
Ancestral Reverence as Devotion to the Earth - Daniel Foor
Your body is your ancestor altar, how hungry ghosts affect the living, the earth as the repository of ancestral wisdom, & more... In the Intro: Cleatus B. Wright , January 20, 1929 - February 27th, 1929 In the Interview: The hunger for our ancestors The story of Daniel's first ancestral connection, and the healing that followed The ancestors are the collective wisdom of our species in all its beauty and trauma Time collapses when in communion with the ancestors Not all of the dead are equally well The deeply embedded alcoholism in my fatherline Addiction as the hunger of the dead moving through the bodies of the living, and the act of taking the substance as a form of ancestral communion There are very few personal problems- a look at unmetabolized ancestral pain and systemic injustice The dead can change Ancestral forgetting as a function of the damage wrought by colonialism We don't arrive at healing by exiling those who commit harm: an approach for white folks wishing to address their slave owning/colonizing/oppressive ancestral legacy (rather than ignoring it or living in perpetual guilt) The role of the ancestors in social and earth justice The interweaving of ritual, genealogical research, and healing Synchronicity They are shaking us awake in the burning house- the growing sense of urgency coming to us from the ancestors at this pivotal point in human history The dead are in the earth, and the ancestors are animating the earth that is our bodies Approaching activism in a more ritual oriented way When a child is a returning of an ancestral lineage, mothering is my main form of ancestral reverence, and remembering that our children are the future ancestors of our further descendants Are souls that die suddenly lost in limbo? I ask Daniel a vulnerable question about my mom, who died in a car accident in November 2015 The most important way that we prepare for death is to be ethical and kind Animism: living humans are just one kind of person / coming into relationship with the wider web of being Links: Daniel's website AncestralMedicine.com My website MythicMedicine.love Medicine Stories Patreon (podcast bonuses!) The Medicine Stories Facebook group Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy? Mythic Medicine on Instagram Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
6 Sep 20181h 35min

Self Attunement & the New Myths We're Making - Maia Toll
Herbalism is vast, the second song of a plant, a powerful stone medicine story, and more... Maia Toll spent a life-changing year apprenticed to a traditional medicine woman in Ireland. She mentors spiritual wellness seekers, practitioners, and teachers through her online program, The Medicine Keepers Collective, and is the founder and owner of Herbiary, a natural products store with locations in Asheville, North Carolina, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Maia has taught botanical medicine at West Chester University and at the Amazon Center for Environmental Education and Research in the Peruvian jungle. She lectures at hospitals, universities, and herbal conferences and runs her own Deep Magic Retreat in the North Carolina mountains during the witchy twilight of autumn. She blogs to an international following at maiatoll.com and lives in Asheville, North Carolina. In the Intro: Coming into relationship with nature Become a kitchen witch Herbalism is vast In the Interview: The layers within A fantastical Herbal Opening to the second song of a plant How a health problem, an unraveling life, and a dream message set Maia on the plant path Apprenticing to a medicine woman in Ireland When having a diagnosis isn’t helpful Deep self attunement for stopping illness before it becomes too big A major weakness herbalists face when we’re ill The Healing Relationship Stone medicine & a story of healing with morganite How we create the sacred A meaningful swan sighting, union & transformation, and the myth of Caer We talk about how neither of us wanted to get married and now we’re both wives, and also the stories of our wedding rings Links: Secrets of the Illustrated Herbiary FREE course! Maia's website MaiaToll.com My website MythicMedicine.love Medicine Stories Patreon (get The Kitchen Witch's Workshop online course here!) The Medicine Stories Facebook group Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy? Mythic Medicine on Instagram Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
27 Aug 20181h 24min

Plant Spirits & Deep Remembering that Speaks to the Bones - Fay Johnstone
Fay Johnstone is a Shamanic Practitioner, Herbalist and Reiki Master with a passion for helping people and plants grow together. She believes that restoring our sacred relationship with the Earth and connecting to our natural environment, seasons and cycles is essential in order for us to maintain our vitality, health and well being. Fay is the author of the book Plants that Speak Souls that Sing, a guide to transforming your life with the spirit of plants, inspired by Fay's five years as an organic flower and herb farmer. It’s her goal to help us weave nature and enchantment back into our own lives to feel more in harmony with our true nature and sense of self. Fay offers workshops educating on Plant Spirit connection and Earth based ritual and shamanic treatments across the UK, online and from her home in Scotland. In the Intro: Handcrafted Healing Herbal Oils online course (registration ends August 24th!) Becoming a plant spirit explorer How Stephen Harrod Buhner healed his chronic back pain Mugwort, oldest of herbs In the Interview: Returning to an ancestral homeland and taking up ancestral activities Being called by something invisible When something that feels like failure turns out to be a blessing How plants can connect us to the source of creativity Giving ourselves the time and permission for inner exploration and play Bringing enchantment and ritual to our relationship with plants A deeply transformative mugwort medicine story Generational forgetting & shame around using plant medicine A vision/visitation from the great-grandmother that Fay never knew Our bodies carry our stories Meeting the spirit of plants with the breath The benefits of not having a ton of plant knowledge Bypassing the brain to get to the heart Links: Fay's website Fay's Plant Spirit People Facebook group My website MythicMedicine.love Podcast bonuses at Medicine Stories Patreon Medicine Stories Facebook group Mythic Medicine on Instagram Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy? Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
20 Aug 20181h 14min

