August Newsletter
Image from Aztec Codice Badiano. Written in 1592 by Aztec herbalist Martin de la Cruz. Stolen by the Catholic Church but returned by the Vatican in 1990.
Happy August!
Click here for a full color copy of my August Newsletter. I report back on the curanderismo class I attended at the University of New Mexico this past July. I have become very interested in the Codex Badiano, which is the oldest written record of medicine from Meso-America. I’m also inspired to learn more about the lives and history of the great curanderos of Mexico and the American Southwest. I am starting by reading The Hummingbird’s Daughter, a book on the life of great curandera Teresita Urrea.
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Summer Blessings,
Atava
Tags: Newsletter
UNM Curanderismo Conference and August Classes
Image from Codex Badiano, 1592 Aztec herbal manuscript
Greetings!
As we greet the month of August (and the month of my birthday), I am feeling very blessed and grateful. I recently returned from my annual trip to a ceremony in New Mexico. Afterward, I attended a few days of the University of New Mexico’s incredible two week class entitled Traditional Medicine without Borders, Curanderismo in the Southwest and Mexico.
I arrived in time to receive teachings and healings from a group curanderos from Mexico. My heart is still full from this experience. It was a gift to be in the presence of such high caliber healers with strong roots in the ancient healing wisdom of Meso America.
Curanderismo has so much to offer modern people of all cultures and walks of life. One of the most important aspects of curanderismo is the attention it gives to the tonal, or human spirit. So many people today are suffering from soul sickness or soul loss. This can manifest in many ways- as depression, anxiety, insomia, apathy, addiction, violence, emotional numbness as well as many forms of physical and mental illness.
One of the most effective treatments for the spirit is a traditional cleansing ceremony called the limpia. In the limpia ceremony, the curandero prays over the clients as she or he works with the elements of nature- fresh aromatic herbs, flowers, candles, incense, water, along with songs, drums, & rattles- to cleanse the person of unwanted or imbalanced energies or emotions.
With an expert curandera, a limpia ceremony can be very long and intense. However, most people can learn how to perform a simple limpia on themselves and their loved ones. It is a great skill to have in these times when most people are in deep need of spiritual cleansing.
In honor of this great tradition, I’ll be teaching the basic elements of the limpia in both of my upcoming classes, The Healer’s Toolkit and Herbs as Spiritual Allies.
The Healer’s Toolkit begins Tuesday August 3rd and will be held for five Tuesday evenings in August. In this class we will cultivate skills and knowledge to treat basic health concerns with acupressure and herbal medicine.
Herbs as Spiritual Allies will focus on connecting with the spiritual energies of plants and working with them to balance and heal ourselves. This class will be held mostly outdoors so we can open to the healing power of the plants, the earth and the elements.
Finally, I’m happy to announce that this month that Floracopeia is launching a brand-new website called Medicine Crow. Medicine Crow is dedicated to all aspects of the plant-based, grass roots health care revolution. It is exciting to be a part of a global community of healers, herbalists, gardeners, & environmentalists dedicated to preserving and continuing the wisdom of medicinal plants. Watch the inspiring video by founder David Crow and join us!
Have a blessed month,
Atava
Loving Lemon Balm, Part 2
Lemon Balm has so many great benefits, I had to write two blogs about it!
• Lemon balm also has anti-viral properties. It can be used topically and internally for viruses like herpes and shingles. It mixes well with another anti-viral herb, licorice. A suggested formula would be 3 parts lemon balm to 1 part licorice as a tea or tincture.
• Lemon Balm is good for your heart. It helps to lower blood pressure and can be mixed with motherwort to strengthen the heart.
• Lemon Balm is helpful for colds and flu. Drink hot lemon balm tea to help with the aches and pains that accompany fever. It can also help to induce sweating to break a fever.
• Lemon Balm also can lower the thyroid and is useful in hyperthyroidism. However, it is good to avoid too much use of lemon balm is you have a hypothyroid.
