Healing Wise

A Few Short Questions Regarding Herbal Infusions

Q: ...in your article under "Green Blessings" in yr mid-month March

newsletter:

 

I want to take ALL four: Comfrey, Red Clover, Nettles and Oatstraw.

You suggest brewing each separately.

 

Are they just as efficacious brewed together?

 

Or at least imbibed together by pouring  together after brewing

separately?

 

Is a sun-tea infusion just as good for these particular herbs?  Is

four hours enough?

 

(I already know root herbs need gentle simmering, and these  are all

above-ground plant parts.)

 

In advance, my thanks for your response.  Keep up your great work !

 

Thanks and blessings,

Jean-A Warner

Pearl Arrow

 

 

A:  Jean-A, I think you will find your answers in these two articles.

Yes please do brew them separately, and it is best to drink them

separately, for the reasons mentioned in the first article.  A sun

tea is not the same as the water does not get hot enough.  Four hours

is enough, overnight is great.

http://www.susunweed.com/herbal_ezine/September04/healingwise.htm

http://www.herbshealing.com/Weed_letter_June02.htm#surprise

Do let me know if I can help further.

Blessings,

Karen Joy

Balsam Leaf Salve and Root Tincture

Q: Hello,

could you tell me please if i can make a tincture to take in from balsam root, i just got the flower and i did dry them ,i understand that natives eat the roots but what about the flower ? or shold i try to make a salve ? is that good for bruises to apply on the skin like arnica ?

thanks a million and god bless

A: I understand Balsam Root as Balsamorhiza sagittata.  Before you use this as medicine please be sure this is the plant you have.  Too often there is more than one, completely unrelated, plant with the same common name. 

If this is the plant you are speaking of, I understand the leaves and roots to be used.  The leaves harvested spring to midsummer and dried then used as a poultice or, yes, prepared as a salve.  And the roots, preferably dug in spring, used fresh or dried as a tincture or decoction at times.  The poultice or salve of the leaves can be wonderful for skin ailments, though I am not sure of its use for bruises.

Please let me know if I can help further.

Blessings,
Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
www.wisewomanweb.com

Serious Sweet Tooth

Q: Dear Karen

I receive my books today.  I am so excited I can't wait to start reading.  I was also happy and surprise that Susun sign all the books in my favorite color purple.  Thanks a bunch! oh one more thing I have a serious sweet tooth and I have to stop craving bad sugar. Any suggestions? Thanks again.

Many Blessings

A: Hello!  So wonderful... I will let Susun know you are pleased.

It is my feeling that all our cravings have a wonderful healthy source. Cravings for sweet are very basic and very healthy in my opinion.  I have found two sources of these.  For some it is from a need for protein.  For others a craving for sweet is a very basic craving for life and/or comfort.  Our first food is sweet, milk, as are our next, usually grains.  Of course in the face of so many refined sugars these no longer seem sweet to us.  Regardless I think our craving for sweet is our need for the nutrition that grains can provide.

With any craving, there can always be mental/emotional aspects to explore. In addition though I believe all cravings are directly connected with our innate wisdom and connection with our deep needs.  The trick I suppose is to find how to connect the craving with the food, or other thing, that satisfies it truly.

Blessings,
Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
www.wisewomanweb.com

Learning About Healing

Dear Susun,

Hello. I am a divorced woman and I have five of the most precious gifts anyone could ask for!!! My children. I am going to be very honest with you about who I am.

#1…A woman very dedicated to children.

#2…A healer of unknown talents.

#3…A heart that is wide open.

#4…and a woman that feels out of place here in my family.

