Recently I had to have some dental surgery. (Did you ever wonder how people used to handle their dental problems? The big secret-they rarely had any, before processed foods and chemicals. But that’s the subject of a different blog post.)
For my own dental surgery, my dentist recommended a pain killer for after the anesthesia wore off. I bought some just in case I needed it. But I was able to handle my discomfort with homeopathy (lots of oral Arnica Montana before and afterwards) and herbal nerve pain reliever. I used a combination of California poppy, Jamaican dogwood. Honestly, I was uncomfortable the first night, but I still slept, and the day after there was very little discomfort left.
Pain is no fun, and I don’t like to see anyone suffer. So, I love finding natural medicine that has no downside, and doesn’t add to the toxic burden our organs already have to deal with.
So many of our wonderful herbal medicines were already being used by the Indigenous Americans who helped the Pilgrims and celebrated the first Thanksgiving. We have all grown up with the stories about the gifts of turkeys and corn that were native to our Eastern shores. But only herbalists talk about the deep debt we owe to the First Nations people for their wisdom and sharing of plant-based medicines that grew here and were unknown in the herbal tradition of Asia and Europe.
One herb is called “American Ginseng.” Unlike it’s popular cousin, “Siberian Ginseng” which is a warming herb, the American version is cooling, explaining it’s use for calming fevers and inflammation.
“Goldenseal” is a favorite herb for mucous membranes, which includes sinus and lungs. I have a nasal spray made with Golden Seal that works wonders for opening up nasal passages when congested.
Ask many menopausal women what assisted them through the transition and they will swear by “Black Cohosh.” It helps with cramps, hot flashes and mood. i
Perhaps best known is “Echinacea,” which was widely used for a variety of ailments from anthrax, snakebite and pain to its more common use for colds and sore throats. Native peoples observed that Elk sought out the plant when wounded or sick.ii
It turns out that many Indigenous people learned about plant medicine from our primate buddies such as apes and chimps. Dr. Tieraona Low Dog, an MD and premier teacher of herbal medicine, has some fascinating stories about going to Africa and discovering that observing what animals did when they were sick informed humans about natural medicines.
Witch Hazel is another common remedy that we learned from Indigenous people.
The list of plants that were in use in the Americas when Europeans arrived is several pages long, if you check out this link on Wikipedia . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Native_American_ethnobotany
I love turkey and most kinds of potatoes, pumpkin pie, and all the trimmings. But this Thanksgiving I will be very grateful for every creature and person along the entire chain of discovery about plants and plant-based medicines. My life would not have been as rich without this great tradition, and the opportunity to share this wisdom with all of you. After all, these were the first medicines on the planet, and trying to extract and patent the active ingredients in herbal medicine has created some helpful drugs, but also caused some harm and addiction. When human illness is no longer considered an opportunity for gargantuan profits we will have healthier people and pets. And if enough people learn how to use plant medicines, we can be less dependent on the system.
Imagine if the medical industry had this viewpoint:
“All plants are our brothers and sisters.
They talk to us and if we listen, we can hear them.”
— Arapaho Proverb
Happy Thanksgiving to you and all your loved ones!
ihttps://www.thesacredscience.com/3-powerful-indigenous-herbs-from-north-america/
iihttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Native_American_ethnobotany