My initial motivation to become a herbalist came whilst taking the Bach flower remedy wild oats. This remedy is designed to help people find their true vocation in life. At the time i was 23 and living in a tee pee in the south of France, in a forested valley overlooking the Pyrenees. The revelation that - "all i need to heal me is growing around me right now" - came to me, and was the start of my journey into the glorious world of herbal medicine. Fifteen years later i am still motivated by what is growing around me, the plants and the people. I make my own herbal tinctures fresh from plants growing in the fields, hills, gardens and woods of The Sussex downs where i live.
I work mainly with Herbal tinctures. A tincture is an alcohol extract of a medicinal plant. I use Organic Rye ethanol as it is an excellent medium in which to extract the various medicinal compounds in plants. Differing strengths of alcohol extract different classes of phytochemicals. For instance water soluble flavonoids used for instance for their antioxidants effects in Hawthorn require only a 25% strength of alcohol. Herbs where the essential oils are valued such as Rosemary require a 45% tincture. Some alkaloids may require a 70% tincture and Resins such as Myrrh require a 90% tincture.
The benefits of tinctures are many: Made by experts such as myself they extract the appropriate therapeutic constituents required, the alcohol acts to preserve the remedy, they are easily mixed together to create a prescription and they are easy to take, simply diluted in water. They are also very easily and rapidly absorbed by the body.