I have made many a journey in nature to speak with…Life…. I heard or felt those who chose to respond to my presence. I have witnessed many beautiful happenings and also was shown the sorrow of Mother Earth.  I am at a place where I left my husband and in so doing, had to leave my four boys with their father and my daughter with my mother. I am considered homeless. I do not feel that way because of the connection I found within myself. I feel like I am a fire that keeps getting doused. I knew that the finer parts of me would die if I stayed in the marriage. I did not know that I would rouse my family into thinking that I am way out there and need help. I know what I experienced and it has been difficult keeping that knowing in my being when I am confronted daily with others that really do not know the Love of the Earth personally.  I feel like crying because I miss my kids so much but I know that the ball started and I have to move with the movement.  My heart sounds so great toward the natural healings that my path is split in two. On one side I would die to self to live again with my children and their father. On the other side I feel like the blood of the “people” is on my hands because I am not being the healer Mother Nature knows I am. I know that I have struggled because of the lack of examples that come from the human. I do know that I need to be an example to those that come after me of a Human Being living here on Earth. The bottom line is that I would cherish an opportunity to learn your sacred way. My dream is so huge that it is difficult to express. I gladly let my dreams pass to others so that the dream doesn’t have to wait on me. I want to live in a way that is very connected to the Earth and I found your website. I am unable to find a place to make money because my natural healing gift is calling from deep within and the normal workplace is so hard for me to be in. I am writing to you because I feel I have to try to make connections for my spirit to survive this space here in Kansas…Please, if you are able, let me know if there is a way to be in your sacred area and bring back into practice what I’ve learned to Kansas.

My thanks to you, for being on the Internet, at a time when who and what you are spoke volumes to my heart.

Thank you for writing.  I know you write this to Susun.  She does not have internet  to be able to correspond through email.  If you wish please do write her a letter at PO Box 64, Woodstock, NY  12498.  It is her daughter, with the help of a few of us, and Susun's financial support that allows us to share what we do online.  I hear you wish to learn more from Susun.  There is an abundance to learn online through our many websites, and I am happy to help you find whatever you are searching for within them.  Also through most libraries you can get her books to read.  I recommend you start with Healing Wise, though any would be of benefit.  What else could I help with?  I hear your passion and your needs.

Blessings,
Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
www.wisewomanweb.com

Apprenticing with Children

Hello!

I am looking to apprentice with someone but I have two little girls.

Are there places that you know of where one can have their children? Thank you for your time.

This is a great question, as I imagine apprenticeship with your girls could be a great benefit to the girls!!

Susun's live-in apprentice program is intense, so it would not leave time for the caring of your girls, since you are asked to focus deeply on yourself.  However you CAN study with her through correspondence course and take her one-day classes with your girls along if you feel they are able to focus.  You can also do her live-out apprentice program if you are able to be away from your girls one weekend a month.

I intend to open up my space for live in apprenticeship for families, though will not be ready until next summer likely, so I am sure places do exist :)

Blessings,

Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
www.wisewomanweb.com

How to Use Herbs Effectively: Navigating the Terrain of Various Opinions

Q:  Hi,

I just signed up for your newsletter and find it informative.  I have a question that I've wanted to ask.

I've researched various herbs that boost one's immune system like astragalus, olive leaf, medicinal mushrooms, etc.  There are different approaches regarding using/combining these herbs.  Many say it's wise to alternate them.  One article mentioned using olive leaf for 2 weeks, then mushrooms for 2 weeks, then back to olive leaf.  Other articles say just stick to one and take it daily.  Because the body treats herbs, basically, like food, there isn't a need to alternate using different ones.  Some of the mushroom products, like Host Defense by New Chapter, synergistically combines 16 medicinal mushrooms and recommend taking it daily.

What is your objective opinion about this?  Does one's body need a "break" from taking certain herbs?  Does one's body get "use to" a herb making it less effective?  Is it better to alternate different ones or just stick to one daily like other supplements?

Your feedback is appreciated - thanks.

A:  Thank you for writing.  Yes there are varying opinions on this.  From my years of study with Susun Weed, I gather that she does not see a need to take breaks from herbs in general, however have heard her mention the strength of some herbs warrant they be used for weeks or a month, then discontinued for a longer period of time.  Or I have heard her mention the use of an herb or two that is taken only during a particular phase of a woman's cycle.  I have also heard her mention, like when referring to asparagus, the value of paying attention to a food's availability in a season.