The Profound Medicine of Healing Herbal Oils
The simplest and most potent form of herbal medicine that I know, so easy to make yourself at home, so powerful and immediately relaxing... Herbal Body Oiling is an ancient, ancestral practice that the nervous systems of modern folk are in desperate need of. When we think about taking herbal medicine, we tend to picture teas, tinctures, or some other way of ingesting the medicinal benefits of the plant through the mouth. But the skin is our largest organ and is incredibly absorbent, with direct access to the nervous, lymphatic, and immune systems. By keeping the body hydrated with fat (oil) as opposed to water (like in lotion), we keep these systems nourished, running smoothly, and functioning at the highest possible level. In this episode I talk about: The simplest yet most profound form of herbal medicine The healing effects of fat/oil on the nervous system Carrier oils, fresh v dry plant infusions, how long to steep, etc. Which fresh herb to use if you don’t have a garden & there’s nowhere to wildcraft Medicinal specifics of lavender, calendula, St. John’s Wort, mugwort, and yarrow Oiling for pregnancy, babies, children, and motherhood in general Coming back into your self Don’t get tripped up. Herbalism is your birthright. Just make an oil. Start where you are. It is enough. You are enough. Scented plants = volatile oil content = antimicrobial action = longer lasting oil Extending shelf life Whole plant infused oils are much more medicinal than just adding essential oils to a carrier oil The nervous system, being in a sympathetic dominant state (most of us are), and being an empath/Highly Sensitive Person The lymphatic/immune system & breast massage Self knowledge & being deeply familiar with the terrain of the only body you're ever gonna have Practical tips & techniques for making herbal body oiling a part of your daily life Oiling the face Should you use heat and/or sunlight in herbal oil making? The home remedy with the least amount of effort for maximum return Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy?
10 Aug 20181h 1min

You Are Magic & Fear is Never the Truth - Yaya Erin Rivera Merriman
In the Intro: Books to live by Mitochondrial meanderings The deep ancestry of all humans In the interview: The sound of the thing you are called by, and choosing a name with multilayered meaning From outcast to leader What being the daughter of an immigrant taught Yaya about communication & self expression When you realize you're magic Making the radical choice to express the way you really feel (that way, if people hate you, at least they hate the real you and not a false impression of who they assume you are) (also, that way, you attract the exact right people into your life) Why dreams are real, our favorite dream teacher/writer, & how to work with your dreams (and nightmares) Fear is never the truth Magic, nature, and layers & layers of ancestral depth ("I feel like I have an intact ancestral identity in a way I didn't even three years ago") Healing chronic pain Sensory overload and how "there's a lot of undeniably magical things happening all the time, but life is loud" Navigating the world as an empath/Highly Sensitive Person A lot of chronic conditions are due to long term nervous system overwhelm Herbal body oiling How a radical diet change healed Yaya's endocrine (hormonal) and nervous system It's good to do things that our ancestors would recognize from their time on earth Shapeshifting mythical archetypes & fields of consciousness Discovering your own relationship with the plant realm Links: Yaya's website Active Culture Family The GAPS Diet My website MythicMedicine.love Podcast bonuses at Medicine Stories Patreon Medicine Stories Facebook group Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy? Mythic Medicine Instagram Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
31 Juli 20181h 42min

The Medicine We Carry - Lola Venado
In the Intro: I share an ancestral story How I define spirituality The food your bones are made from Herbal body oils & elderberry elixir In the Interview: Being the the daughter of a secret witch + becoming a botanical bruja years after the mother passed and the chance to learn from her was gone Racism, secrecy, lineage, and cultural evolution Following the breadcrumbs to get a bigger picture of who your people were (there are more holes than solid information in all of our lineages) Letting your silvers shine Locating yourself within the myths of your ancestors Being empowered to heal yourself Listening to the understory- amplifying the voices of people of color within the worlds of herbalism, spirituality, and the creative arts Comida es Medicina Most magic is mundane When women's knowing and/or calling out injustice are labeled "irrational" What white folks are learning/dismantling right now Links: Lola's website Lola's Branch + Bone Medicine Show podcast Kitkitdizzi in Nevada City Lola's Instagram Medicine Stories Patreon The Mythic Medicinals online herb shop Mythic Medicine on Instagram The Medicine Stories Facebook group Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy? Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
24 Juli 20181h 40min

Reclaiming Kitchen Wisdom & Ancestral Healing - Darla Antoine
Calling in the grandmothers! The more dependent we are on the industrialized food system- and the more entranced we are by diet culture- the further removed we are from our ancestors. Food is a bridge between the land, our bodies, and those whose bodies we come from. Darla Antoine is a mixed race Okanagan tribal member, ancestral activist and healer, mother and accidental homesteader in the high mountains of Costa Rica. Darla helps mixed-race and mixed-culture seekers become rooted into place and lineage by combining her master's degree in food and culture, ancestral healing and her own experiences as a mixed race woman and expat. In the Intro: My unexpected, super transformative podcast hiatus: shingles and a family emergency Fat is love (and an absolutely necessary nutrient for the brain & every single cell in the body) Giveaway! In the Interview: Ancestry that’s deeply embedded in the land The Grandmother Hypothesis How diet culture keeps us separated from our ancestors Disordered eating & how the fear of fat is pushing us away from what it means to be human To learn about your ancestor’s lives, look below the level of empire (& what that means) Reclaiming kitchen wisdom as an act of resistance against the dominant, patriarchal, industrial food system The medicine that people of mixed race are bringing to the world right now Dreams as guideposts A mythic matriarchal dreamscape Charting serendipity: When you’re in the right story, nothing doesn’t fit Links: Darla's website The Medicine Stories Patreon page The Medicine Stories Facebook group The Mythic Medicine website Take our fun quiz Which Healing Herb Matches Your Energy? Zach Bush's website How to Feed a Brain by Cavin Balaster Head Strong by Dave Asprey Fat for Fuel by Dr. Joseph Mercola Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
23 Juni 20181h 25min