, help to fulfill her mission of reviving the cultural art of home herbal care.
Kami is an herbal consultant and an expert in the field of holistic health specializing in women’s issues. Her herbal consultations empower women to discover sacredness and pleasure in their healing process. Her educational courses provide a sanctuary for women to transform their relationship with their body and reclaim their heritage as healers and herbalists.
Kami is the author of 105 Ways to Celebrate Menstruation, available at www.amazon.com.
Visit Kami’s website at:
www.livingawareness.
com
Sign up for her free quarterly herbal e-newsletter.
kami@livingawarness.
com
For Classes, Books & Consultations:
Phone: 707-446-1290
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