I have been studying herbalism for quite a while now.  Not all of that time formally, of course, but, at least since the late 1980s, I was learning on my own.  Back then, most of the learning I did was through books.  There was no Internet, and herbalists who taught others what they knew were few and far between (and because there was no Internet, those that did teach weren’t easy to find).

I learned most of what I knew from reading and experimenting on myself.  I made teas and incense, bath salts and lotions, sachets and dream pillows.  I experimented with dried herbs I purchased in bulk from the health food store to make infusions of chamomile to relax or capsules of Valerian root to ease cramping during menses, but had never heard of a tincture and had no idea how one might go about making stronger medicines from plants.  In fact, I had never really even considered that what I was making WAS medicine, and that I might actually be able to just go out and collect my own plants, rather than rely on whatever I found in the big glass jars at the Sun Drop Grocery downtown.

When I did start growing my own herbs, when I finally had my own garden, they were of the culinary variety and I used them for cooking, baking and occasionally as a garnish.  They were beautiful in my garden and flower beds and I loved the way they scented the air when I brushed past them.  Thyme, oregano, chives and mints, parsley, sage, and sweet basil.  Growing anything that might be considered even more medicinal seemed exotic to me (and I never would have considered digging up my Echinacea flowers to use their powerful roots).

It was around the late 1990s when I first began my foray into herbs for actual healing.  After having been treated for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) with Solganol (gold salts injections) for some nine years, my Rheumatologist decided I had been on the treatment for too long and changed my medication to oral Methotrexate.  If you aren’t familiar with this drug, it’s used to suppress the immune system and is often used for cancer.  It suppressed my immune system alright!  I immediately developed Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and an active case of Epstien Barr Virus (EBV).

Because of this, I found myself sleeping 18-20 hours per day.  During the hours I was awake, I stumbled around like a zombie, feeling foggy and achy, and hugely depressed.  I quit my part-time job and withdrew from college.  I just couldn’t handle the otherwise reasonable amount of stress that came with either.  I argued with my Rheumatologist, begging him to try something else.  His response was that the Methotrexate was working for my arthritis.  My response was, “Am I not MORE than my arthritis?”

Luckily, I was seeing a holistic dentist who put me in contact with a local woman who sold tinctures of various herbs and she recommended that I begin taking olive leaf extract.  She assured me that this extract could be used to kill the EBV.  I stopped taking the Methotrexate (against my rheumatologist’s advice, of course) and started taking the olive leaf extract.  Within two years, I was back at work and school, and still off arthritis medications - managing that with diet alone. (Just in case you think I’m advocating that you, the reader, stop taking any medication your doctor has prescribed, please read the Disclaimer here.)

During this two years, I spent a lot of time learning more about herbs.  Taking herbs, and other dietary supplements, has helped me to regain health.  Using natural remedies to address any issues of dis-ease has added to my health, rather than taken away from it, which is what most prescription medications do.  Thankfully, information is much more easy to obtain.  There are many more books, many more teachers, much more information and all at our fingertips, and herbs and herbal products are even sold right in our local health food stores and co-ops!  Conferences for herbalists can be found throughout the country, and the world, every year.  YouTube videos offer free herbal instruction we can see, rather than simply read about.

I still own a large number of herb books, and still love reading through them for information and inspiration, but over the last few years my herbal education, as it were, has expanded to include taking classes from local  herbalists, in addition to beginning a four-year naturopath program.  This instruction has expanded my knowledge, increased my confidence, and made me even more certain that Nature has everything we need to maintain our health and it is our right to learn and use this knowledge.

I’ll write more about my ‘formal’ herbal education at a later date and speak more about what my certification as an herbalist actually means.  (Here’s a hint: I can put the letters M.H. after my name, but I know I’ll never actually “master” herbs; there is just so much to learn that it will take a lifetime of practice, experience, and continued education to grasp even a fraction of what there is to know.)

What is the point of this story, then, you may well be asking yourself.  The point is, we are about to lose our right to choose herbs and supplements that enhance our health and well-being.  Senator John McCain has proposed a bill labeled the Dietary Supplement Safety Act, which takes away our rights as consumers to access dietary supplements (herbs, vitamins, minerals, etc.).  Senator McCain is insisting that this proposed legislation “is about truth in labeling” but the bill itself is mislabeled. This bill will actually take away consumers’ existing rights regarding supplements, and we need to stop it.

Please join me in telling Congress that we want them to oppose this bill.  It does NOT protect consumers, it only severely limits our choices.