Real Herbal Healthcare
Forsythia Flower Syrup
Chinese health care traditionally uses the steamed and de-seeded fruit of the forsythia bush or 'golden bell' for clearing heat and expelling wind. It has an affinity for the heart, lung, and galbladder meridians. Make a honey based syrup from its spring flowers to keep in your kitchen or bathroom cabinet for wellness all year long.
Adaptogenic Goldenmilk Recipe
I mix up turmeric (both dried powder and a few squirts of our fresh turmeric extract), our ashwagandha extract, our astragalus extract, a little slippery elm powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, coconut oil, and raw milk and honey to make a rich, satisfying, and deeply nourishing beverage that feels like a meal and is packed with nutrients and herbal allies.
Herbs for a Healthy Pregnancy and Birth Part 4: Nursing and Lactation
I can't imagine going through this nursing journey without the help of botanicals. Let's delve into the areas of lactation where herbs can offer their benefits the most: increasing and decreasing milk supply and in specific breastfeeding complications. Since tiny amounts of some herbs taken internally can wind up in your milk supply, it’s critical to be aware of what you’re ingesting and in what form and what amount, whether it’s chamomile or catnip.
Herbs for Toddlers and Young Children
If bouts of bugs are the great teacher, they certainly don’t spare the littles. But as parents, we have such a diverse arsenal of herbal preparations available to us that using them one way that we can best show our babes to appreciate the natural world. Let's walk through some basic information about efficiently and practically incorporating herbs into our everyday routines with our kids, using herbs for immune system regulation, digestive health, the nervous system, and skin health.
Herbs for a Healthy Pregnancy and Birth Part 3: Labor and Birth
While there are a few things they can’t do, there are many more situations during labor and birth during which herbs can play a major role in supporting a healthy mama and healthy baby. Here, I'll share with you a few of my favorite herbs to have on hand to support a smooth labor and delivery, whether medicated or not, at home or in a hospital.
Herbs for a Healthy Pregnancy and Birth Part 2: Improving Well-Being
If you’re like me, you rely on herbs and nutrition in regular, non-gestating life to not only keep you well but to improve your immune response when you do come down with an illness. But during pregnancy, the world is turned topsy-turvy. It’s hard to know what herbs and other natural solutions are good to continue using during pregnancy. Let's explore pregnancy herbs which affect the immune system, nervous system, uterus, and digestive system.
Czech Apple Spicebush Strudel
For the holidays this year, Michael made his favorite Christmas apple strudel with a few local spicebush berries thrown in for a wildcrafted Appalachian twist in a dish in which the new world meets the old...via strudel!
Clogged Milk Ducts and Breast Health: Poke Root to the Rescue
Issues like tenderness or discomfort in the breasts and clogged or plugged milk ducts can pop up when least expected - and least wanted - especially during times of stress and depressed immunity. Poke root oil or poke root salve is a wonderful herbal preparation for nursing mamas who are looking for a traditional strategy that really kicks it up a notch.
How to Get the Most Benefits From Your Reishi Mushrooms
I could write a book about the long-lauded benefits of reishi mushrooms, the king of the fungal forest, the crowning glory of beneficial mushrooms, the mushroom of immortality, the fungus of long and vibrant life, as it is known in much of Chinese medicine. But this blog post is not that.
(If you're curious about the benefits of mushrooms, you can scratch the surface with a quick internet search, or check out a couple resources here, here, and here.)
So, you may already be well aware of just how fabulous reishi is, but you may not know exactly how to incorporate this fungal friend into your everyday life with ease and grace and efficacy. That is what this blog post is. Here are 5 methods of using reishi that do just that.
Herbal Elixir Hot Toddies
A new herbal twist on the traditional hot toddy gives this winter drink an immune boosting power and a tasty finish.
Linden Blossom Gin & Tonic Recipe
Make any sunny summer day special with an herbal cocktail like this bright and beautiful Linden Blossom Gin & Tonic (recipe open to adaptation and substitution!). Herbal Cocktails (and Mocktails!): Linden Gin...
Long Life Reishi Lemonade
If I told you that I'd found a delightful summer sipping beverage that could make you live forever, would you believe me? Reishi: The Immune-Enhancing Mushroom of Longevity Perhaps immortality...
