Katie 3/25/16 “10 Herbs for Wilderness Emergency First Aid”

Last week, there was this great online conference called the Plant Medicine Summit. I listened in to as many recorded podcasts as I could before they expired (they were only posted for free for 48 hours, unfortunately). I am really eager to share some notes I took from those presentations! It was all about using nature as medicine.

One presentation in particular was exactly what I had been listening for: a detailed breakdown of which plants are good for what purpose. Nicholas Schnell talked about how to use herbs in the wild for emergency first aid. He seemed like the kind of guy who had experienced some crazy adventures in his life. His knowledge of plants and their powerful properties was so inspiring to me. I want to be him when I grow up.

I shall share my notes about the 10 herbs he went over in the podcast.

Yarrow

Nicholas told us something really amazing about yarrow. One of his friends cut his leg down to the bone with a machete, so they put yarrow tincture  on the open wound. Within a minute, the bleeding had stopped. I find that to be so impressive! Something like this can mean the difference between life and death, depending on how long it takes medical assistance to arrive.

Yarrow is good for the blood and regulating blood flow. Some other beneficial uses are for bloody noses, hemorrhoids, menstrual flow, and such. It will calm or stop bleeding if taken internally for these things. You can also use it topically for cuts, bruises, blisters, hematomas, toothaches, mouth sores, and for pain.

Yarrow is also good for helping with digestion, acid reflux, and Crohn’s disease. If you have a cold, flu, or fever, put yarrow into your bath and it will help you get well faster. He said that plants also have spiritual properties, and that yarrow can be a boost for mental fortitude.

Calendula

Also known as marigold, but make sure you have the right genus. This lovely flower is good for wounds, bruises, inflammation, swelling, and scars. It can soften old scars and also help new wounds to heal without a scar. Use topically for chronic pain. It fights fungal infections, yeast infections, thrush, and similar infections. The spiritual property of this plant is for healing spiritual wounds. It can be good for people who beat themselves up or have damaged sensitivity in their soul. Sounds as good as Mother’s kisses on our owies!

Echinacea root

Story time again! Nicholas was out hiking with his friends when one of them realized he had been bitten, his arm swelling rapidly. Turns out later it was a brown recluse spider bite. Nicholas was carrying echinacea tincture on him and they applied that to the bite. The brown recluse has a nasty bite, taking weeks for the inflammation to die down and sometimes causing permanent nerve damage to the area. In this case with the use of echinacea, the swelling was gone in a few days and healing up great, no damage done.

That being said, it’s pretty self-explanatory that echinacea is good for venomous bites of all kinds. Apply it to bites from ticks, spiders, snakes, etc. It can be taken internally or topically. Echinacea is powerful for infection. It will heal chronic infection, even if it’s the kind that has been dragging your energy down for years. It kills bacteria and is a great assist to viral infections. You definitely want this in your medicine cabinet!

Blackberry root

This is good for your gut. It alleviates diarrhea, food poisoning, and the flu. You can brew tea or make a syrup from the root for infants as well as adults. You could also soak it in vinegar for a week and press it out and take that internally for another form. The spiritual properties of blackberry are fascinating. You can hang a bunch above the bed for help with spiritual and psychic disturbances, being afraid of the dark, and protection from darkness. It can help you to be opened up to psychic experiences and overcoming suppressed intuition if you’ve struggled with that. I would love to see some examples of this and test if this old belief is truly effective!

Chamomile

Chamomile also makes good baths as it is very calming. It will help alleviate anxiety taken as tea or aromatically. It is really good for aches, cramps, and pain from ailments such as stomach ache, intestinal issues, food poisoning, and even overeating. It is also good for acid reflux. In essence, it’s a powerful digestive aid.

Elderflower

The berry from this plant is more commonly used medicinally (and deliciously), but the flower is also potent in its healing abilities. It can be used for all ages, like blackberry. Make a tea from the flowers for colds, flu, and fever. In the case of skin rashes, chickenpox, and other such skin issues, a bath with these flowers would be a great relief. Taking it internally also alleviates skin problems.

Plantain leaf

Take this internally for relief for sinus allergies. Use it topically as a poultice on a wound for increased healing effects, or to help remove slivers, bee stings, and metal shavings. It helps move things to the surface of your skin so you can pull them out.

