The Holistic Herbalism Podcast

This is what we say at the beginning of every episode: We are not doctors. We are herbalists and holistic health educators. The ideas discussed in this podcast do not constitute medical advice. No state or federal authority licenses herbalists in the US; these discussions are for educational purposes only. Everyone’s body is different, so the things we’re talking about may or may not apply directl...

Just going to the internet and searching for “herbs for sleep” isn’t very effective – how do you know the right one for you? First, you need to suss out why you can’t sleep – not all insomnia is created equal! In this podcast, we break sleep problems down into a few basic categories and teach you the best herbs to choose for each one. We discuss both herbs to take during the day, as well as for be...

I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but it’s stressful to be a teen! Sometimes, that stress shows up as heartburn. As herbalists, we can help out! Here’s a discussion of some of our favorite herbs for stress-induced heartburn in teens. Some are for directly addressing the burning pain and discomfort; others are for reducing the stress itself, because it really does trigger the reflux events. Cha...

Yes, it's true: even herbalists get the flu. Two in one house sometimes, even! Each of us gets it a little bit differently, as our constitutions are balanced differently. But at least we can take care of each other. Listen in and learn all our tricks for getting through Actual Flu with a little more ease and comfort, the surprising role of marshmallow, and why a bath might be the most importa...

It may not have occurred to you that “psychological first aid” is even a thing, let alone that there might be herbs for psychological first aid! But let us assure you, it is very real and very important, and herbs can play a leading role. When working as a street medic or first responder, you’ll soon find that at least as many of the issues people need help with are mental/emotional as are physica...

Things are complex, and there are many factors. But guru syndrome is bad for the teacher and for the student, both. And believe it or not, active measures are required if you want to know how to not be a guru. Because humans have these tendencies: as students, to seek a guru; as teachers, to seek that status. When the student believes their teacher is a guru, it may be comforting, but it’s also di...

There are so many fantastic herbs for first aid purposes, it’s hard to name them all! But if we focus our thoughts specifically on a post-disaster situation, this helps us narrow it down. Even better, think about the most likely emergency situations that might arise where you live, and you can keep your kit nice and targeted, your go-bag fully stocked. In this episode, Katja & Ryn share their...

If you’re a practitioner of food-as-medicine and are interested in integrating herbs into your work – or just a health-seeker wondering if herbs can support dietary interventions – this is the episode for you! We present what we think are the seven best herbs for dietitians and nutritionists to learn about and to integrate into their practice. These are plants that either provide direct nutrient c...

Hoo-ga? Hue-guh? However you pronounce it, hygge is big right now! And it makes sense: this time of year, we could all use a bit more comfort, coziness, and cuddly contentment as we contemplate the context of our current collective consciousness! . . . Or, uh, just have a nice way to find some warmth in the wintertime. But, how to make your hygge herbal? Listen & learn! Herbs discussed include...

This week Ryn & Katja share some thoughts on how to address chronic headaches – not just “getting rid of it” in the acute moment, but reducing the frequency & severity of your headaches across the board. This will require some changes to your habits around food, sleep, movement, and stress – but herbs are there to help you every step of the way. Listen in to learn more! Our weekly listener...

New Year’s Eve is right around the corner, and we, like many folks, are ready with our list of resolutions. Let’s all make them more about self-care and becoming who we want to be in the world, and less about guilt & shame! In this podcast we’ll give you some tips how to do that, along with our own holistic & herbal resolutions for 2019. There are plenty of ways for herbs to help you stick...

Solstice is the quiet time, a moment of pause between the dying of the old and the rebirth of the new year. This week we share some meditations, stories, and traditions that shape the way we think about this time of year and its effects on our habits & our health. Listen in with a mug of your favorite sunny tea, and some nice warm blankets! PLUS: Listen in to get a coupon code for 25% off ANY...

Holiday foods are delightful & delicious, but what if you’re allergic to some of the ingredients? Never fear! In this episode we’ll share some of our best tips & tricks for when gluten, dairy, or other allergens are a no-no. Whether making a simple substitution, or trying out something entirely new, we’ve got you covered. We even have some strategies for if you accidentally get exposed – o...

