A clinical trial a few years ago concluded that stress plays a role in sickness. This idea is not new to natural therapists, who have always believed in treating “the whole person” – hence the term “wholistic” therapies. Natural therapists work on the premise that you as a person are more than just your body parts and need to be treated on more than just a physical level.

On the first evening of my herbal medicine training with renown Australian herbalist Dorothy Hall, we were drawn a triangle (pyramid) to represent any disease. The top apex represented the physical body. The bottom two apexes were “Emotions and Attitudes” & “Environment and Circumstances” respectively. This, we were told, was how we needed to view every single person who ever sought our help.

As time went by, we were taught that herbs treat the physical body, and that flower essences are the tool for treating emotions and attitudes. Dorothy Hall always maintained that once strengthened and balanced physically and emotionally, most people then feel strong enough to make the necessary decisions about and changes to their environment and circumstances. I have continued with this philosophy in my own clinical practice and find it extremely effective. Flower essences are literally medicine for the emotions.

Flower Essences are not therapeutic drugs but work on the mind, soul and spirit. They are obtained by extracting the healing vibrational quality from the highest evolved part of the plant – the flowers. They work on an emotional level and heal the negative emotions and belief patterns, held in the subconscious mind. Australian Aboriginals have used flowers to heal emotional imbalances and physical injuries for thousands of years. Flower Essences were also used in Ancient Egypt, as well as Asia, Europe and South America. This system of healing was rediscovered and popularised seventy years ago by Dr. Edward Bach with his use of English flowering plants. Naturopath, Ian White has further developed this method using plants from all over Australia for his Australian Bush Flower Essences. His grandmother and great grandmother were herbalists, among the first white people to research the medicinal qualities of Australian plants, and his grandmother taught him from an early age. Ian has taken their knowledge one step further and worked with the plants and their influence on emotions.

Flower Essences are completely natural, perfectly safe, free from side effects and adjust to the needs of the individual taking them. It is not possible to overdose or harm when prescribing. If an inappropriate remedy is chosen, it simply will not work. Adults and children as well as animals can use the Essences. We are all functioning on beliefs and emotions, which may not necessarily be helpful to us. By changing our thoughts and beliefs we can relieve stress, which can then ultimately assist in restoring our health. Flower Essences can improve the quality of our life and bring us clarity, courage, strength and commitment to follow and pursue our life goals and visions. As well as resolving upsets and distress in one’s life they also help us to develop a higher level of intuition, self esteem, spirituality, fun and creativity.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been associating certain emotions with specific body areas for over five thousand year, so this concept is not new. The notion that emotions affect our physical health has been explored in modern times by Louise Hay, and detailed in her classic book “You Can Heal Your Life”.  The beauty of the Australian Bush Flower Essences is that some also work energetically on specific organs and body systems. For example Dagger Hakea addresses the emotions of resentment, irritability and bitterness. These feelings have traditionally been thought by TCM to be held in the liver. Ancient wisdom held that clues to a plant’s healing qualities were clearly visible via a language and process known as the Doctrine of Signatures. When this system is applied to Dagger Hakea, it is found that this plant has a strong energetic resonance with the liver and gall bladder.

If you would like to learn more about the healing qualities of Australian Bush Flower Essences, click here to see when Linn is teaching a workshop near you in the USA or Australia.

Or click here for the full workshop schedule of Australian Bush Flower Essences in Australia, the UK, North and South America, Asia and Europe.

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Herbs have safely been used to treat illnesses in horses for thousands of years, just as they have been used by humans.

In fact horses, like most animals are wonderful herbalists. They instinctively seek out a wide variety of plants as they graze, and use these plants to self medicate.

Horses are sensitive to some herbs, so never assume that a herb is safe for a horse just because you can use it yourself or on another animal. Dosage is also very important.

It takes years to train a herbalist about the safe use of herbs. A large amount of time also includes what is called “the fine print”. Which herbs should never be used. Which herbs need to be used with caution, especially in regards to dosage.

When it comes to herbal treatment of animals, what is safe in a human can kill a horse.  A herb that can safely be used by dogs can kill a cat.

More harm is done by herbs out of ignorance from untrained lay people than by all the herbalists in the world combined.

The aim of the information in Herbs 4 Horses is to provide  information on some common herbs that can help your horse with minor ailments.

For more serious complaints, consult a herbalist trained in herbal treatment of horses.

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SENNA TEA

Alexandrian Senna – Cassia acutifolia -Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa

American (or Wild) Senna – Cassia marilantica – Eastern USA

This tea has been used for millenia as a safe, gentle laxative, and was beloved by the ancient Egyptians and Native Americans. It is also  considered an excellent remedy for intestinal worms.

The tea can be either Senna pods, or dried leaves + ground pods. Senna is also available in tablet and extract form.

A cup of Senna tea in the evening before bed produces a one off bowel motion the following morning for cases of mild constipation.  Senna does not usually cause griping pains, so is a good mild laxative for children.

Taken this way, Senna tea is also safe for the constipation experienced by pregnant ladies, but the dosage of one cup in the evening must not be exceeded.

For non pregnant ladies, if Senna tea doesn’t work you may need to try something stronger, like Liquorice Root or Sassafras.

Persistant constipation requires medical investigation to exclude any serious underlying medical condition.