Ginger

You probably already have an idea of ginger’s health properties, especially when it comes to helping with digestion and stomach issues. Take it in a tea with some honey for nausea, vomiting, indigestion, overeating, and etc. Due to its “hot” nature, it is also effective in clearing mucus. I made ginger and thyme tea when I had some really bad congestion, and it cleared me up right away. It’s delicious with some honey. I will definitely be drinking it any time I feel a bit stuffy!

Goldenseal root

This is a great antibacterial plant that can fight a myriad of things. It kills bacterial and sinus infections, lung infections, and is also good in cases of food poisoning, drinking bad water, intestinal issues, and other stomach issues. You can also use it topically for ruptured discs. Powerful stuff!

St John’s Wort

Last but not least! This can be made into an oil (add it to olive oil or jojoba) or poultice and applied to burns for some much needed relief, including sunburns. It also is awesome for nerve pain or inflammation, and general pain relief and calming of muscles. Spiritually, it is used for overcoming old habits, coming to the light, and healing from spiritual trauma or dark intentions placed upon you.

I hope you learned something new! I sure did. May we apply this awesome knowledge to our lives and be the healthier and more protected for it! In my next post, I’ll share what I learned about using herbs for children and some skin care products you can make yourself from herbs.

Live well,

Katie

Claire 3/18/2016 “What is Rest?”

Last weekend I definitely took Katie’s post to heart. The day she posted it, I went to a hair salon and got my hair cut. Afterwards I walked across the street to a bread store and bought a loaf of pumpkin chocolate chip bread. Later that day I had a photoshoot with a friend for my upcoming graduation, then avoided homework like the plague the whole weekend. It wasn’t a very productive weekend, except for the fact that it was indeed quite productive for my health: mental, spiritual, and physical.

This week, however, was crazy-hectic!

Monday: I had two classes and Family Home Evening (we watched a movie), but on top of that I had to finish a book, read more of Northanger Abbey, and took a midterm for my Tuesday classes.

Tuesday: I had three classes back to back from 8am-1pm and a rehearsal for a big concert we’re doing in Salt Lake City today and in Rexburg tomorrow.

Wednesday: I just had my two classes, but I had to make sure all my homework for the rest of the week and Monday and Tuesday of next week was done. I also went on a date with my roommate to watch Peter and the Starcatcher which was being done on campus (she needed to do it for a class).

Thursday: I had my three classes back to back and then another rehearsal.

Today: I had to wake up at 6:30am so that I could be at the meeting point for the concert I’m in by 8am. I’ll be on the road, rehearsing, and singing in a concert all day today in Salt Lake City. Then tomorrow I have the concert again in Rexburg.

So, how do I balance all of this stuff? Well, the short answer is I don’t. The long answer is that I feel so overwhelmed that sometimes I let stuff slip, even though it’s all important. I’ve found that the best thing to do when I’m busy like this is to just relax, figure out what I need to do and organize all of that first, and then fill in the cracks with stuff I want to do.

For example, this week I’ve somehow managed to do yoga every day. Even if it’s just a few minutes of peace in the morning, it is so worth it!

So as you go through the next few weeks and months and you start feeling the way I do now, just remember to slow down, breathe in deeply, and prioritize everything you need to do.

Live well,

Claire

Katie 3/11/16 “Treat Yo’self”

Dear reader, I hope you’ve scheduled some personal time for this weekend. If you’re reading this, that is a good sign that your health is important to you (or maybe you just really love me). You’ve made an awesome commitment, and I’m proud of you! Health and wellness is something every person should prioritize, since it dictates our whole life. I’m going to ask you to do yourself a favor this week.

You work hard. Life demands everything from you and sucks your energy away. Hopefully most of that energy goes into things that fill your heart with joy: family and friends, creative projects and talents, fun opportunities. However, you and I both know that rarely happens. By the weekend, we’re spent and ready to relax. What I’m asking is for you to take this precious time and put it into something that will benefit you, instead of vegging on the couch.

Treat yourself! With your precious free time, fill it with what you’ve been wanting to do. Fill it with something that is special and different than your normal routine. Get a massage. Read a good book. Listen to a new album. Paint a room. Ride your bike. I want you to do something that benefits you. I want you to do it at your own pace, too. If you’ve been dying to try out your new car on some backroads, go and speed along without anyone else to tell you to slow down. Maybe you want to break out your easel and paints and disappear for a day--don’t guilt trip yourself into letting the kids into the studio and taking up all your time and creativity. This brief moment in time I want to be all about you.

