Rosemary is for More Than Remembrance

Rosemary is for More Than Remembrance

by | Aromatics

The herb Rosemary has been a symbol of remembrance for ions. In herbal folklore, “Rosemary is for Remembering”.  It was often used at times of funerals, anniversaries and when soldiers marched off to war.  Its aroma has always been uplifting and stimulating; sharp, herbaceous and slightly camphorous are some adjectives used to describe its aroma. The penetrating aroma sharpens the senses and can focus the mind.  By stimulating the mind, one has greater recall and greater ability to remember things.  Because of its stimulating effects upon the nerves, brain and muscles, there is no time to sleep when Rosemary is around, as it also calls one to action! It is also renowned for its stimulating effects on the scalp and hair growth. Good for memory,  exhaustion, pain, infection, digestion, stamina, hair growth and other things, its health and healing properties are legendary.

The ancient Romans and Greeks believed that Rosemary brought good luck and protected people from evil spirits.  They believed that infections were brought on by evil spirits, so it is not surprising that they came to believe that Rosemary could protect them, which could also be called good luck!  We know now that one of Rosemary’s therapeutic qualities is that of being an antiseptic.

Here is what Banckes’ Herbal had to say about Rosemary back in 1525:  “If thou be feeble boyle the leaves in cleane water and washe thyself and thou shall be shiny … smell it oft and it shall keep thee youngly.”

In spiritual work, Rosemary is said to cleanse “energetic muck”;  its sharp aroma penetrates and clears the auric field.  Perhaps this is partly due to the fact that the aroma causes some people to release their pent-up anger.  Anger is often one of the root causes of long-standing problems.

In her book, The Blossoming Heart, Dr. Robbi Zeck describes Rosemary as follows:
“…  it assists the dynamic development and transformation through directing creative energy into action.  When familiar patterns, conditions, habits and beliefs keep resurfacing and manifesting in your life, Rosemary moves you onward, freeing you from restriction, sluggishness and mental fatigue…. Recharge your creative batteries, reconnect to your creative fire and allow the next part of your cycle to emerge.”  p.111

In aromatherapy, we use several Rosemary chemotype essential oils based upon what needs to be done. Each chemotype has similar but different effects from the other. The camphorous chemotype is better than the others for its antiseptic qualities, so we can consider it when dealing with infectious conditions in which the environment needs to be disinfected.  This chemotype also offers deep comfort to aches, pains, sprains and strains, but care must be taken as to the dilution rate being used.  Too much and it can cause the skin to react poorly – definitely not what you want to happen.

If we want to help clear up acneic skin, we can use the verbenone chemotype with greater ease, as the ketones in this Rosemary are more skin-friendly than those in the camphorous type. It has a softer aroma than the camphorous chemotype, making it more enjoyable to use on the face.  Verbenone offers less irritation when used on skin and hair, but it is not always easy to find.

The cineole chemotype is generally considered the safest Rosemary to use, even with people having significant health conditions.  It can be used for most health issues and in all aromatherapy methods of use. If unsure as to which Rosemary to use, this is generally the better one to choose.

All Rosemaries have contraindications and precautions that need to be respected. Avoid during pregnancy.  Avoid with people having seizure disorders. Avoid with high blood pressure. May antidote homeopathic medications. Take special care if using on children or animals.  If you are not sure, contact a Registered Aromatherapist for clarification.  Do not depend upon what you read on the Internet for your answers!

As November 11th draws near, take a quiet moment to focus and inhale Rosemary and Remember! 

Did you know ……

  • In Aroma Genera, Rosemary personality is young at heart, creative, sensitive, determined and enjoys security
  • The term Ayurveda comes from two Indian words:  ayur,or life, and veda, or knowledge;  Ayurvedic Medicine is described as a “knowledge of how to live” and emphasizes that good health is the responsibility of the individual

In Chinese Herbal Medicine, the Metal Element is associated with: Season is autumn;  Taste is pungent;  Emotion is grief; Parts of the Body affected: lungs, large intestine, nose and skin

Herbal Delights

Herbal Delights

by | Aromatics

The Botanica 2016 conference inspired me to find more ways to use my plants every day for health and well-being. There is still time to enjoy the bounty of the garden – even if the temperatures are cooler and the daylight is shorter.  If you have access to fresh herbs, here are a couple of suggestions by Shannon McKinnon from a 2013 edition of Gardens West – Special Edition  (Vol. 27 No 08).  If all you have are dried herbs, that’s fine, too.

