Should a Client Take an Herb They Don't Like?

Now found at the NEW student blog HERE:

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Teacher Feedback: Asthma Attacks

This is some feedback I gave a student on his/her test this week. I wanted to share it with everyone as I felt it was an important point:

His/her answer:

2. Name two ways you can stop an asthma attack
1. You can apply pressure to the ling area with your palm.
2. Thyme and/or oregano oil rubbed on the chest can often stop asthma
attacks immediately

My response:

Very good! Also, we always want to remember the obvious – find the source and remove it. If it is an excercize induced attack, the person needs to rest. If it was induced by a smell then the person needs to be removed from that area.

Student Dialogues: Using Affordable Remedies

I corrected a student test a few weeks ago and she made the following comment on her assignment:

Due to a limited budget I had to use what I had on hand! I used Hawthorne berries & Licorice Root.

My response:

That is the best way to do it. One should always explore what is on hand before purchasing expensive or new herbs. In most cases a person will either have something in their backyard, their cupboard or at the corner store available to them at very little cost. Good job!

Student Dialogues - Usage of Herbs

Excerpt from a student test:

I know its not a cold, but even if it is, I use the same remedy. (she is talking about allergies).

I make a cup of tea with Echinacea, Mint medley (has both peppermint and spearmint) and a teaspoon of Colloid silver, along with a teaspoon of sugar to make my blood sugar go up a bit.

It doesn't take long to feel better. Right now, the tea cup is sitting next to me, cooling off a bit so I don't burn my mouth on it. It is 4:30 a.m. and I just got up feeling the same 'cold' symptoms I had when I went to bed.

By 7 a.m. I felt perfectly normal. Was a perfect combination to control whatever had a hold of me last night and this morning.

This is good to treat something that is “like a cold” with the same remedies. Unlike modern pharmaceuticals, herbs are used because of their properties and because the effects they have on certain systems in the body – they are not used for specific diseases or illnesses. There are some people and companies who have mislabeled herbs “for colds”, “for PMS”, etc…but this is misleading and limits the use of each of these teas, when really, each of these “formulas” could be used for many things. Your usage of the Echinacea and mint is a perfect example of this. Echinacea is good for the immune system in general and when you have allergies it is important to strengthen the immune system. Mints are good for colds, but they also are good for runny noses, itching, stomach problems and a number of other symptoms you may have when your allergies “flare up”.

Student Dialogues - Herbal First Aid and Allergies

Student: Self-diagnosis can be very important these days because blood and skin tests do not show up all problems at the doctor's office.

My response: You are absolutely right. Additionally, sometimes combinations of substances (like milk and wheat together) can cause more of a reaction than “just wheat” or “just milk”. A test will not show this.

Student Excerpts: Affordability and Variety in Healing

This excerpt and my comments are taken from Janet's assignment on aromatherapy. Great job Janet!

Aromatherapy

I want to start off by saying I choose a lot of my oils not only for the properties but also for the affordability.

This is brilliant! I always do this too. First, I ask what people already have in their home, then I think of things that they can use from their kitchen or common items, then I start with the most affordable oils and herbs. Another benefit of this is that the most affordable ones are usually also the most abundant ones. Some of the more expensive oils and herbs are expensive because they are harder to find and some have become over-harvested to near-extinction.

I have learned if you can make things affordable, yet effective to people they are more likely to use it and stay with it. A lot of people just do not have the money now days. If I can make them an effective affordable oil treatment it works for both of us. I have to purchase these to have on hand and also sell them to the consumer, so that is why you might see some similar treatments in some areas. I know they work and they are the more attainable and affordable of the oils. Hope that makes sense and you understand what I mean. Then on top of that a lot of the basics cover so much and are so well rounded it would be silly not to use them if they work regardless of the repetitive nature J Also I have a wonderful flu oil that I burn, when someone is getting a cold or during the winter months. It is Eucalyptus/Tea Tree and just a little bit of cinnamon mainly for the scent…….it is a really great aroma and seems to work well and makes the house smell nice.

I completely agree. I once wrote an article on how you can heal everything with just three herbs (or oils). If each person would pick a variety of three and really get to know those three they would be amazed at what they could do with just three oils or herbs.

This is an excerpt from a student assignment this week. She did a WONDERFUL job with all of her clients. This is just a short sample of what she wrote about one of them. I added some additional information and thought I would share it with the group as well because the book I am recommending is well worth reading and reminders about keeping things simple are always good - even for me. I think as healers we want so badly to provide our clients with some herb or food or diet that will help that we can often forget to tell them about the basics. Before I give any client advice or a program I make sure first that they are sleeping enough, eating right, drinking enough water, not taking harmful substances (too much coffee, cigarettes, etc...) and getting exercise. For without these basic things most people will experience some level of illness and natural healing will not be as effective. Natural healing can help people accomlish these things better (like herbs to help you sleep or herbs to give you more energy to exercise, etc...) and herbs can help...but real healing will not happen without the basics in place.

Student Work:."..But I did tell her that maybe a ginger pack for her kidneys would help and some castor oil packs for that spine… She said that everything I told her fit and she was impressed with how accurate they eyes showed her problems………oh one more note, she is tired a lot………..not normal tired, like really tired, but I told her if those kidneys are stressed, those adrenals are as well and when she sees improvement there, she should get a boost of energy as well."

