Chloe Asks:
Hi April,
Firstly, I just wanted to say thank you for your approachable and simple hands on herbalism. I was convinced earlier this year that I needed to save up $600 to take an herbalism class. So thank you so much for putting your knowledge out there to the masses. I've recently bought some herbs to make Susun Weed's nourishing herbal infusions because of your first "Ask an Herbalist" video. I'm so excited to start!
My inquiry is regarding living with Raynaud's Syndrome/Disease. It's a disease that affects the nerves around the blood vessels in your hands and feet. Basically when exposed to cold (for myself it's anything below 50F) the nerves constrict around the blood vessels and halt any blood flow. This results in numbness and pain. What ends up happening as well is when I finally am able to warm myself up again, my fingers will swell like they would if I had too much sodium and will usually stay bloated/stiff until the next morning. I do keep reusable hand warmers on me. I am a 27 yr old woman with no other health issues. I've had this since i was around 8 years old and my mother also has this.
Thank you so much for your time!!!
<3 Chloe
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Hello Chloe,
I'm really happy to hear that you have discovered the Wisewoman path and now on your way to remembering the things you already know without spending hundreds of dollars for information that is available for free to all should they look!
I'm even happier to hear that you are beginning to drink nourishing herbal infusions because this would have been the first thing I would have suggested!
In fact I hope you're drinking a quart of stinging nettle infusion or more a day! Stinging nettle is amazing for so many things and she just never quits giving! One thing she's amazing at is improving circulation. But also you would be nourishing your body as a whole and when we do this we heal as a whole versus target healing.
I'm also hoping you'll rotate through linden blooms, oat straw, comfrey and more!
But really an ally that I'm hoping you will get to know on a deeper level is Hawthorne! While she's mainly known as a fantastic Ally for heart health the reason she's known this way is because she's amazing for the whole cardiovascular system. Meaning she really helps get blood flowing! In fact she’s such an amazing ally at this that people have been able to replace heart medication with Hawthorn tincture! Of course this is the kind of thing people have to talk over with their doctors and so on and so forth, but in your case I really feel like you would benefit from building a relationship with this plant Ally.
Do however know that Hawthorne is a slow-acting herbal Ally and I know that in a western medicine society we are used to seeing results right away so after a few months if things aren't changing we can be disheartened and start looking elsewhere. But usually it takes about 3 to 6 months for her effects to really be felt of steady daily use. With Hawthorne I really only suggest using a tincture made with fresh plant matter or a very strongly brewed tea even an herbal infusion. The really cool thing about Hawthorne as there are no known contradictions or toxicity levels when using her. So I feel safe working with us Ally on a 24/7 365 day basis.
I even found an article from Susun weed that mentions your specific condition here on a write up about Hawthorne!
I would also try to look at this condition as the medicine that I need. I know that that sounds funny or maybe doesn't make sense right off the bat and that's okay. But maybe your body wants you to have a warm cup of tea in your hands all the time. Maybe it knows that you need nourishing warm stews to thrive. Maybe it knows that you need to be wrapped in cozy layers of soft wool and fuzzy furs to feel safe and open. Maybe it's calling for you to be in a different surrounding. These are just things that we can think on here of how the illness is actually the medicine and or message we need while we also work with herbal allies to strengthen and heal our body.
I really hope some of this was helpful for you dear!
Kindest regards,
April.