Rosemary Salt
1/3 cup (80mls.) fresh rosemary needles
1/3 cup  (80mls.) coarse salt
1 cup  (250mls.)  Kosher salt
Pulse rosemary and coarse salt in a food processor until the rosemary is chopped to approximately the same size as the salt.  Stir in 1 cup (250mls.) Kosher salt and blend well.  Pour mixture into a suitable dispenser. Can be used to add flavour to most meats, chicken, fish, soups and stews.  A little goes a long way!  Makes a great hostess gift.

Sage Gargle for Sore Throats
Pour 1 cup (250mls.) of boiling water over 4 teaspoons (20mls) of dried sage or 8 teaspoons (80mls.) fresh common sage leaves.  Steep covered for 10-15 minutes, strain and let cool.  Use this “tea” as a natural organic gargle to relieve sore throats. Do Not Swallow.  Will keep in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Minty Bath Bliss
Snip off 6  lengths of sturdy mint stems with leaves, tightly secure them with a rubber band to make a herb bundle. Use this same elastic band to secure the bundle to your bathtub faucet so the warm water flows through the mint on its way into the tub. Soak and enjoy!

Lemon Balm (Melissa) Tea
Melissa is known for its ability to “calm you when you’re wired and boost you when you’re tired”.  Pour 1 cup (250mls.) of boiling water over 1 tablespoon (15mls.) fresh lemon balm leaves or 1 teaspoon (5mls.) of dried leaves for each cup of tea.  Steep covered for 3-5 minutes (longer makes stronger flavour).  Strain and enjoy.

Tarragon Vinegar
Add 1 cup (250mls) of tarragon sprigs to every 2 cups (500mls.) of white wine vinegar in a sterilized jar.  Use a wooden spoon (not metal!) to bruise the sprigs to release their essential oil.  Cover and let steep for 2 to 3 weeks until it reaches desired potency. Shake the contents every few days. Make sure the stems and leaves are ALWAYS covered in vinegar;  this avoids mould growth/contamination. When ready, remove the sprigs, strain the vinegar, rebottle and enjoy.  If you like, you can add a single fresh sprig at this time for decorative effect – just remember that it must stay completely covered in vinegar at all times.  The vinegar will keep in a cool, dark pantry for at least 6 months.

These are but a few of the ways we can enjoy and benefit from the plants we grow all summer.  Let these recipes inspire you to be creative and try other herbs and plants, too.  There is a huge element of pleasure in making something for yourself that looks and smells divine!  Don’t deny yourself these simple pleasures from nature.

Did you know ……

  • In 1852, salicin, the natural active ingredient in willow bark, was artificially synthesized; it was modified to be less of a stomach irritant and in 1899, acetylsalicylic acid was launched as aspirin (ASA) by the Bayer company.  It is still used today for pain and inflammation relief.
  • In 1775,  Dr. William Withering began experimenting with the herbal brew a patient’s family successfully used for curing dropsy caused by heart failure;  he isolated foxglove as the most potent plant in the brew. In 1785 he wrote, Account of the Foxglove and Some of Its Medicinal Uses; the cardiac glycosides digoxin and digitalis were eventually extracted from foxglove.  They continue to be used today for treatment of heart conditions.  The Latin name for foxglove is Digitalis.
  • Cabbage was called, “The medicine of the poor”, as it had a multitude of health benefits and was available to all.
September and Autumn Musings

September and Autumn Musings

by | Life Reflections, Psycho-Spiritual

As summer comes to a close, we reflect upon that which has happened and consider where we go from here.  The outward expression of our energies and activities, so much a part of the celebrations of summer, begins to slow down.  Time to gather and draw nearer. The harvest is collected and stored for future use. The harvest is more than just what comes from the fields.  It is also about the activites, adventures, connections and knowledge we experienced.  So the “personal harvest” is also a  time to reap and reflect.

