Commonwealth Podcast For Holistic Herbalism

The world's on fire, no one wants to admit they're occasionally catastrophic, and sometimes all you want to eat is ice cream. In this episode we'll talk about herbs to support respiratory health in times of dryness and smoke inhalation. We've also got a dramatic* reading of Katja's favorite blog post ever, You're A Trainwreck. We'll wrap it up with a listener question about cold digestive systems in hot weather. * Not in a bad way. Herbs discussed include tulsi, calamus, mullein, linden, marshmallow, hibiscus. Mentioned in this podcast:You're A Trainwreck.~ If you like our podcast, you might like learning from us in a more intentional way - like with our Herbalism 101 program! It's a great way to start incorporating herbs into your daily life, to keep you and your loved ones healthy and resilient all year round! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Introverts & extraverts, as patterns of personality, each have their strengths and weaknesses. In this episode we'll discuss herbal allies to accommodate common discomforts experienced by those who identify with one or another pole of this spectrum. Introversion & extraversion don't need to be "fixed", but their extremes can be balanced and their weak points strengthened through the work of herbal medicines. Listen & learn how! Herbs discussed include cayenne, tulsi, mate, yarrow, motherwort, rose, sycamore, calamus, kava, green tea, betony, pedicularis, jiaogulan, schisandra, nori, ginger-chamomile, hawthorn, and linden. (Yeah, it was kind of a lot this week.) Mentioned in this podcast:When Things Fall Apart is Katja's favorite book by Pema Chodron.~ If you like our podcast, you might like learning from us in a more intentional way - like with our Herbalism 101 program! It's a great way to start incorporating herbs into your daily life, to keep you and your loved one

A listener asked us what would be our five favorite tinctures to have on hand, so this week we're each going to share with you a list of herbs we just can't live without! We talk a bit about each one's virtues and the way we ourselves work with these herbs. Katja's list: ghost pipe, tulsi, calamus, ginger-chamomile, lobelia. Ryn's list: solomon's seal, catnip, yarrow-sage, kava, cayenne. Mentioned in this podcast:The Hidden Life of Trees, Peter WohllebenHerbal Medicine for Beginners - our book, which teaches you how to work with 35 multi-purpose herbs. It's perfect for people who are just starting to build their apothecaries, or for more advanced students who'd like to see how you might solve a wide array of problems with a small set of herbs.Katja's ginger-chamomile cookies~ If you like our podcast, you might like learning from us in a more intentional way - like with our Herbalism 101 program! It's a great way to start incorporating herbs into your daily lif

Katja's daughter Amber is off to camp this week, so she shares with you the list of things they packed into Amber's herbal first aid kit. If you have kids headed off to camp - or are going to one yourself - you'll want to listen in! Ryn muses on the capacity for receiving information from some parts of the body that don't make the Top Five Sensory Organs list (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, hands), but which are very perceptive indeed . . . if they're thoughtfully trained. He even has some homework for you to develop these skills! Mentioned in this podcast (or at least, relevant to its content):Feet: The Sixth Sense, Katy BowmanIt Starts With Feet (podcast with transcript), Katy Bowman8 Natural Movements for Better Balance, Erwan LeCorreThe Secret Teachings of Plants: The Intelligence of the Heart in the Direct Perception of Nature, Stephen BuhnerThe HeartMath InstituteCritical Intuition, Paul Bergner~ If you like our podcast, you might like learning from us in a more intentional way - lik

This week we share some practical first aid herbalism for burns and sprains. Whether you're hiking far out in the woods or simply have an accident at home, these tips will help you take care of yourself effectively & naturally with herbs. A few resources for you:Dressing A Burn - this is the video about burn care Katja mentioned!Go-To Joint Liniment - this is Ryn's trusty recipe for everyday use.~ If you like our podcast, you might like learning from us in a more intentional way - like with our Herbalism 101 program! It's a great way to start incorporating herbs into your daily life, to keep you and your loved ones healthy and resilient all year round! Use the code resilience between now and July 14th to get $50 off! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja & Ryn discuss how these "exotic spices" came to be ubiquitous among Americans, and how we can learn from the history of plant trade, cultivation - including some bitter history and present affairs of colonization and slavery. We try to recognize and explore the chain of relationships between the farmers and ourselves, and give thanks and respect to the hands that touch these precious herbs. A few resources on ethical cacao:Ethical Consumer's shopping guide - goes over a lot of the major issues and third-party certifications (e.g. Fair Trade, Equal Exchange, UTZ, Rainforest Alliance, etc.Slave Free Chocolate13 Fair Trade Chocolate Companies For Your Conscious Cravings~ If you like our podcast, you might like learning from us in a more intentional way - like with our Herbalism 101 program! It's a great way to start incorporating herbs into your daily life, to keep you and your loved ones healthy and resilient all year round! Use the code resilience between now and July 14th to get

