Commonwealth Podcast For Holistic Herbalism

Katja's daughter Amber is about to turn 15 years old, so this week Katja reflects on her birth experience and offers up some herbs to help mamas in the last stages of pregnancy, and Ryn shares one of his favorite Mama-support formulas. Herbs discussed include lobelia, ginger, betony, ghost pipe, chamomile, kava, & vanilla. Mentioned this week: Herbal Medicine for Beginners, our first book, is available for pre-order now on Amazon!Lavandoula - herbalist & full-spectrum doula Emma O'Brien is a graduate & friend of ours. If you need a doula in the Boston area, contact her!Kings Road Apothecary - maker of the lovely kava & vanilla massage oil, among other wonders.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

We say it every week: we are not doctors, you are responsible for your own good health. This week, we wanted to expand on that a bit more, explain the philosophy behind it, and the reasons we think it’s so important to our practice as herbalists. We discuss the differences between conventional and traditional systems of medicine, and look into the legal issues surrounding “the practice of medicine”. This is also an issue of empowerment: the flip side of a responsibility is a right, and it’s your right to make informed decisions about your own health. We believe it’s the herbalist’s job to help you claim that power!Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week, in honor of International Women's Day, Katja shares some of her thoughts and experiences with adult daughters who became caregivers for their elderly parents. There's a particular pattern of compromised lung health she's seen emerge in these women, which has been tightly tied to the complex stresses and emotional challenges of the role. Fortunately, she's found an herbal ally - pleurisy root, Asclepias tuberosa - who's been especially helpful to them - and may help you or someone you love, as well! Mentioned in this podcast: Health Care? Daughters Know All About It, Roni Caryn Rabin (NYT, May 2017) - "As Washington debates the relative merits of health care legislation, many families have already come up with what is arguably the most reliable form of care in America: It's called daughter care.Dementia Care, Women's Health, and Gender Equity, Bott et al (JAMA Neurology, July 2017) - "The best long-term care insurance in our country is a conscientious dau

This week, Ryn shares some strategies he turns to when (as frequently happens) he recognizes that he needs to sleep, but can't quite convince himself to go to bed. Katja relates what happened earlier this week, when polyurethane fumes from a home improvement project in our apartment building gave her a massive headache and made it hard to sleep - both what she actually did to cope in the moment, as well as what, in hindsight, would have been more effective. Herbs discussed include mugwort, wild lettuce, hops, ginger, chamomile, linden, mullein, marshmallow, st john's wort, and milk thistle.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week, Katja discusses several herbs to help support mothers and teens who are coping with the difficulties of the adolescent years - especially in the face of the stressors unique to today's world. Herbs discussed include motherwort, rose, hawthorn, yarrow, tulsi, milk thistle, and st john's wort. Mentioned in this podcast: Herbs for Psychological First Aid - Katja's free video class on working with herbs for acute mental and emotional difficulties.March For Our Lives - On March 24th, 2018, in DC and throughout the country, kids and families will take to the streets to demand real change to end gun violence and prevent mass shootings. Sign up for more info or to find a local event!Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week, Katja describes a way of working with herbs to reduce the harm done when lifestyle factors like diet, sleep, and movement are less-than-ideal. (Because really, how often is everything in your life perfectly "right"?) Ryn identifies a mental blind spot in the course of "discovering" that aswhagandha is in fact native or naturalized in large parts of Africa and has a long history of use there. (Did you, too, think of it only as an Indian/Ayurvedic herb?) Mentioned in this podcast: Ashwagandha monograph from the Plant Resources of Tropical Africa projectAshwagandha monograph from the PlantZAfrica project at the South African National Biodiversity Institutethis Global Mapper from Discover Life can display worldwide plant distribution maps!Krystal Thompson's ashwagandha monograph at HerbRallyProduction dynamics of Withaferin A in Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal complex., Kaul et al (Nat Prod Res. 2009;23(14):1304-11. doi: 10.1080/14786410802547440.) - one investigation into the di

Adaptogens are marketed as a solution to stress, burnout, hormonal imbalances, and a lot more. They can help a lot! But they’re not always appropriate. Today we discuss a few cases in which adaptogens might not be the best solution for feelings of burnout and exhaustion, and offer some alternative herbs you might consider instead.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

We moved! We made it with just a few bumps & bruises and some sore muscles. That was no accident - we thought ahead and stayed mindful with some mental, physical, and herbal supports to make our moving week as smooth as possible. Mentioned this week: Kings Road Apothecary - maker of the lovely kava & vanilla massage oil, among other wonders.Atlantic Holdfast - highest-quality seaweed straight from the pristine waters of northern Maine.Instinctive sleeping and resting postures: an anthropological and zoological approach to treatment of low back and joint pain, Michael Tetley (BMJ) - this is the article Ryn mentioned; also check out this podcast from Katy Bowman for more on sleep and alignment.Support the showYou can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!