What is in your personal harvest basket?  What information, lessons and personal connections have helped you understand your life and your world a bit more?  Will you be able to use these to create a more complete and satisfying life for yourself?  What pieces of your personal puzzle are still missing – or no longer fit?

Colette Baron-Reid, a life coach and spiritual medium, often talks about our ability to “course-correct” at any moment we choose. We perform this course-correction when we are truly present in the Now.  This is a great way of saying we have free will and can choose a new direction, reaction or response to whatever life presents to us.  At any moment, we can choose another way of thinking, feeling, doing and being, that takes us closer to our personal truth, dreams, goals and life purpose.  What a concept!   Another way of putting it, we are in the driver’s seat of our personal “magic bus”.

As the seasons shift from the freedom of summer to the routines of autumn, be sure to take time to reflect upon where you’ve been, where you are now and where you want to go. All experiences hold lessons for our growth and development.  The Autumn Equinox (September 21/22nd) denotes the time when Nature comes back into balance.  Equal day and Equal night. Equal female and Equal male.

So too, we can help ourselves to come back to balance – to Center – once again.

The full moon in September is known as Harvest Moon; a time for giving thanks for things we have received. The harvest can be of tangible things, such as our food, shelter, work and relationships with others. The harvest can also be of intangible things such as personal growth, strength, obstacles that have been overcome. Giving thanks for gifts received always multiplies them. Focusing on what is positive instead of negative attracts more of the same to us.

As your personal vision becomes clearer, you can decide if and when you need a “course-correction” in your life.  You have the opportunity to challenge and change direction at any moment.  It need not be a huge course-correction, as little steps will make a difference too. Use the power of the changing seasons to help determine what your best life course looks like.  Then love yourself enough to set your course to reach your personal destination.  If done with the highest intentions for the highest good, you will be on the right path.

Reflections on Caring, Curing and Healing

Reflections on Caring, Curing and Healing

by | Life Reflections

As this is my 40th anniversary in nursing, I have been reflecting upon what it is to be a nurse.  Nursing is still an art and science, but it is not a career for everyone.  There is a fine line between helping someone in pain and taking on someone else’s pain.  Empathy was the cornerstone of my early hospital training as it helped our nursing class to better understand and respond to a patient’s situation, concerns and pain.  We were also taught that maintaining good personal boundaries was important, so that we didn’t enter into a rescuer relationship with anyone.  It was pointed out that if we tried to “fix or rescue” someone, it was our need, not the patient’s need, that was being triggered.  This is not the true focus of the therapeutic relationship – it is meant to focus on the patient’s needs.  We were not there to Fix a patient;  we were there to Care for a patient.  Care with all your heart, without losing yourself or harming the patient.

There were always patients who tugged at your heartstrings more than others.  There were always patients who mirrored your family and friends – both those you loved and those you didn’t.  There were patients who seemed to have the same life experiences and situations as us.  We were taught that as nurses, we would need to be even more mindful of our reactions and responses in these situations.  The psychology folks call this  “transference – counter-transference”.  And so the lessons on caring versus fixing (or curing) became real.  Some days it was easier than others to remember and carry out this lesson.

Some things have changed over time.  Our society is becoming more high-tech and low-touch.  Yet during times of stress, illness or impending death, there is still a place for respectful, supportive, caring human touch that technology just can’t duplicate.  A hand on the shoulder, a gentle hug, a smile, a soothing massage or simply holding hands in silence can convey more support or understanding than any emoj or tweet could ever hope to.  When the touch is genuine, there is a message of loving kindness sent that can set the stage for comfort or healing to occur.

In her book,  The Blossoming Heart, Dr. Robbi Zeck describes the difference between healing and curing.

”  … Healing involves education, re-assessment, changing many of the conditions under which we are living and re-examining the structure of our lives.  In time, I came to understand that if life is holding us back, we may need to question our habits, desires, behaviours and even our relationships. 