Lemon Balm essential oil has also been studied to be helpful with calming the agitated state of Alzheimer’s. To order the best, high quality organic lemon balm (melissa) essential oil, visit the Floracopeia website.
Tags: herbal medicine, Herbs, lemon balm
Zero deaths caused by herbs
So many people suffer from what I have termed “phyto-phobia”….. a paranoid suspicion that medicinal plants will cause harm or death.
Well here’s the proof from US National Poison data that those suspicious are absolutely untrue! By contrast, pharmaceutical drugs cause over 100,000 deaths per year. That number doesn’t even take into consideration the hundreds of thousands of people who suffer from sever “side effects” of medications, including common over the counter drugs like NSAIDS.
To be honest, I think the phyto-phobia hysteria is intentionally fueled by the super toxic and dangerous pharmaceutical drug companies, but that’s another story.
Read the longer report in Natural News here.
Exciting new dreamwork website!
I’m excited to announce the birth of a hot new website dedicated entirely to dream work! I am a part of the “dream team” of dreamwork facilitators who support the site.
The site will be a place for you to share and explore all of your dreams- your healing dreams, your plant, animal & nature dreams, your ancestral dreams, your prophetic dreams- all with the support and guidance of expert dreamworkers.
The website is going live April 27. In the meantime, check out the inspiring 45 second video by clicking here.
Let the global dream weaving begin!
Loving Lemon Balm, Part 1
Spring is here and the Lemon Balm is flourishing in my garden. Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) is in the mint family and a common weed in the Bay Area. It looks like a mint, but the leaves when crushed give off a lovely lemony scent.
Lemon balm is a great herb to introduce to your garden. It is easy to grow, (as a weed, it needs virtually no care) and it has a broad range of medicinal value. It has so many applications that I am dedicating two blogs to its uses.
USES FOR LEMON BALM, PART 1
• Lemon Balm is a nervine, which means it is a nourishing tonic to your nervous system. Taking lemon balm has a very centering, grounding & calming effect. It can help relieve anxiety and worry and even can help back off a panic attack.
• Lemon Balm also can help to lift your spirits and is mildly anti-depressant.
• In the digestive tract, lemon balm is also very useful. It helps with gas and intestinal spasms, colic in babies, & tension in the gut. Lemon balm can also ease a headache you get from eating too much or from eating food that you are allergic or intolerant too.
• Lemon Balm is a great herb for women too. It helps to regulate and balance the menstrual cycle. With its nervine properties, it is also helpful in PMS. In menopause, lemon balm can be combined with motherwort and used to aid hot flashes, night sweats and heart palpitations. Lemon Balm is also safe for pregnant women.
HOW CAN YOU USE LEMON BALM?
Lemon balm makes a great tea or tincture. You can make a tea of the fresh leaves, or dry and store them for future use. I prefer the taste of lemon balm tea from leaves slightly wilted or dry.
The best way to tincture lemon balm is from the fresh plant.
Lemon balm is also great for baths. It is a very healing plant and I have prescribed it in baths for women suffering sexual trauma.
Lemon Balm Aromatherapy: Just pick some lemon balm, rub it in your palms, and inhale! Its lovely lemon scent will pick up your spirits and clear you mind.
To be continued……stay tuned for more uses on Lemon Balm!
Tags: herbal medicine, lemon balm
Polish Ancestry and Genealogy
Ancestry is now gaining popularity with Hollywood and the NBC Series “Who Do You Think You Are?”.
For people out there who are exploring their Polish ancestry and genealogy, you might be interested in reading my Master’s Thesis entitled “Journey to my Polish Indigenous Mind.” It documents my exploration of my Polish ancestry including my ancestral journey back to Poland. My thesis focused on the earth-based and indigenous roots of my Polish ancestry, including my encounter with the ancient Slavic spirit Baba Yaga or (in Polish) Jezi Baba. In my genealogical exploration, I went beyond the normal methods of gathering names, dates, and stories. In the Indigenous Mind program, we were taught to incorporate indigenous science methodology in our research. These techniques of indigenous science, included dreamwork, ritual, and visiting sacred sites.