Ryn leads off this week with a discussion of herbal affinities - the ways in which herbs may be centered in their effects on a particular organ or type of tissue in the body - and how these can help you make good herbal choices or make more effective formulas. Katja shares some thoughts about how to cope with the political crisis machine by finding ways to enter into service for the good of others - it turns out, it helps you too! If you find it difficult to get there, don't worry: she also shares a few herbal friends who help us soften into a place of receptivity and compassion. Herbs discussed this week include hawthorn, marshmallow, goldenseal, crampbark, and motherwort. ~ Our book Herbal Medicine for Beginners is available now on Amazon! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week Katja had a bit of back pain, and has some thoughts to share with you about how this can happen an what to do about it. From mindset management to gentle movements for the release of tension and improving alignment, of course with the support of herbs, here are a few quick tips to get you bending and flexing again. Ryn shares a couple ideas for herbal liquid extracts to combine with sparkling water in a bit of delightful herbal indulgence - that's herbalism too! Herbs discussed this week include kava, lobelia, chamomile, sage & mint, elderflower, and nori & other seaweeds. (Seaweeds were our #herboftheweek on social media this week and last - follow us on social media or check out our blog for more!) ~ Our book Herbal Medicine for Beginners is available now on Amazon! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja this week reflects on a bit of wisdom surrounding downtime, and on the ways in which stress management can sometimes be the most difficult of our fundamental pillars of health, or the one that gets sacrificed first. Ryn shares his love of jiaogulan (Gynostemma pentaphyllum), a particularly excellent adaptogen for the dry and tense people in your life. Herbs discussed this week include our Wedding Tea blend - wood betony, tulsi, rose, spearmint, & violet - along with jiaogulan, goji, & kelp (which is our current #herboftheweek on Instagram & Facebook!). ~ Our book Herbal Medicine for Beginners is available now on Amazon! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja shares a hard-fought lesson: that health is not equivalent to merit, and that as herbalists it's important for us to stay away from idea that there is A Right Way and We Know It. Instead our role should be to offer a wide variety of tools to try that can help build greater resilience, and provide guidance on those the client is most interested in. Herbs help out in a variety of ways to compensate for the impacts of a suboptimal situation. Mentioned in this podcast:The Twenty-Four Hour Mind, Rosalind D. Cartwright - An elucidation of the mood-regulating functions of dreaming and the importance of dreams in our emotional lives.Behave, Robert Sapolsky - A cross-discipline deep dive into the current best scientific understanding of the complex web of interactions we call human behavior.Four Keys To Holistic Herbalism - our free mini-course outlining the fundamental determinants of health and the basic philosophy behind our approach to herbalism.~ Our book Herbal Medicine for Beginners is available now

Since it's Herbstalk's 2018 Herb of the Year, Katja wants to finally give Tulsi its due with a quick monograph for you today! As promised last time, Ryn shares an exercise in herbal formulation: attempting to re-create the actions and qualities of an herb you don't have, by mixing together several other herbs. We each sketch out a couple of formulae to be "chamomile" and "tulsi". Herbs discussed include tulsi, chamomile, jiaogulan, tarragon, & dandelion. Mentioned in this podcast:Herbstalk - coming up tomorrow, Saturday June 2nd & Sunday 3rd! ~ Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available now on Amazon! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