No, it isn’t selfish. Yes, your kids might whine a bit. Remember that you work hard and that it is not only okay, but necessary to cut out personal time for yourself. It can be very restorative and invigorating. It will pour fulfillment and ease into your life.

You deserve a little get-away. Don’t deny yourself, and don’t waste your energy on worthless and wrongly placed guilt for giving time back to yourself. You’d do the same for people you love, so remember that you love yourself, too, and give this gift.

If we all take a little time on occasion to slow down and work on ourselves, over time we will have more to offer. You’ll finish that great hand-carved kitchen table and enjoy all the people around it. You’ll master a new skill. You’ll feel healthier physically and emotionally and have a better version of yourself to share.

This life is all we have, so we really need to invest in ourselves. If we want to get the most out of our time, energy, and natural gifts, we have to prioritize those great needs. You are so worth it!

Have you called up the masseuse yet? What the heck are you still here for? Go!

Live well,

Katie

P.S. It’s finally been warm enough that I felt confident to get my potted plants into the ground. My mom gave me two blueberries and two grapes (and some other plants that didn’t last the winter) last fall. I have the crazy, burning gardening itch to play in the dirt (if you haven’t noticed) and gleefully dug some holes in my lawn for my little plants.

First, I pruned them up on a sunny afternoon. The grapes had some dead shoots and the blueberries needed a little bit of growing guidance as well. They look ready to take off now! They even budded out dramatically just a few days after the prune. Healthy cuts direct the plant’s energy into productivity.

I got those babies into their holes and covered them with woodchips. They look so happy to be planted! I want to train my grapes to go up and get some wire fence or something that they can grow on, so I zip tied them in the general direction I need them to go.

On April 1st, I get to plant my early seeds! It’s less than a month away, people! I can hardly stand to wait. I’m excited to enjoy my garden and share my learning process with you. Until next time!

Claire 3/4/2016 “Why Yoga?”

Hey all! 

It feels like forever since I wrote a blog post (I know, it’s only been a couple weeks)! Well, I’ve known for a few weeks that I wanted to write about Yoga, because it’s an important part of my routine. However, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to write about exactly. There’s just so much about Yoga! Most of it I’ve learned through personal research and by looking up videos on Youtube. Recently, however, I joined this online community called Zenward. This is an online Yoga community focused on providing Yoga routines for Yogis from Beginning to Advanced. I absolutely love it, because our instructors could be from anywhere in the world, and I can do one routine over and over until I get it! Plus, I don’t have to go anywhere to exercise, all I need is my computer and the internet.

However, today when I went to do Yoga, I couldn’t get through the first five minutes of a ten minute flow that I’ve done half a dozen times. I couldn’t figure out why. Sure, I haven’t done Yoga for a couple weeks, but could I really be out of shape already?

For those of you who exercise regularly, you know that the answer is yes, but it’s probably not that simple of an answer either. There could be any number of reasons:

• Not enough sleep
• Not eating enough/well enough
• Not drinking enough water
• The shot I got in my arm yesterday which is still hurting after a day
• And it could even be as simple as motivation

It's hard to tell, but this is Warrior Pose. I don't have my arms
up just because I was in between poses.

That is why it’s SO important to stay on top of your workout routines. Not only that, but to also stay healthy, eat healthy, drink healthy. Really, it’s all about making everything in your body work harmoniously so that you can be in the best shape possible!

This is really hard on me. I was always a healthy kid, but my family wasn’t big on the whole exercise thing, and we did splurge and eat candy and other foods that aren’t the best for our bodies on occasion. This isn’t bad necessarily, it just didn’t teach me healthy habits. I’ve had to learn to create my own healthy habits as an adult, which hasn’t been easy on me. And I’m still learning!

Yoga helps me to realize how each part creates the whole. If one thing is out of whack, everything else will be too, and Yoga understands this. I don’t want to just practice Yoga when I’m on the mat, but I want to practice Yoga in all aspects of my life! And I want to have fun with it while I’m at it! Oh hey, look at that! I AM having fun!

I hope that you will consider these things when you are deciding how to be healthier. And remember, Yoga isn’t just a way to exercise: It’s a way of Life!

Namaste,

Claire