My Feedback :Yes, anyone with kidney issues is going to be really tired. At the very least she should drink a lot more water. Especially with nursing she is going to be so dehydrated. Dehydration is a problem for so many people and they don’t realize it because it is usually not an emergency situation. You can read all about that in “Your Body’s Many Cries for Water” – an amazing book!

Student Dialogues - Aromatherapy and Arthritis

Student Suggestions: Arthritis: I would use Blue Chamomile (anti-inflammatory, arthritis), Juniper (arthritis), Lavender (analgesic) and Rosemary (arthritis, muscle pain).
This is easy to use. I would make into a massage oil and apply to the area. This could be carried easily with the client at all times. It will be easy to use and apply and keep with a person. My client gets upset when the pain starts and has trouble in thinking of what they need, so to have it already prepared for her and easy to use will cut down on that.

My Feedback: When I lived in the Middle East I met many women who were told (by their mother or some wise woman) that they should drink chamomile tea for arthritis. All of these women healed themselves on just one cup of chamomile a day. You might try, adding a cup of chamomile tea to this program. Additionally, I would recommend using something gentle on a daily basis (like the lavender and chamomile) but make ANOTHER mixture with the juniper and rosemary for days when the pain is worse. Those are strong oils and would be too strong for you to use on a daily basis.

Student Dialogues - Aromatherapy and Grief

These are some of my feedback notes to a student that turned in the test for the aromatherapy unit. As always, I post these with the idea that all students can learn from each other:

Student answer: (An aromatherapy mixture for grief) Since there is grief and guilt, which is a disappointmentI would make a blend of the following: Rose (disappointment, grief, sadness and shock), Jasmine (disappointment, grief, sadness), and Rosewood (sadness).
I would use these oils because of the ease of administration. As well, they will quickly go to the limbic system, effecting the emotions. I would use this blend as a spray that the client could either spray in the air when needed or wear as a perfume.

My Feedback: This sounds perfect – oils are so good for grief because they surround the body with their healing properties and they work on a strong emotional level too, with scent memory. Rose is perfect for this situation. Jasmine would be a great addition. The rosewood is good too, however, perhaps not necessary. You might want to try it with just the first two before you add more. I tend to stick with one or two and THEN go to three. I don’t like going beyond three ingredients. I like to focus instead on really getting to know each herb to the depth of its being. I think a lot of formulas on the market today use many many herbs because they are only looking at one aspect of the herb’s personality. An herb has a deep personality much like a person – layers and layers of it. Some of them hidden until you know them well. So I recommend using one herb or oil for a while and really getting to know it. Not just what is in the books – but an intuitive knowledge as well.

Student Dialogues - How to Type a Person

Each week or two I like to share some of the dialogue I have with students that I think everyone might benefit from. I also like to share excerpts from student assignments that I think other students would enjoy reading.

Student says (I do not mention names if the student adds something of a personal nature):
My typology would be Choleric - quick but strong and lasting reaction. Hot and dry. Quick tempered. I believe I am Choleric. When I get sick, it usually happens quickly, but is strong and really knocks me down. I have a quick temper, even though I really do try to control it.

Very perceptive…a good way to type someone is to look at both the physical and the psychological as you have done! You are also a highly motivated student (this is what I see from my end) – most students like this fall into either the choleric or sanguine temperament. Melancholics are slower and methodical and sanguine are not as steady. Phlegmatics need more outside motivation, but once they get started they can be very steady as well.

Student Dialogues - Exercise

Each week or two I like to share some of the dialogue I have with students that I think everyone might benefit from. I also like to share excerpts from student assignments that I think other students would enjoy reading.

Student (name not given to protect privacy) shares that she needs to start exercising again. This is what I shared when I commented on her assignment:

I am glad you brought this up! The older you get the more important it is to work out on a daily basis to keep your body flexible and healthy and prevent injury. The program you choose does not even need to be intense. Flexibility and movement are the key – so even a beginner yoga class would be great. Worry more about flexibility and movement than your weight. The weight will come off naturally over time as you make diet and exercise changes. However, the renewed feeling you get from even doing something small will revitalize you within 2 days. I don’t really like gyms but the weather in Iowa here is miserable so I finally joined one. They have a silver shoes program for people over 65 which is based all on light weights and flexibility and movement. They have their class at the same time I am at the gym. This would be perfect – something like that. So many clients I have had have been healed by starting an exercise program again – even a light one. And the amazing thing about it is that you see results within one day or two days so you don’t have to wait to see the results.

If I still live here when I am 65 I am going to join that class! Our bodies get less forgiving as we get older. Did you hear about the 40-year-old Olympic athlete who has to get muscle rubs after each event because her muscles don’t recover as they should after an intense workout anymore? She is a role model for all of us getting older – I am 40 and already feeling my body is less forgiving.

I always share with people that in all the years I have done iridology readings the one constant in the healthy irises I saw was that the people exercised. They may have even had a bad diet or stressful life but as long as they had exercise their iris showed up as healthy. However, people who came in with perfect diets still had many health problems if they did not exercise.