Senna can be part of a bowel cleansing regime and its effect is amplified by the Australian Bush Flower Essence “Bottlebrush”.

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RASPBERRY LEAF

(Rubus striqosus or Rubus idaeus)

The former is found mostly in North America and has prickles, the latter is native to Europe and has few or no prickles. Both grow wild in the field and forests. Ah, but isn’t half the challenge avoiding the spiky bits as you gather the fruit and leaves?

Herbalists throughout the ages have given pregnant ladies a cup of Raspberry Leaf tea a day, for its many health giving benefits.

Its a good idea to start with this one three months before you try for a baby. It has an excellent reputation for aiding conception.

Raspberry Leaf is high in Iron, Copper, Vitamin A and Vitamin C, all needed by the growing baby. It is the highest food source of Folic Acid, a deficiency of which will cause spina bifida, so if you prefer your supplements natural (i.e. absorbable), take a cup of Raspberry Leaf tea a day in the first trimester.

In the second and third trimesters continue with a cup a day as it helps the placanta and also strengthens your uterine muscles so you get good strong contractions to more easily push out your baby during labour.

Keep it afterwards to get your uterus back in shape and to help milk production.

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Rosehip

(Rosa canina and Rosa Rubiginosa)

One of my favourites, with a tangy berry flavour. Rosehips is made from the his of the common Dogrose, with Rosa Rubiginosa being the Australian variety.

Rosehips are high in Iron, Copper, Vitamin P and Vitamin K, making useful for everyone, especially pregnant ladies.  One cup of Rosehips tea will also provide your full daily allowance of Vitamin C.

A tonic for the adrenal glands and high in energy, Rosehips tea provides you with excellent support when you are feeling tired or stressed. It gives an equivalent boost as a cup of coffee, but is health enhancing rather than health depleting.

Try it hot in Winter either by itself or with some cinnamon or chilled in Summer with a slice or lemon.

Professional herbalists also use this in its concentrated form as an extract to achieve its many beneficial effects even faster.

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My friend and colleague Kimm Woodward has written a fantastic e-book called “The Herbal A-Z”. Kimm is a herbalist and an acupuncturist so is trained in both both Western and Chinese naturopathic philosophy and combines both of these in her book.

Kimm had a successful clinic in SE Queensland, Australia, for many years, and now that she has become an “Elder”, she decided to write down what she knows so it can pass into the hands of the next generation. Wanting her wisdom to be accessible to as many people as possible, she asked me to turn the raw material into an e-book and use my knowledge of the internet to “Get it Out There”.

The Herbal A to Z provides herbalists with an A-Z list of common ailments and the herbs traditionally used in their treatment.

It is a user friendly ready reference for practitioners and the curious. This apparently simple collection of information is  the summary of hundreds of years of research, experimentation, observation and learning by well known herbalists and writers who collected the information originally.  Kimm has collated and condensed it.

Even experienced herbalists will benefit from having this book in their clinic, because we all use herbs  differently and there is always more to learn. Those newer to this calling will find it especially invaluable.

Many of my friends are herbalists, which means we often end up talking herbs when we get together and swap information. It has always been so with those of us drawn to this calling! I love learning new ways to use my favourite herbs.

I trained with arguably the best herbalist in Australia, Dorothy Hall, towards the end of her career when she had been practising for over 55 years and teaching for over 40 years. I have now been in clinical practice for  over 10 years myself. In addition to this, I’ve been personally mentored by Ian White, founder of Australian Bush Flower Essences and Annie Meredith, an acuncturist, for my training as Senior Lecturer with Bush Essences. This work has brought me in contact with amazing healers and world class herbalists from all over Australia, the USA and Canada.

Even so, I learnt a lot when I read The Herbal A – Z. Not that this came as a surprise, I believe there is always lots more to learn about herbal medicine. One of the things I love about it is that I will never know more than a fraction of what there is to know. One can never be bored.

I immediately printed off a copy for my clinic and have been referring to it ever since.

My point is that this is a very practical and easy to use reference guide to have on your desk and you will use it daily.

Also included are additional pages:

• Common Herbs Listed According to Their Function and
• Vitamins in Food and Herbs

It is one thing to get a person well – but they need to keep themselves that way and so ‘food as medicine’ is valuable information for you to be able to share with your clients.

If you think the day may come when this knowledge may be lost buy this book.

If you are curious about herbal medicines that may have been used to treat an illness in the past, this is the book for you.

This book could also be of interest to the innovative medical researcher of the future.

To order click here

After payment, you will immediately be provided with an electronic version of the book to save to your computer and print off.

Please come back here and share your thoughts on the book with me and others.

Bruises respond well to topical applications of herbs, but for bid or deep bruises, internal herbs are also recommended.

Soak a cotton pad with Witchazel Lotion or 1stAde solution and apply as a compress to the affected area for between 15 and 60 minutes, depending upon the severity of the bruise. Repeat one to two times daily until all soreness, swelling and discolouration is completely gone.

You can also apply take homeopathic Arnica:

After the compress, apply Herbal Healer to the bruise several times daily.

Like all herbal medicines, the sooner you start the remedy, the faster and better the result. If it was not possible to apply these healing herbs immediately after the injury, start as soon as possible – better late than never. I

If you have a very old bruise that still feels hard and / or a little tender even months or years later, apply one of these herbs at least once a day until the area feels normal once again; this may take many months but it is important that it be done.

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