This was part of my master’s work in the Indigenous Mind Program at Naropa University Oakland.
Who Do You Think You Are? Ancestry is now popular.
My friend and colleague from our non-profit Circle of Ancestors, Heidi Guttmann wrote a recent blog post about the NBC series “Who Do You Think You Are?” about celebrities exploring their genealogy.
You can watch the first full-length episode featuring Sarah Jessica Parker on NBC.com.
Circle of Ancestors is an inter-cultural community that connects people with their own ancestral traditions through educational programs, experiential learning, ceremonies and other activities.
This reconnection heals and balances, encourages respect for differences and recognition of similarities, deepens community and environmental bonds and promotes peace.
For more information, visit our website, CircleofAncestors.org.
Tags: ancestry, Genealogy, Sarah Jessica Parker
March Newsletter
Greetings!
Spring hasn’t officially arrived, but springtime is in the air and many gorgeous flowers and trees are blooming. Yesterday, when walking by a stand of plum trees, a divinely sweet aroma wafted up to my nose. There’s nothing quite like the smell of fresh plum blossoms! And one of my absolutely favorite trees is in bloom- the voluptuous magnolia. I love the spirit and medicine of magnolia and it is one of the key ingredients in my herbal formula Siete Flores.
As we enjoy the blooming trees and flowers around us, it is a nice time to remember the medicine of flower essences. Flower Essences offer a subtle yet profound system of healing. They work on an energetic level and help to harmonize our mental, emotional and spiritual bodies. Flower essence can support the healing process for all kinds of people and situations. I have used them successfully to help my clients dealing with depression, anxiety, fear, unresolved anger, addiction, trauma recovery, loss, intimacy issues, career and life path concerns, ancestral healing and much, much more. Flower essences also work great with children and animals too!
Call 510-541-2715 to schedule your appointment today.
For more information click here to go to my services page.
For the complete, in full color March Newsletter, click here.
Dreaming with the Ancestors
One way I have been applying my training in Indigenous Mind is to lead dream groups that focus on dreaming with the ancestors. Dream work was a central part of the Indigenous Mind experience and we were blessed to be guided by some incredible distinguished traditional elders, including Dr. Apela Colorado, Mr. Hale Makua and Auntie Mahealani Poe Poe. In much of the western world, dreams are viewed mostly from a the perspective of the individual’s psyche. In IM dream work, we also viewed dreams as a major means of communicating with the ancestors. Many of us had dreams of ancestors and were able to recover lost bits of family history through our dreams. I personally had many dreams about the Polish land and Polish people as I began to explore my Polish roots. You can read more about my ancestral dreams in a paper I wrote called “Dream Journey to Poland.”
Vasalisa the Brave, from Slavic fairy tales of the Goddess/Witch Baba Yaga
Starting on March 18th, I will lead a 8 week dream group that focuses on Dreaming with the Ancestors. In this facilitated dream group, we will focus on how our dreams can help us connect to the ancestral and spiritual realms. In each class, we will build an altar and create a sacred space for our dreamwork. The focus of our dreamwork will be first be on our genealogical ancestors and we will set our intentions to remember their stories, rituals, and healing traditions. We will also practice making dream connections with our animal and plant allies, magical beings (like fairies) and our own spirit guides. We will work with family stories, fairy tales and folk art to help activate our ancestral dreams and memory. Flower essences and plant spirit medicine will be incorporated to help enrich our dreaming process.
I have facilitated similar dreamgroups for the past few years and amazing things are occurring in them. It seems as if the ancestors are ready and eager to show up for us to do this work!
For more information, go to the Events and Classes page on my website, AncestralApothecary.com.
For those of you who don’t live in the California Bay Area…….. teleclasses coming soon! Drop me an email if you are interested.
Blessings,
Atava
