
I have been a qualified medical herbalist for 25years but since childhood herbs and natural medicine have been a significant and poignant part of my life. From hedgerow to health, my childhood was punctuated by regular herb picking outings with my father and three sisters in the Highlands of Scotland where my family lived. One of my earliest recollections is making Coltsfoot syrup out of the honey-smelling yellow flowers in a barrel next to the Aga which was subsequently pressed out and used to alleviate coughs. Looking back, those days spent gathering herbs now hold a special place although at the time more than a little coercion was required: being boot-deep in a bog collecting bog bean (Menyanthes trifoliata), extremely useful for rheumatic and muscular pain, is not your average family outing
These experiences plus a deep interest in science and nature led me to follow in my father’s footsteps to study for an honours degree of Bachelor of Science in Herbal Medicine, incredibly, under the same school principle as my father, Brian Lamb. I use a combined approach of tailored herbal medicine, nutritional therapy, practical lifestyle guidance and blood or stool tests when needed to address the root cause where possible and help the body restore back to good health.
As the daughter of Scotland’s longest practicing medical herbalist I am the UK’s only second generation herbalist. With a family history of doctors dating back nearly 200 years and a childhood where medicinal plants were first-line medicine, perhaps it is not surprising that I followed in my father’s footsteps.