My grown daughter’s laughter rings in my ears as she recalls my early days of practicing herbal
medicine on her.
“Remember when you thought I had some strange illness and you made me eat tons of raw
garlic?” OK, made is a strong word. I would probably use the word “encouraged”. We can both laugh at many of my herbal blunders now, but the truth is, there were so many times when treating my children wasn’t a laughing matter.
There were times I didn’t know if I was making the right choices—should I try and treat this or take them to the doctor? There were times I wasn’t sure about what to give them—should I give them this herb or that formula? But most of all, there were many times I was just plain scared!
I can honestly say that although fear still creeps in occasionally, for the most part I have overcome the fear of treating my children with herbal medicine. This wasn’t something that happened overnight. I have been studying and practicing herbal medicine for 10 years, so it has taken some time. But I can now look back and see what has helped me become more confident in using herbs to treat my family when they are ill.
1. Prayer
I never realized how much faith I put in doctors and modern medicine until I started treating my own children. When the weight of their health was on my own shoulders, I quickly saw how little I took their needs to the Lord. It was easy to trust that when my children were sick, the doctors had a medicine that would make them well again.
When I began to rely on my own knowledge and skills, my eyes were opened to the fact that all healing comes from the Lord. I must continually seek His wisdom, His mercy, and His care in the health of my family. The first thing I should do any time I am giving herbs to someone is ask the Lord for His healing touch. Ask Him to guide me in my herb choices. Ask Him to show me the needs of those I am ministering to.
2. Know Your Limits
It is very important that we understand our scope of ability. There is no shame is saying, “This is outside my area of knowledge.”
When we try to handle things that we don’t understand, haven’t studied, or know little about, we are not giving our family the best care we can. It is always better to start off treating minor ailments. And as our knowledge grows we can apply it in greater ways.
It is wise to know your limits and have someone else you can call on when you face something that is outside of your expertise. This could be a more experienced herbalist or possibly a naturopath or physician.
3. Educate Yourself
I once listened to a conference session by longtime herbalists Paul Bergner entitled, “How to Become a Master Herbalist in Thirty Years or More”. While the title was somewhat tongue-in-cheek, the gist of his session was spot on. Herbal medicine is not “mastered” overnight, it is a life long process.
If you are choosing to treat your family with herbal medicine, it is imperative that you make it a practice to continually learn. You don’t have to spend a lot of money or attend an herbal school —there are so many free resources available to those who truly want to get an herbal education. Many well known herbalists have videos on youtube or articles full of in depth herbal information.
When you take the time to study herbal medicine, it allows you to not only treat your family more effectively, but to also treat them more safely.
4. Give Yourself Grace
As a parent, we are so hard on ourselves. There are going to be times that we make mistakes. There will be things we miss. There will be times that we just can’t do anything to alleviate the pain or illness. We need to give ourselves a large dose of grace.
Treating my children with herbal medicine has become an extension of who I am. I am an herbalist. I am a homeschooling mom. I am a Christian. And I fail. In every area of my life, I make mistakes. But I don’t give up. Just because I wasn’t diligent and my daughter didn’t learn her math facts doesn’t make me quit homeschooling. And I don’t quit herbal medicine just because it took longer to get rid of the diaper rash than I would have liked.
5. Jump Right In
One thing we need to remind ourselves is that we don’t have to know everything in order to start using herbal medicine. Choose a handful of herbs that are safe for children and learn all you can about them. Chamomile, Lemon Balm, Elderberry—these are all very mild herbs that can be used with great success on children. The Lord created these herbs for us to use and we shouldn’t fear using them.
{This articles is part of a more in depth presentation being given at the 2015 Back To Our Roots Christian Herbal Conference. For conference information, please visit Back To Our Roots.}
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[…] Chamomile may be used as a stomach soother, helpful with colic and for relaxation. I drank a cup in the evenings when I had morning sickness. […]