I personally find it a variable that needs attention to the person and the herb and the situation.  I do not generally subscribe to the one day or week or so on, then one off.  However I have found for myself similar variations.  I encourage you to gather up the varying opinions, organizing them by the value of the source to you, then experiment for yourself and see what feels right with any herb at any given time.

Please let us know if we can help further!

Blessings,
Karen Joy

Lifestyle Challenges: Food Allergies, Depression, Pains

Q:  Hi Susun,

I want to thank you for taking time to read this email and I am in hopes you can help me find an answer to my question. A woman I work with says she has an allergy to celery and of course most folks would say, well...just stay away from celery...which would of course be smart. The thing is, is that she's a cashier for a major grocery store. She was explaining to me that when she handles celery when it comes through her check out stand, her throat begins to close up and she has trouble breathing, expecially with the leafy green part. Might you have any idea of anything she might be able to do to prepare her body ahead of time to counteract the effects of the celery? I was just wondering and would like to be able to help her out. It distresses me just a little to see so many people go running to the doctors office when ever the slightest ill goes on with them. People seem so dependent on Doctors...doctors are God's to these folks.

Too, there's a very nice lady who, though very strong and independent, has depression issues and this last November she went to see the doctor and they put her on about 2 or 3 different kinds of meds for depression and a short time later she began having constant pains in her baby making parts. She's at the right age for the change of life, but I was wondering if the meds might have kick started the trouble in her uterus where it might not been an issue with her at all otherwise? Now they're telling her she's going to have to have her uterus removed and all the while I can't help but wonder if this can be avoided all together.

Any suggestions? I'd appreciate any input you have, thanks so much~



A:  Thank you for writing.  For allergies, I have heard Susun often recommend Nettle leaf infusions to help strengthen the adrenals, and therefore our ability to handle the challenges of life.  Beyond that I would consider options through her employer, changing jobs, and exploring how much of the reaction from handling can be worked with mentally, say through hypnosis.  If at one time we ingest something and have an unexpected adverse, or even scary, reaction to it, it is natural that we respond again that way when seeing the item or handling it, more from the memory of the trauma still held in our body.

For the woman who chose to do those medicines, first please empower her to research and make choices based on knowledge.  She has pain, this in itself does not warrant removal of a part of her body.  Perhaps there are more details to what she has found in regards to her pain that you don't now.  Otherwise, I would consider new doctors.

Blessings,
Karen Joy

Herbal First Aid Kit

Q:  Hi Susun:

Thank you for your words. I read you whenever I feel deflated and uninspired as a wise woman.
I am taking my 5 year old girl and I to Asia in February next year. We will be in S-E Asia and hopefully Nepal and India.

I have travelled for years but I have only ever had a "chemical" first aid kit. I would like to put together a herbal one to take.

Would you be able to help me here? Perhaps you have a list or a direct link to something on your site?

I would really appreciate any help you can give.

A:  It is wonderful to hear how you enjoy Susun's work.  We will be sure to share your words with her.  Susun teaches a class every year about making your own herbal first aid kit.  I took this many years back and found it wonderful.  I cannot remember all that she taught to be in her kit, but I am happy to share what is in mine, which is likely very similar.  I do not know of a specific article she wrote on this, though I believe she is or has written on this in her regular SageWoman articles.  Do let me know if I can help.

Blessings,

Karen Joy

Q:  Hi

Thanks for writing back.  I would love to know what you put in your kit.  Do you also have labels for their use in different situations?  I will also research on the web.

Look forward to hearing from you.

