There's No Such Thing as a Weed

by Dorje Root, RH (AHG). It’s been a year. There are probably very few of us who have escaped anxiety, worry and stress. So now that elections have come and gone, winter has definitely come, and winter solstice is upon us, how can we switch our focus to self-care? We all need it! From an herbal perspective, it’s time to focus on some relaxing teas. I tend to use mostly tinctures for medicinal purposes, but for slowing down, relaxing, and maybe being with another human (even if via computer), there’s nothing like a nice cup of tea.  This time of year,...

By Dorje Root, RH (AHG). When I was a kid, my mom used to make lemon honey syrup.  It’s very simple: you mix approximately equal parts of honey and lemon juice together.  The trick is to have enough lemon juice to cut the cough, and enough honey to soothe and slide.  Too much lemon and it is too cutting and thin, too much honey and it’s just lemon flavored sweet goo.  Another home remedy cough syrup is onion honey syrup.  Slice an onion in a bowl or cup and just cover it with honey.  Let it sit overnight and in...

By Dorje Root, RH (AHG). It often seems that we head into autumn and winter still running from the activity of summer.  It sometimes takes a full-on winter flu to get us to slow down and adjust to the more relaxed pace of the season.  It is possible, though, to tune into the shorter, colder days and begin to slow down before our immune systems rebel and demand that we pay attention to them. Our bodies require more sleep and warmer foods as we head into winter. In Chinese medicine, autumn corresponds to the metal element, the lungs and colon, and...