After seeing Rising Appalachia the other night, Katja wanted to sing! She sang so much she gave herself a sore throat. So today she'll tell you all about her favorite herbs for soothing sore throats! Ryn breaks down a couple of "classic cancer cure-all" formulae you may have heard of: Hoxsey and Essiac. He talks you through a way to deconstruct these, so you don't let an old formula be a black box or a magic potion - instead, break it down and analyze it! This helps you find a middle way between the "skeptics" who call everything herbal "quackery" and the uncritical superficiality of internet memes. Herbs discussed include calamus, marshmallow, linden, & cinnamon. Mentioned in this podcast: Rising Appalachia - music to heal your heart!Herbstalk - coming up June 2nd & 3rd! Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available now on Amazon! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja shares her thoughts on herbal supports for those who are coping with eating disorders. Herbs can help reduce anxiety, center us in the body, stimulate appetite, and make it easier to manage cravings. Ryn gives you some guidelines for building a warming, relaxing herbal muscle rub. This will help speed recovery after an intense workout and reduce discomfort from delayed-onset muscle soreness. (Here's the basic ingredients list: 2 oz ginger-infused oil, 2 oz goldenrod-infused oil, 2 oz ginger tincture, 2 oz meadowsweet tincture, 80 drops each peppermint & cinnamon essential oil.) Herbs discussed include ashwagandha, calamus, betony, catnip, chamomile, pothos, ginger, goldenrod, meadowsweet, cinnamon, peppermint. Mentioned in this podcast: Nettle & Friends Don't forget!  Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available now on Amazon! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Ryn describes a method you can use to expand your understanding of energetics by comparing ailment profiles and the herbs recommended for them in our book. If you love lists, this is for you! Katja shares her best strategies for getting through a day when you wake up feeling zonked - from uncoffee to yerba mate formulation to settling-in at bedtime. Herbs discussed include betony, catnip, chamomile, linden, yerba mate, tulsi, ashwagandha, & rosemary. Mentioned in this podcast: Katja's very own Herbal Oracle Cards are a great way to start and end your day with inspiration and contemplation. Don't forget!  Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon! - Ships May 15th! Our theme music is "Wings" by Nicolai Heidlas.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week Katja has some thoughts about the number of syllables in neuraminidase and what it means to be a woman in science. Ryn tries to keep it simple with a basic protocol for heartburn. Mentioned in this podcast: Behave, Robert SapolskyStudent-faculty research suggests Oreos can be compared to drugs of abuse in lab rats, Connecticut CollegeWhat Happens to Your Body If You Drink a Coke Right Now?, Wade MeredithHerbs discussed include marshmallow, meadowsweet, calendula, plantain, licorice, & calamus.   Don't forget! Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon! - Ships May 15th! Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Turmeric is a great herb and an effective anti-inflammatory, but it's not the be-all end-all it's sometimes made out to be, usually by folks who want to sell it to you! This week Katja shares some other anti-inflammatory herbs you may not have considered. Meanwhile, Ryn's been thinking about dreaming - or dreaming about thinking? - with the help of mugwort, a city-dwelling weedy friend who is very talented when it comes to deepening the dream experience. Mentioned in this podcast: If I Read One More Post About Turmeric Being Anti-inflammatory, My Head Will Explode!, Tammi SweetMugwort for Dreaming, Ryn MiduraThe Twenty-Four Hour Mind, Rosalind D. CartwrightHerbstalk - Boston's homegrown herbal conference, June 2nd & 3rd!Herbs discussed include turmeric, ginger, rosemary, ginkgo, peppermint, tulsi, ashwagandha, rose hips, hibiscus, elder, calendula, self-heal, red clover, and mugwort.   Don't forget! Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on

This week Katja talks about the herbs that defined taco seasoning in her Texas upbringing, and their qualities when as medicinal herbs. Along the way, she takes a moment to appreciate the life of World War I herbalist and author, Maud Grieve. Ryn goes over an important lesson in phytochemistry - that no one compound accounts for all the observed effect of an herb - considering this today as it applies to specific qualities: so demulcency & astringency aren't reducible to mucilaginicity & tannicity. Herbs discussed include fennel, cumin, coriander / cilantro, cayenne, onion & garlic, marshmallow, cinnamon, & hibiscus. Don't forget! Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon! Support the showYou can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!

No, that's not an herbal tea pairing suggestion! This week, Katja sets off on a 100-day experiment with schisandra berries, and Ryn discusses the nuances of peppermint's energetics - is it warming or cooling? Listen in and find out what we think! Don't forget!  Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon!Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week Ryn walks you through a short movement sequence he finds helpful when his low back gets tense, and Katja shares (most of) a recipe for a tincture blend that also helps tense muscles - the rest is to be found in our book! Find the video of the kneebend sequence here! And while you're at it, feel free to follow us on Instagram. ;) Herbs discussed include ashwagandha, solomon's seal, ginger, and mullein. Don't forget! Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon! Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week Katja shares some allies who've helped out with the (several!) kinds of pain which accompany her braces - gentle vulnerary astringents for the cuts in the mouth, anodynes for the bone pain, and a special guest to help drain fluids from the sinus. Ryn talks about one way we try to understand herbal constituents, the chemicals which contribute to an herb's medicinal effects - by trying to learn how they work in the plants who produce them. Herbs discussed include meadowsweet, goldenrod, self-heal, calendula, plantain, chamomile, kava, & ground ivy. Don't forget! Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon! Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)