Early in my career as a Clinical Herbalist, I realized there was a need to help guide students who are training in herbalism at-home. Now more than ever, there is even a greater need with this latest pandemic. Interest in herbalism has increased with curiosity and an extra willingness to learn about herbal medicine. I am contacted more often now from people who want to learn, but they are unaware on how to get started. It’s easy to give them the names of schools, organizations, books, classes, and conferences. It’s not as easy to offer explanations on what steps they should take, what information is required to study, when they should be ready to see clients or open a business, or even what kinds of resources are available to them. That could take hours to explain to each individual. Until now. I have decided to offer that guidance in easy steps. This is one of my future goals along with my niche and contribution to the herbal community.
There are many schools now available both in-person and online that offer great training in herbalism. However, not everyone has the time, money, or ability to take these courses. The only option for the student at this point is to train themselves. After teaching students for many years, I have decided to dedicate my time in helping this group of students and guiding them in their studies. They need guidance in what to learn, what order to learn each subject, hands-on training, and what to do with the information once they have learned it. With this extra guidance, I believe the self-trained student can be less stressed and less overwhelmed by the incredible amount of information that is available at their fingertips.
Part of my path has been to interact with students that are interested in starting their journey into herbalism while at other times, it has been with more experienced practitioners. What I have found is that everyone needs guidance from a professional teacher that is within their reach, and a map (so to speak) to show them what can be done with this information. A teacher that can advise them and answer their questions, and have a general outline of subjects to learn.
At this point, one could say that this guidance and information is already offered in schools, conferences, and online courses. That self-training in herbalism can be coupled with a combination of these other choices. That there are many herbalists and teachers that can guide them and answer their questions. The real issue is that these opportunities are not available to everyone, and I believe everyone should have the opportunity to learn herbalism. Where does that leave the student who can’t afford to travel, pay for lodging, pay for tuition, pay for individual classes and webinars, or pay and register for conferences all over the United States? Where does that leave the person living far away from any schools and without internet services? Where does that leave the person with a full-time job, or one who has children to raise that doesn’t have the time to attend those scheduled classes? It leaves them alone in their training, or it leaves them with no other option than to quit their studies altogether.
You may be one of the many self-trained students that are currently struggling with getting a full education in herbalism. Or, you may have attended some schooling, but are unsure of what steps you should take afterwards. Does any of this sound familiar to you? There will be four different ways that I can and will be available to help guide the self-trained student now and in the near future. I am offering individual classes that are available online that includes these steps along with some hands-on training exercises. These will be recorded for all registrants that cannot make the live sessions. You can register by visiting my website under the Events page and follow the instructions. You can also add your name to my mailing list for future announcements. I am writing a book specifically targeting the self-trained student in herbalism with the guidance I mentioned. It will guide the reader in steps, offer advice along the way, offer practical hands-on exercises, and include a section for the individual to check their understanding. In this book, I will be guiding the reader to create their own at-home apothecary while offering other herbal remedies to include. This book is not in print yet, but I will making future announcements for preorders. I am available on TikTok @simpletrainingherbalist, Facebook @MaryColvinClinicalHerbalist, and Instagram @ancestralherbology. The fourth way I will help is with a future website dedicated to videos, podcasts, membership opportunities for mentoring, and Q&A pages. This website will be available by the end of 2023 if not sooner. Until all of this can be available, I want to help you continue in your training right now.
I think the best approach to self-study is one subject at a time. Often, the self-trained student buys all different kinds of books with information related to multiple subjects, or reads one book to start that has multiple subjects included in it. They might attend classes about individual subjects, and then miss out on others because they are not aware of how to proceed. You do not have to be an expert in each subject right away. That is too much pressure. Get an idea about the subject and learn the basics first. Once you have a basic understanding of the subject, you will be able to do more research and eventually–end up being an expert. I would like to say that many experienced and long-time practicing herbalists also feel that they don’t know everything yet. You know what? That is perfectly fine and completely normal. Herbalism is all about continuous learning, discovering new information, and trying new things. That is the fun part about it!
The first subject to learn is basic botany and botanical terminology. It is important to understand how to identify a plant in the wild, and know the identification of plant parts used in harvesting and preparing herbal medicine. This information is a must for wildcrafters and foragers alike. Learn the parts, the functions of each part, the plant families, plant physiology, and the common terms used in botany. Even if you do not plan on harvesting the herbs from the wild, or from your own gardens, this information is still valuable to an herbalist. There might come a time in the future that you won’t be able to purchase any herbs, and you will have no other choice than to grow or harvest them yourself.
Once you understand the parts of a plant and how to identify it, you should learn how to harvest them correctly to make your medicine. This information includes topics about sustainability, when to harvest each part of the plant during the season, what tools should be used, whether to use them dry or fresh, and the best storage.
Another subject to learn is everything related to plant medicine. These are the basic medicinal properties, the basics of energetics, the different types of herbal preparations used to make medicine, the tools to help make the medicine, and dosing and measurement requirements. This is crucial before going any further so that you can research herbs and understand the terminology used to describe the actions each herb has on the body, how to choose the right herb for individuals, how the herb is best prepared for what medicinal purposes, and how to safely administer this medicine.
Chemistry is an important part of learning herbalism. It is important to understand what chemical constituents the plant contains, what actions those constituents contribute in herbalism, and how they are best extracted. My advice is to avoid this subject until you have learned the basics, you have researched individual herbs, and you have some experience working with those herbs. I say this because you will avoid confusion right now as you are beginning. When you research each individual herb, you will find out how the herb is best extracted along with an explanation of the constituents it contains anyway. You can study Chemistry as an advanced herbalist. It is not necessary in the beginning.
At this time, you can thoroughly research individual herbs. I advise my students to pick 10 herbs at a time that are growing around them to start with. I advise not only reading information about each one, but also using and connecting with them individually. Learn about their medicinal properties, their energetics, what parts are used, best herbal preparations to make with the herb, its traditional uses, their contraindications and interactions, and their dosing requirements. If you want to grow your own, it is good to know their germination requirements, growing conditions, and growth habits. You want to know about the plant and be one hundred percent sure of its identification. You can then harvest the parts needed sustainably, make the herbal preparations, and taste them yourself. Feel how each herb acts in your body, and document the results in a journal. You can also take pictures of each plant and add it along with this information. It is not necessary to know 100 herbs as you begin. It’s not about how many herbs you know, but rather how many herbs you know well. Take your time getting to know each plant that you are studying, and add one or two more plants when you are ready.
This should help guide many of you that are reading this now and currently starting your journey into herbalism. If you are not a beginner, but moving into an advanced herbalist, the challenge is the same. Are you experienced in all of the above? If you haven’t already started, you can begin learning about the history of herbalism, and how each plant was used historically. Learn about how herbalism got started, what cultures were involved in providing this information, and how herbalism is taught in other cultures. This can provide much more information for the herbalist student, and give insight into other ways of utilizing our plant allies that have once been forgotten, or out of use in today’s society. It can also help the student be respectful and grateful to these other cultures for this knowledge.