Centered

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 collection outings with my father and three sisters in the Highlands of Scotland where my family lived. Dare I say, we were lured out by a quarter of a snicker bar each at the time - I think we developed a good eye for accuracy over that! One of my

Deathcap mushrooms (Amanita phalloides), accidentally ingested by foragers, usually kills within days due to liver and kidney destruction, but thanks to milk thistle being administered in hospitals in Europe and America - lives are saved! Intravenous administration reduces death by Deathcap mushroom by 50%, demonstrating it's extreme importance and vital action on the liver and kidneys. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3414726/ https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/milk-thistle-and-mush…/ About 8 hours after ingestion of Deathcap, amatoxin starts to take effect - severe abdominal cramps, diarrhoea and vomiting occur, often

Chamomile or going by the Latin name, Matricaria recutita, is a very underrated remedy for sleep but it can work really, really well. The trick is to make it strong, short and sweet. What do I mean by that? Make it strong - 2 or 3 teabags per cup. Make it short - Chamomile is a natural diuretic so make it a half cup size to save you getting up in the night! Make it sweet - add

Something I find sad and commonly see is the distorted struggle that the relationship with food can become. Food is supposed to be a double blessing - a source of pleasure (including the sharing and communal aspect) and nourishment (healing and protection). The problem often starts with poor food choices which over time lead to a lowered metabolism and a subsequent battle of steadily increasing weight. The response to this is typically reducing calories in a yo-yo fashion