Herbal Studies

[Cindlady2]

HI All,

OK, first time I looked at this thread but have been working with herbs for about 30 years, not counting the "little bit" our family used that I thought everyone knew about. Anyway, from what little I read it seems you do have some good books and I'm always looking for good ones I don't have.
Because I haven't read all the posts (way too many) could you please tell me what course you are taking and what it takes to be certified? (or the link) I have the knowledge, just not the paper. People trust the paper. :/ and there is always more to learn.

$700 for a herb cabinet? I have a dresser I keep my dry herbs in. Each drawer holds 3 baskets perfectly. I have them in alphabetical order in ziplock bags. I have an extra drawer for small bottles and jars and one for "little extras". Works great! Sits in the dining room near the kitchen. The finished remedies go in a built in cabinet in the 2nd bathroom. Although some remedies seem to wind up in the kitchen for easy use, and everyone has their own jar of "green goop".

Good luck on all your studies and tests!

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I am studying with PennFoster's Herbal Studies program. It costed just over $500, but now I've spent an addititonal $75 because I fell behind with all that happened with my family and changing jobs. Almost done.
I also knew a lot about herbs from my family and had a few remedies that had been either passed on or that I had learned from self-directed studying on the subject, but only last night I ran into new info and I'm studying for my final test. Its like the same as nursing.....what you don't know, can kill you. It really is best if you use mild herbs to treat illnesses....taking into consideration what meds someone is taking and how it will affect the whole system. Prevention is the best medicine, but we usually don't pay attention to something until it is hurting us.
Well yesterday, DH was gasping for air and making that face he makes at me sometimes and I asked him if he was flip-flopping (his term for palpatations). He was. I finally stooped to his level of dramatic speech and yelled, "To hell with it!!! Go take some hawthorn!! You haven't asked your doctor anything about herbs and you are reduced to this, so what on earth do you have to lose? Just take the herbs." So he starts asking me about it and kudzu and I think he took both. He has also been having bad pains in one of his calf muscles.....I'm assuming it has something to do with Lipitor, because it is a side effect. His older brother is trying to go it alone, with no meds because he says it is too painful, so he uses diet alone and wants me to come up with a list of herbs and remedies to keep him healthy.....well, I"m afraid I'm too late for that, but I can take a stab at it. People outside my house has more respect for my knowledge than people in.

 

[baymule]

People outside my house has more respect for my knowledge than people in.

don't feel too bad about that--even Jesus was not respected in his own home town.

 

[Denim Deb]

Where's the like button?

 

[Hinotori]

He has also been having bad pains in one of his calf muscles.....I'm assuming it has something to do with Lipitor, because it is a side effect.

Mom takes this for leg cramps. http://www.amazon.com/Hylands-Homeo...1-2&keywords=Hyland's+Leg+Cramps,+100+Tablets

She has leg cramps from nerve damage. Only the quick dissolving ones work fast enough for her. She pops two under her tongue and the cramp is gone pretty quick.

It's made from Cinchona it says. I've thought about trying to get a hold of the plant and grow it for her.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

