How herbalism is different than what you’ve tried before
Herbalism is the use of plants to for affect a person’s health. There are two ways it’s commonly practiced in modern Western society. The first is the use of plants for acute illnesses. This concept is very familiar to us because we typically turn to medications for symptom relief. For instance, for a runny nose we may take an OTC antihistamine and decongestant. If you were substituting herbs, you may consider ragweed (yes, that ragweed) and eyebright. It’s fairly straightforward, once you know which herbs can be used for which symptoms.
The second way to apply herbs is in a very foundational way. This is where they become powerful tools to which conventional medicine - and even the typical use of vitamins and supplements - simply can’t compare. Conventional medicine typically forces changes, even when the conditions being changed are natural and expected responses to an unhealthy environment within the body. Vitamins and supplements can fill in gaps, but often that’s not enough for the body to function more healthily. When used foundationally, herbs literally change the body’s ecosystem, allowing us to create or regain better health.
When dealing with a chronic illness, such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, or digestive / intestinal issues, simply addressing symptoms will not restore your health. It might allow you to function better but it’s not an effective path to wellness and, over time, you will likely get worse, or need higher doses of medicine to maintain the status quo. To recover from these kinds of chronic illnesses, you need to change the conditions in the body that are causing the symptoms that are making you feel ill. This is where herbalism shines.
When I start working with a client, I’m looking for signs of what is off in the body. For instance, something as simple as excessive dryness in the intestines can cause quite a bit of pain. Lack of tone in the intestines can cause systemic inflammation, among other things. Both of these tissue state conditions can be effectively altered by herbs.
If I’m working with someone who has chronic digestive issues, herbs can do things that digestive enzyme supplements and proton-pump inhibitors can’t. Herbs aren’t a band-aid (enzymes) or an instrument of force (many medications). Instead, they are actually changing the body, enabling and spurring it to function properly… the way it was designed to function. Think of making a proper repair to a machine versus jerry-rigging it.
You likely have never tried a truly herbal approach. You may have taken some herbs or had some recommended by a provider who integrates herbs, but it was likely not foundational. Herbs that change the body’s ecosystem are the best chance of recovering from illnesses such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and chronic digestive / intestinal issues. This is what makes herbalism different.