Healing requires that we keep on examining everything until we find our own truth and discard everything that clutters our lives. Clutter comes in many forms.  The unseen clutter, lurking hidden in our psyche, can be the most difficult to shift.  clutter of the mind can include worry, concern about what others think of us, negative thinking, needing to be right and focusing on things that aren’t really important.  … Our minds and our bodies benefit from periodic sorting and sifting through what is important.  This can be a positive step towards embracing stillness and “time to be”.

Curing, on the other hand, aims to restore a person to function or wholeness after the onset of illness and disease.  Curing addresses toxins, invasions, degeneration, endotoxins and so on.  Healing enables us to find resources that allow us to celebrate life, despite illness and disease.  Healing pushes us towards a wholeness that is a process as well as a creative response.  We can have a disease and not be ill. We can be ill without having a disease. Illness can also be about spiritual discomfort;  it can cause illness.  When not connected to our spiritual path we are unable to utilize our spiritual resources.”   p.35

In my 40 years of nursing, I’ve come to understand that doctors cure, nurses care and the process of healing belongs to the patient/client.  My role, as I see it, is to offer care for the body, mind and spirit so that the patient/client can engage in their healing process.  I will continue to use empathy, support, respectful touch, prayer, health information, holistic modalities, meditation, art and science to help others achieve their highest health and healing potential.  Ultimately the act of healing is their work.  But the act of caring is mine.  That aspect of nursing will not change for me.

Freedom in the Summer

Freedom in the Summer

by | Life Reflections, Psycho-Spiritual

There is a definite feeling of freedom in the summer air.  Watch, listen and smile as you notice signs of freedom around you.  You’ll hear it in the roar of the motorcycles out on a road trip. You’ll see it in the carefree way the children ride their bikes and swish along on their skateboards, trying new tricks to dazzle us.  Clothes are less restrictive, allowing for free flow of air around and through them.  The sound of flip-flops remind us that the beach or a swimming pool is close by. And the eagles are soaring above – pointing the way to infinity.

Freedom isn’t really a place, it’s more of a state of mind and a way of being.  To feel free means we have the courage, desire and commitment to just be ourselves. Authentic. Honest. What you see is who I am.  Comfortable with who we are and how we live in this world. What a concept!

We are born into this world as free beings.  We are absolutely perfect and quite enough.  As we grow up, something changes.  We are told we need to do more, be more and try harder~longer~faster.  Somehow the expansiveness we came into this world with, shrinks.  We soon become insecure, perfectionistic and/or victimized. Or we become arrogant, abusive and/or controlling. The free spirit we were born with never really shines through.  But it is not gone!  It can return with a choice to expand ourselves and our world. Reach out, reach up and reach within to find and encourage our creativity, compassion, curiosity and confidence. Our freedom lies within us!

The writer-philosopher-guru Osho describes three dimensions of freedom as being Physical, Psychological and Spiritual. He has some interesting things to say about freedom:
“ Freedom means the capability to say yes when yes is needed, to say no when no is needed, and sometimes keep quiet when nothing is needed – to be silent, not to say anything.  When all these dimensions are available, there is freedom.”

“Freedom is possible only when you are so integrated that you can take the responsibility of being free.  The world is not free because people are not mature…  You can have freedom.  But the cost is to accept responsibility in its totality.”

“Freedom is simply an opportunity to find a definition for yourself, a true, authentic individuality, and a joy in making the world around you a little better, a little more beautiful…”

“True freedom is always spiritual.  It has something to do with your innermost being, which cannot be chained, handcuffed or put into a jail.”

“What exactly is the innermost substance of freedom?  That you are free from the past, that you are free from the future…  Neither the past exists nor the future exists.  All that you have in your hands is the present. And one who lives in the present, unburdened of past and future, knows the taste of freedom.”

Summer is a great time to reflect upon how you express and experience your own freedom. Is there something that holds you back from being free to be you?  Once you know what holds you back, you have a chance to change it for your betterment.  Make the choice to be a free being and notice how the Universe supports your efforts for expansion, creativity and freedom. Understanding, non-judgment, contentment, respect for self and others are some the positive outcomes of true freedom.  What a gift for yourself and the world!