A:  My herbal first aid kit that I take with me when I travel has:

Tinctures of...
~Echinacea Root
~Dandelion Root
~Yarrow flowering tops (kept in a spray bottle to use in throat or topically as well as internally)
~Hypericum flowering tops
~Poke root
~Osha root
~Skullcap flowering tops
~Wormwood flowering tops

Oil of...
~Comfrey root or Calendula flower
~Hypericum flowering tops

I used to keep a paper with suggested uses of each and amount to use but now know it well enough.  I still practice a trick I learned from Susun - only fill bottles half full of the tinctures that are used in tiny amounts - Poke, Osha, Wormwood.

Lots of love,

Karen Joy

 

Plant Estrogens and Cancer

 

Q: I am so confused. I thought that estrogen, not progesterone was the main culprit in midlife cancers in woman. I had also heard that soy, being a plant based estrogen was also under scrutiny. I have cautioned my daughters about getting too caught up in the soy milk/everything craze until we know more about that. I have hoped that our bodies see the plant based estrogens as friendly , but I have heard different opinions. Clarify , please?  Thanks

 A: Hello, thank you for writing.  I understand your confusion. Phytoestrogens are made in plants and similar to our estrogens but not the same, as are xenoestrogens, found increasingly in our environment primarily from plastics.  First, yes, one estrogen, estradiol is implicated in increased likelihood of cancer.  This is only one of many estrogens, one we produce from menarche to menopause, but wisely stop producing after menopause.  It is my understanding at the moment that phytoestrogens actually protect us from this potential harm of estradiol. You can read more in Susun's article Phytoestrogens: Friend or Foe? I have heard enough conflicting ideas to keep my eyes open, however considering that phytoestrogens are in so many plants, including beans and grains, I find it hard to believe they are harmful.  I do, however, feel that unfermented soy products are harmful for various reasons. The article should explain this as well.

Please let me know if I can help further.

Blessings,

Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
http://www.wisewomanweb.com

 

 

Plantar Fasciitis

Q: Dear Susun,

I have your books and love the work that you do.
Can you provide info & treatment for Plantar Fasciitis?
From web searches, it appears to be quite traumatic in some cases, often leading to a wheelchair.
Kindly provide all info you can or recommend someone who can provide info.
This is for my son - who is not overweight, but has been under extreme stress the last few years and has developed dark circles under his eyes, his wife is also unable to work due to a back condition and they have a beautiful 8 year old daughter to care for.
Blessings,
E.

 

A: Hello E., thank you for writing. I understand your concern, this being your family. Reading about it, it sounds much like what some of us would get when I was young, before this label was so common, from simply poor shoes and standing long periods. Yes, it can be incredibly painful leaving a throbbing by the end of the day that only some painkiller/antiinflammatory can relieve. Since it was not labeled then I do not know if it is the same. If so I can tell you what has helped me. I was not overweight either. However I tend, moreso then, to lean back, putting my weight on my heels rather than balance between heels and toes. I also bought the cheapest shoes I could find. So I bought inserts to put into my shoes for arch support; and got shoes with more cushion when I would be standing where those cushioned mats weren't. Though I do not have fallen arches, this support I think helped remind me to use my whole foot. I stood a lot then for jobs. I also found a great book, Walk Yourself Well by Sherry Brourman. It talks about this and other walking and standing habits and how they effect our whole body. It gives exercises to help us become more aware of how we walk, and then how to correct whatever needs attention. Also how we walk determines what muscles are used and what are well stretched. I needed to stretch, flex, my foot. Just doing this regularly started to relieve the pain. I could feel the pull in my heel.

Here are a couple threads, from the Wise Woman Forum, that you may find helpful....

Plantar Fascitis
Heel Spur Help

I hope this helps. Please let me know if we can help further!

Blessings,
Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
www.wisewomanweb.com

Healing Wise the Wise Woman Way

"Ask the Wise Woman"

....following are the archives of five years of answers to questions concerning herbal medicine and health sent via email...all names have been changed and personalized info removed....these archives once built will hope to serve as a free women's health resource for women world-wide.