The herb's name seems vaguely familiar, but I can't put my head on a block and swear to anything. I have written it down on my study guide and plan on looking it up in a few of my textbooks to see what I can find out. Thanx. You never know when or where you will find useful info.
Well, regarding the expense of my herbal cabinet.....I knew DH loved it and we were possibly in danger of buying it anyway, so I used my needs to make him happy. He just loved the way the cabinet looked and wanted it in our dining room, so I said the only way I'm getting it is if its for my herbals. DONE!!!
Well, began studying for that last test last night and I don't think it will take forever to pull it off. Will be backtracking to 10th test material to read it at my leisure and pay attention to the appearance of each plant because they have some very good visuals and I'm hoping I can get an understanding of better plant identification.
DD 10 showed me a little scratch on her foot this evening and told me her foot hurt, so I asked if it was the scratch that hurt or if it hurt deep inside her foot, to which she claimed both, so I pulled out my comfrey tincture and was having difficulty opening the bottle. Couldn't find DS, but DH managed to get it opened, while fussing about using the wrong cap on the bottle, considering what the menstrum was......vinegar. He claimed that it would rust the cap off, which I know he was right, but I figured I'd just replace as needed. Well, I had been collecting old bottles and just plain pretty bottles I'd find wherever and I had an especially pretty one I wanted to transfer my tincture into. I got DH's corks but none of them fit, so he produced a larger, rubber cork which fit good enough and I cleaned out the bottle and he dried it up and we transferred the tincture and corked it. Then he said I'd need to label it and the glass is all bumpy and decorated with flowers, so there was going to be no putting any sticky labels on it, so I pulled out a sheet of parchment and he folded it into small card size pieces and carefully ripped it into neat, little triangles. I punched a hole in each and tied brown yarn, which I might switch out for twine. I labelled the comfrey with the April date I started it on and put all my extra labels in a tiny, drawer that was once part of a homemade desk. The little drawer is near my small, but growing collection of tinctures, ready to be useful. One of my most recent textbooks suggest I go as fancy or wild as I can possibly go with my choices of bottles and containers......inspiration and all that.
Well, one of you good people gave me some useful info and I think its on this thread, regarding hawthorn, and I plan on completing my coarse, and reading this entire thread, from start to finish and finding the name of the exact tree, from the hawthorn family that might possibly grow in my area, so I can obtain it. Besides, it will be like reading history.
If I told ya'll how much I have always hated school, ya'll wouldn't believe me; and yet I somehow managed to become a nurse 20 years ago and now I am almost finished with this coarse. I still feel I want this knowledge for several reasons, some just because its interesting and appeals to my sense of old times and some because I wander what is in store for us all in the future. I'd encourage anyone who is interested in this topic to seriously consider going thru this study. If you smoke and want to quite, then in the very first book you will get recipes to make your own herbal cigarettes, which could help break your habbit and some can even help if you have bronchitis (which sounds crazy, but apparently is true)....heck, just the price of cigarettes could pay for the coarse. If your body is basically falling apart and you feel its time to put it back together and you honestly begin doing just 2 new things from each book, over the coarse of a year, you are bound to improve your health and lifestyle.
Well, the books are calling.......btw, I retook test 10 a few mins ago....yeah, 100%. I'll end up with a pretty good average, but not perfect.

 

[Cindlady2]

Thanks for the info! I will look into it.
When you get your cabinet I hope you post some pics.!

At first I was looking for fancy, interesting bottles for tinctures too. Then I started running into some of the issues you mentioned. They also held so many different amounts and some didn't fit where I wanted to store them. So, I went practical! LOL I have a few dark jars I "brew" my tinctures in (I use Everclear, they last longer) Then I have my little brown bottles I poor them into to use and store. The ones in use have droppers and te ones for storing seal tight. A little tip if you use corks for long term storage, Dip the top of the corked bottle in bees wax. It makes a good airtight seal and can be peeled off when you need to open it.
This is where I've been getting allot of my containers. It's "pot luck" for some of the jars, but the bottles I use they almost always have.
http://www.sciplus.com/
If nothing else it's an interesting site and read the descriptions of some of the "odder" items.

Good Luck on the test!

 

[Cindlady2]

Hummm, I just went to that site (haven't been there for months) seems they are a bit low on the good bottles right now. but worth a look anyway.

 

[Denim Deb]

One of these days I hope to look into this myself. And since hubby is interested as well, maybe we could study together.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

That was DH and my origional intent, but he hasn't started yet. Backtrack....he had a heartattack 13 months ago. So mostly he has been able to do all his normal routines, but lately he has been having more palpatations than normal and its stopping him from being himself (100% anyway). So we have been talking every now and then about him beginning his studying of my textbooks and I just told (yes told) him to start studying tonight, when I leave for work. I also, as my earlier 2 or 3 posts stated, TOLD him to start taking hawthorn. Well, I feel like he needs to read about cardiac care. I can't force him to tend to himself.....if anything I will piss him off. He can learn all that I have learned....maybe more and hopefully be good with identification, as I am hoping he will be and in the meantime, he will read for himself that he really needs to relax, and hopefully find something else that we aren't even considering.
He is operating on a heart that functions at 35%, but has a defribulator, to make sure he stays around for a while.....hopefully it never is required. I'd like to have him more knowledgeable about herbal heart care, plus it would be cool to have a partner in crime. Like.......Okay, I was journaling about his calf muscle hurting. Well, he has never even tried diet and herbs to control his cholesterol level. He heard a nurse practioner (who weighs 325 Lbs, if he weighs a pound) tell him he couldn't do it on his own and took him at his word. A lot of the pains he is having might be contributed to his Lipitor. Exactly why his older brother got off and is trying to control things himself. And the crazy thing is DH maybe weighs 170 Lbs...no where near obese, I have always cooked healthy (topped out in diet therapy in nursing school and I'm not delicate regarding food), I have perfect chosesterol, regardless of what I eat......he has all these brothers, who are heavier than him and some of them have had health issues and he is the one walking around with 35%.