When I moved to a new level on my spiritual path, I chose to follow the path of the healer. My choice found me at Naropa University in 1996, and what an education had there! The next 3 years found me studying to be a psychotherapist. In 1999, I got my Master’s degree in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology. Since that time, I have seen hundreds of people, and have helped them to follow their own path to healing on various levels.
Prior to that time, I was a student of Gary “MoonHawk” Butler, who taught me Reiki, and other Shamanic healing techniques. I was taught by his partner, Lynn Johnson, the 3rd level of Reiki and became a Reiki Master in September of 1994.
I feel that I have been blessed in this lifetime by having teachers in many different forms. My path took a deeper turn, after my graduation from Naropa, when I met my friend Jennifer who had been to an Herb school in Boulder. She taught me some of the art of making medicine. What I learned is that there are many methods of making medicine from the many various plants that grow in the herbal garden.
I thought in might be fun, for you the reader to see some pictures from a recent day of making medicine, when I made a tincture of Marshmallow Root. The first two pictures show you what the root looked like before it was processed, it is sitting in the sink, waiting to get washed. It had been growing awhile, and is very large, it took me a good while to get the soil off of it, so that wouldn’t go into the tincture itself. The third picture shows you what it looks like once I got it all washed, cut up, and into the jar where it will be brewing. I like to use canning jars, as they are much easier to come by and have a good sealing top. Cutting the root up was quite a chore, as it was very tough skinned, and was very thick and dense in some places. The last picture shows you the 3 bottles it took to get that Marshmallow going (the one in the front is another herb I processed that day–Yarrow). I like to use Vodka. If I were going to make it for those who might need to be alcohol free, I might have used vegetable glycerin instead. Some use Everclear, or Rum as well.
So, from there, I shake the mixture in the jar every day. It shouldn’t be exposed to bright light. The tincture will be done in 4-6 weeks, but tinctures can be in the jar indefinitely, that’s what makes them such a great way to have the medicine you need long after the plants are gone. They also retain their medicinal properties for many years.
When the “brewing” is done, I have a cool strainer that I use to drain the “menstruum” as the liquid that you drain off is called. It is funnel-shaped, and has a wooden stick that allows me to further macerate the root in order to get as much of the liquid as possible out of it.
It is then put into small glass bottles with droppers to use, oh, and I always make sure to put labels on them, as once in the bottles it’s too easy to forget what they might be. Depending on what symptoms one has, they will be utilized as directed. I never would diagnose anyone’s illness, but would perhaps suggest various herbs to help with particular problems. Marshmallow happens to be an all around good medicine. It is said to be good for sore throats, stomach problems, and has a soothing effect on inflammation. One might wish to confuse it with the creamy sugary confection, and while it’s root was used to create the mucilaginous effect many years ago, but not anymore.