This week we’re sharing a class Katja delivered recently about basic applications of herbal remedies to improve digestion and relive digestive discomforts. Enjoy! We’ll be off next week as we are moving from one apartment to another. We’ll return the following Friday, don’t worry!Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This weekend we kick off the year for our Advanced Studies Program, so we invited our students to participate in the podcast. Somehow, without any prior coordination, everyone seemed to have linden on the mind! Listen in and hear a few different formulas and perspectives on this helpful friend.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja shares three simple ideas for integrating some herbal self-care into your life, especially during the work day, which have helped us a lot during the writing of our forthcoming book. Ryn's taking a MovNat certification course this weekend, so he offers a formula for supporting joint health.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

As 2017 draws to a close, we look back over our year and some of the herbs who helped us get through it.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja draws parallels between the Hanukkah story of unexpected abundance, and the gift of goldenrod for helping us persevere through adversity and exhaustion. Ryn shares this year’s solstice elixir formula and the medicine of captured moments.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Ryn talks about the yaupon holly, a caffeine-bearing plant of North America, as well as a few ideas that apply to caffeine herbs in general. Katja is happy to be reading The Wee Free Men again, and tries to come up with a boring formula for everyone, but it turns out to be awesome.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

This week, Ryn notices he’s been getting stuck in the same sitting positions too frequently while working on the manuscript, and talks about different ways to avoid getting sedentary at home or in the office. Katja shares her enthusiasm and recipes for working with cranberry, one of our local “superfoods”.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

In this episode, Ryn tells you about the herbal strategies he's been using to cope with a respiratory infection for the last few days. Katja shares some thoughts spurred on by the creation of her Herbal Oracle and Study Cards, about the parallels we find between physiological and psychological effects of herbal remedies. (Katja wanted to call this episode "No Goldenseal Was Harmed In The Making Of This Podcast + Things You Can't See With A Microscope", but that was too long.)Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

We love books! In this podcast we discuss a few of our absolute favorite herbal books for everyone from beginners to experienced practitioners. Here are the books we mentioned: Practical Herbs & Practical Herbs 2, Henriette Kress - you can also pre-order her Practical Herb Cards!The Herbal Medic, Sam CoffmanIcelandic Herbs, Anna Rósa RobertsdottirWild Urban Plants of the Northeast, Peter del TrediciInvasive Plant Medicine, Timothy Lee ScottEncyclopedia of Herbal Medicine, Andrew ChevallierBody Into Balance, Maria Noel GrovesThe Wild Medicine Solution, Guido MaséHerbal Constituents, Lisa GanoraBotany In A Day & Shanleya's Quest, Tom ElpelRadical Mycology, Peter McCoySupport the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Katja stands up to proclaim the strength and potency of the “pretty little flowers” chamomile and self-heal, and reminds us that gentle doesn’t mean weak. Ryn muses on the many applications for herbs that have little or nothing to do with “treating” a “condition”, and some of the ways this ties in to our evolutionary history of exposure to lots of plants in lots of ways.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

In our second episode, Katja gives you her take on adaptogens and their propensity for overuse, outlining her preferred way to work with this category of herbs and offering a favorite recipe: notCoffee! Ryn works through some thoughts on the resonance between the physiological activities of herbs and their impacts on mental and emotional patterns, highlighting the category of lymphatic herbs, in whom these points of contact can be seen and felt quite readily.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)

Welcome to the inaugural edition of our podcast! In this episode, Katja talks about her new strategy for herbal self-care: taking home a bit of each tea or tincture blend she mixes up for a client (within reason, of course). She describes a current favorite, a formula for building mental & emotional flexibility while lifting the spirits. Ryn discusses some experiences which reminded him once again that sensory engagement is indispensable when working with herbs, and how it can help to iron out the subtle differences between very similar plants.Support the show (https://commonwealthherbs.com/supporters/)