Anxiety has a Greek root ‘anxo’ meaning to squeeze, strangle or press tight; triggered by fear, it manifests as tension in the mind & body.

Physiologically, the body is in a sympathetic flight response, which can look like tense muscles, elevated heart rate, and upset digestion. The mind panics, searching for an escape route.

The flight response is an intelligent response by the body in unsafe situations; it mobilizes us into action to address a stressor. It best serves us as a short lived response, and can have serious consequences when it becomes chronic.

Arnica flowers are one of our favourite topical herbal medicines. They promote healthy circulation by dilating local blood vessels, which allows their medicine to penetrate the tissues deeply. This is potent medicine to restore healthy function to swollen, inflamed tissues.

Let the plants enchant you.
Let them draw you in, and remind you of your own exquisite nature.
A delicate composition of stardust, sunlight & dew.

In nature we find mirrors within mirrors within mirrors,
each aspect of life reflected in the other.

When you forget your divinity, be with these medicines.
Your partentage is shared with these cherished beings.
Their beauty lives in you.

Let the plants enchant you; remember who you are.

The nervous system has a natural rhythm of expansion and contraction, ups and downs, just like the breath: inhale, exhale.

When we experience trauma, and it goes unprocessed, the nervous system’s rhythm is interrupted and our capacity for normal fluctuations becomes unavailable. Everyday events can become triggers, and regulating emotional responses can feel impossible. This is nervous system dysregulation.

IIn our culture it’s common for people to override pain, hunger, exhaustion, and boundary cues… because we want to be liked, accepted, celebrated, respected, valued, validated. It may be the only way we know how to survive.

In the hierarchy of human needs being loved and a part of a community is above self esteem and self actualization (growing into our potential). If we don’t feel fundamentally loved and supported, it’s hard for us to show up as ourselves, and honor our needs.

It’s easy to overlook the humble plants that we use culinarily, forgetting that they often carry potent medicine. After a month of taking Sage everyday with our Herbal Medicine Club we are officially wildly in love with this potent medicine.

Plants, stars, seasons, elements and people are all reflections of life itself. By studying one reflection, we gain perspective on all that is. This is why humans have always studied nature, elements and the cosmos to deeply understand ourselves.

Working with the herbs is an orientation, an alignment with the seasons and cycles of life.

When the greens sprout, the flowers bloom, the fruit ripens, the seeds fall, and the roots sink into the Earth, we’re there, basket in hand communing with the plants, with gratitude in our hearts.

The plants don’t wait for us to be ready. They don’t pause if we are preoccupied with human things.

For the first few years of becoming an Herbalist, I spent a lot of time feeling inadequate. I faked it through parts of herb school, pretending to think in linear pathways, and to perceive herbs as bottles of phytochemistry, lacking in personality.

But my experience of herbs is so much more colourful than that.

They visit me in dreams, talk to me through song, move through me as if I were receiving body work.

Rose, one of the most loved herbal medicines around. It’s beauty, scent, flavour and romantic association draw us in. Back in the day I would add rose petals to tea blends simply to make them more beautiful. While beauty might not seem like an important element of medicine, it actually is. Creating experiences where people feel special and loved is absolutely medicinal in a world where many feel unseen and unheard.