Handmade herbal remedies and self-care items are a great solution to the conundrum of gift-giving. In this episode we’ll share three DIY herbal gift ideas that you can make at home and share with all your loved ones: herb-infused wines, coffee-pecan cocktail bitters, and an evergreen-scented sugar scrub. The gift of herbs shows you care – give something unique this year! PLUS: Listen in to get a c...

This week we continue our exploration of herbal holiday traditions with a quick chat about some of the ways herbs turn up in holiday foods. Whether it’s a nice herbed roast, a ginger-enhanced cranberry sauce, or a paleo mulling-spice cookie (yep, we’ve got a recipe for those!), herbs add more than flavor to your season – as if that weren’t enough! PLUS: Listen in to get a coupon code for 25% off A...

Today we’re kicking off a series of podcasts on herbs and the holidays! We begin with emotional support, because no matter how you feel about the holidays, those feelings are probably pretty big. In this episode we take an energetics-based approach to sorting out emotional categories and matching supportive herbs to them. Whether you’d like to be more grounded, centered, resolved, or emotionally f...

Every time we talk about cold & flu herbs, we seem to start out with elderberry syrup and a good old thyme steam. Well, this time we’re going to talk about something different! Here are a few good friends to have on hand as we move into cold & flu season. Herbs discussed include white pine , sage , ground ivy , boneset, elecampane , ginger , catnip – elderflower – chamomile , and lemon! Me...

This week our episode is an interview with Shari & Russ Apotheker of Apotheker’s Kitchen , makers of fine honey-sweetened confections and longtime friends of ours. We visited them at their homestead in Way Up There, VT, to chat about their work and how it’s changed over the years. Along the way we talked about a lot of issues close to the herbal world as well as that of artisanal chocolatier-i...

This is our one-year anniversary episode! This week we cover a lot of ground. Katja talks about ways adding a little inconvenience to your home environment helps encourage you to move more. She also talks about how she came around to appreciating rhodiola as an herb on our honeymoon to Iceland, and offers some non-caffeine-containing stimulant herbs for midwives (and anyone who may have long night...

Every year, our Advanced Studies Program ends with a weekend-long exam. There’s a written portion with short answers, essays, and case analysis, and an in-person oral & practical exam as well. This week, we wanted to share with you some of our favorite questions from the exam, mainly to focus on the reasons we ask these questions in this way and how they help us change our ingrained patterns o...

This week we’re out in Coal River Valley, West Virginia, helping out at a free herbal clinic for folks in this area who’ve been affected by mountaintop removal mining. We interviewed three members of the local Herbal Medics team – Maureen, Hannah, and Lauren share their connections to the area, connecting with locals (and reconnecting them to their traditions) through plant medicine, and their exp...

This week we do a lightning round of “minigraphs” on some of our favorite herbs. We started by taking a look at what we’ve got on our herb shelf (okay . . . *shelves*) in the kitchen right now, and selecting a few semi-randomly until our 45 minute timer went off. We covered reishi, catnip, mugwort, heather, st john’s wort, and za’atar (which is a spice blend, but totally still counts – right?). So...

It's not just for lattes anymore: the ubiquitous pumpkin spice blend is in fact an herbal formula! The standard pumpkin [pie] spice mix is cinnamon, ginger , clove, allspice, nutmeg. From an herbalists point of view, this is a mix of aromatic, pungent, carminative spices, very antioxidant-rich, and most of which are also antimicrobial. In this podcast we'll break it down and give you the...

Ryn leads off this week with a variety of herbs to try reducing the ringing in the ears called tinnitus. Herbs to drain stuck fluids, quell nervous irritation, and increase cerebral circulation can all help out with this distracting problem.  Katja has some great ideas for you headache sufferers out there - starting with some practical considerations about food and water, sleep, and stress - and t...

Caregiving is exhausting, thankless, necessary work, and becoming increasingly more common. In the first half of this episode, Katja shares some insights into the difficulties facing those who are caring for elders, and herbal allies who can help them as they help others.   In the second half, Ryn shares what he found after investigating everything to do with botulism: where it comes from, how to...