Reasons Herbs May Not Work

Reasons Herbs May Not Work

It breaks my heart when I see people give up on herbs too easily.

More and more people are turning to herbs because there is a growing disappointment with using pharmaceuticals for chronic illness.

Many people are getting fed up with taking a pill that never really cures their illness and gives them awful side effects. Maybe they are concerned about acetaminophen giving their young child asthma (1) or they see the growing evidence about the risks associated with statins (2) and they say enough is enough!

From this moment forward they vow to never resort to drugs again and instead try a more natural and holistic approach thus leading them to the world of herbs and herbalism.

But sometimes their love affair with herbalism is stopped short.

They reach for the closest herb book, try a few remedies and then declare that the herbs don’t work! They tried using horehound for coughing with no relief. They tried meadowsweet for their headache to no avail.

They begin to wonder, “Are herbalists a bunch of delusional wood fairies touting the miracles of something that never works?”

As much as I would love to be considered a wood fairy, I’ll have to say no, this is not the case. I’ve seen herbs work hundreds of times. I’ve seen them work for serious infections as well as serious chronic diseases. I’ve seen them work when modern medicine failed.

Yes, herbs work!

I want to share a handful of reasons why herbs might not work in a given situation.

1. Improper dosing (either too little or too much)

When buying over the counter drugs like NyQuil or Tylenol, they come in a package that is clearly marked with the dosage instructions. Generally these are very simple instructions. “Adults take 2 tablets, three times daily.”

Herbs don’t always come with directions. If you buy bulk herbs the dosing instructions are absent entirely. If you buy a tincture or a bottle of capsules the dosage listed on the bottle has most likely been chosen by the FDA’s labeling mandates and not by an herbalist.  

I am not going to lie to you. Dosage in the herbal world is confusing.

In herbalism dosage varies from person to person, from plant to plant and from preparation to preparation.

A 15 minute infusion of a teaspoon of nettle leaf will not extract the same vitamins and minerals as a four-hour infusion of an ounce of nettle leaf in a quart of water.

A few drops of lobelia tincture can promote relaxation. A strong cup of lobelia tea could make you vomit.

One way I commonly see dosages being flubbed in herbalism is people using small amounts of tonic/adaptogen herbs in tincture, versus the traditional use of large amount of tonic/adaptogen herbs as decoctions or powders. (As always go with what works, but if you aren’t getting the results you’d expect after taking 5 drops of ashwanganda tincture twice a day, consider your dose!)

Frequency of dosing can also be an issue. During acute illnesses we generally use slightly smaller amounts but with more frequency. I may take elderberry elixir 1-2 times each hour at the onset of an illness for example. General recommendations are to take herbs 3 times a day, but that won’t cut it for acute illness.

2. Low quality plant material

Herbs often don’t come with an expiration date. Quality can also vary significantly and will suffer greatly if the herbs have been improperly harvested or improperly processed.

Plants decay. They simply go bad. The rate at which they do this varies significantly from plant to plant. If you’ve just pulled a bag of herbs from your back shelf and had to blow off an inch of dust… well, they are probably not at their prime.

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Back to School Crystals!

Many of you have either started school back up already or are about to. Here’s a short list of crystals to help you out with the basic pains of formal education.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6; The Crystal Healer by Philip Permutt, Crystal Energy by Mary Lambert

Witchy tips for artists

I’m an artist and I love mixing my magick with my every day life so here’s some fun easy stuff you guys could try <3

•use storm water for your watercolor paintings to draw a deep, passionate emotional response from your audience

•keep chalcedony on you while drawing, it can enhance inspiration and creativity

•use leftover wax from your ritual candles to make wax-splatter art (that shit is cool yo)

•when you’re upset, draw whatever pops into your head, even if it’s scribbles, and then burn it to banish the negative energy

•enchant your pencils and paintbrushes

•make magick collages from pressed flowers and leaves you’ve collected and hang it in your room to remind you that nature will always be our #1 teacher

•fill your sketchbook with sigils

•draw your own tarot cards. The unique and person touch of it will make the deck 100 times more powerful, and as a plus you can program it to just work for you

•sculpt poppets out of clay, or idols of your deities

•turn your poetry into spells

•use glitter in binding spells

•make Samhain masks out of craft foam

•dude just be creative anything can be magick and magick can be anything

cosmoses, morning glow

Voice Theft Curse (Disney Inspired)

A curse to stop someone who has been spewing hateful speech and words and return that negativity they put out back into their life.

You Will Need:

Sea Shell (preferably a clam shell)

Paper

Black Marker or Pen

Black Candles

Taglock (if you can manage)

Pencil

Sea Water (sea salt in water will suffice if needed)

Steps:

On your small slip of paper write down your target’s name in pencil.

With your black marker write in large letters covering the name “SHUT UP!”

Crumple up the paper between your fingers, rolling it and squashing it. Put all of your frustration and anger into this action.

Place the crumpled piece of paper into your sea shell. To release more negativity and return it to the target spit onto the shell and paper. If you have a taglock place it in the shell as well.

Place your candle onto of the sea shell and light it, let it burn down and cover the shell and paper in wax

Once it is sufficiently covered take your sea water and pour it over the candle drenching it and the shell. Take the shell and bury it in the ground or into a planter. If you cannot do this then store it somewhere dark.

cleanse your space and yourself afterwards and rest.

Writer’s Block Be Gone Spell

A spell to bring you inspiration and remove annoying writer’s block.

You Will Need:

✏ Yellow Candle(s) ✏ Agate ✏ Apatite ✏ Paper ✏ Pen or Pencil ✏ Fire Safe Dish/Bowl ✏ Bay Leaf

Steps:

✏ Clear your work space, cleanse the room if needed. Place your candles about you or if you only have one, place it near you.

✏ Place your agate and your apatite to either side of one of the candles

✏ Place your plate or bowl before you and place your bay leaf into it

✏ On your paper write “Writer’s Block” and begin scribbling it out saying “you are banished” repeatedly until satisfied. Put your frustrations and anger into this.

✏ Carefully use your candle to light the paper aflame and place it into your bowl/dish on top of the bay leaf. Let them burn themselves out. While this happens focus on how they are being burned out of your life, like a big wall burning down and setting you free.

✏ Take the ash and throw it out or flush it

✏ Keep your candles lit and return to brainstorming and your writing. When you start to feel stuck again, look at your candle and hold your gemstones in each hand and take a few breaths before continuing.

Note: this is a spell that uses fire and burning, please use proper care and fire safety