My Need For Change Led Me to Herbalism

Over the past two years, I have been on this continuous obsession with learning.  It first started with me needing another form of stimulation that was not work related, mom related, wife related or anything else related in my life.  As fate would have it, I came across a plant medicine 12 week certification program and signed up without even thinking about the intense commitment tied to it.  In my 40s, I was back to doing homework and quizzes.

I had been a plant mama for several years (I thank a work trip to China for that) and would hear about medicinal uses of plants throughout my life - from my mom using alcolado (a bay leaf infused rubbing alcohol) to bring down a fever or help relieve muscle/joint pain, to the infamous Vicks to help treat virtually everything else (because it does), along with traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, etc.  Of course we tend to think of that as folk medicine, but now the academic in me wanted to know if there was actual data to support what I have been hearing.  To my surprise there was and just made me want to dig deeper.  

After obtaining my plant medicine certification, I continued my education in whatever way possible from buying books, participating in workshops, attending virtual conferences (including the amazing BIPOC Herbalist Conference) to my current enrollment in a clinical herbalist apprenticeship program with the amazing Lyani Powers from Modern Herbal Apothecary here in Tampa. 

An impactful question was asked during the first day of my apprenticeship - “What is your why for being here?”.  It was hard for me to put into words but I realized for me, there were several reasons – I wanted to be able to provide another level of support for myself and family as an herbalist (in partnership with Western medicine), I wanted to dig deep into my roots in Puerto Rico and trace back to the truths behind the “folk medicine” my family practiced. And finally, I realized this was a part of my journey for finding another version of me.

And I wasn’t alone - the community I now have are probably the most diverse group of people I have been a part of – from PhD candidates researching Jewish mysticism and how it ties to herbal medicine, energy healers, those trying to figure out why they are called to learn this, male peers who are looking to provide more holistic education to other men, those looking to figure out how to utilize herbal medicine within their culinary practice and people just looking to connect back to nature.  We all have this in common – the desire for connection and curiosity. 

So with all of this said, I want to say this - it’s never too late to start a new path for yourself and explore what may come next for you.   You just might be surprised where your curiosity leads you.