125 | Reconnecting with Herbs with Kimberly Gallagher

0:00 Hi there, welcome to In the Clinic with Camille. My name is Camille Freeman, and this podcast is for herbalists and nutritionists who are in clinical practice. Today, I am delighted to bring to you an interview with Kimberly Gallagher. If you don't already know Kimberly, she's the co-founder of LearningHerbs.com. Learning Herbs is a platform where you can subscribe, they have a membership program, and it's for anybody who's learning about herbs, whether you're brand new to the field or you've been doing it for quite a while, they have something for everyone there. There's just a wealth of courses and information and monographs, so it's a resource that I often recommend. If you've been around me for a while, you probably have heard me say, go check out Learning Herbs. It's so affordable. It's a great resource. Kimberly is also the author of the book Aphrodisiac, The Herbal Path to Healthy Sexual Fulfillment and Vital Living.

0:46 She created the Wildcraft board game. She wrote the Herb Theory's children's book series and online learning system and so forth. Kimberly writes that she loves to teach through experience and play and is the proud mother of two grown children. So the reason I invited Kimberly on to talk to us today is because she is getting ready to launch a course that she's co-teaching. I'll put info about the course in the show notes. But I thought, you know, this course is all about... Getting to know herbs in a very grounded way. And I think especially those of us in clinical practice, sometimes it's easy to get drawn into the academic side of things and to lose the plot a little bit on what it's like to just be with herbs in the role of a learner.

1:29 And of course, for those of you who are nutritionists and are still in the earlier phases of learning about herbs, I thought this class could be something that you might be interested in as well. So I wanted to talk to her about how the idea came to be, what the course is all about, and just the general idea of some of the different ways that we can know and learn from and with and about plants. So I hope you enjoyed this interview. If you would like to learn more about the course, you can check out the show notes. We'll put the link in there. It should be open for enrollment at the time that this episode is released. Otherwise, enjoy this conversation. I will be back next week with another episode. And thank you, as always, for being here and doing what you do.

2:09 All right, Kimberly, I am so happy we were able to make this work. I invited you here to come talk about a program that you're doing, because I think there's actually a lot as practitioners we can learn from the program. So do you want to just tell us a little bit about the program? Give us the sort of bird's eye view of what it is and what's happening in this new program you're creating? Oh, I would so love to. Yeah, thanks so much for inviting me on. It's really great to be here. And yeah, my friend Lauren Morgan and I co-created this course, and it is called Rhythms and Relationships, A Feminine Way into Herbalism.

2:49 And we're really centering the less book learning parts of herbalism and sort of this. Deep ancestral piece, you know, where we learned about the plants through being in relationship with them. So sitting with plants and dreaming with the plants and following our intuition. You know, I think oftentimes as herbalists, we can get into this place where we need to make sure there's a scientific study behind everything that we're doing. And all of that, you know, is really valid information. But I think there's this piece that can get lost that's really about kind of being in love with the plants.

3:32 And just like, wow, you know, I'm so grateful to be able to bring rose in and make a body oil for myself and just being in the sensual nature of herbalism and. The relationship part of herbalism. So we're lifting that up and bringing it into the light as equally valid ways of being an herbalist. Oh, I love this. And I think right now, especially with all of the time people are spending on devices and screens, it seems like, being embodied with the plants is a particularly lovely way to go about things, maybe to counterbalance some of our academic head screen time that's happening for many of us right now.

4:23 Yes. Yeah, I think that's one of my focuses in life in general is to be embodied and to be actually connecting with the world around us. I think modern life is going more and more onto screens and into research and books. And, you know, we... Started out as a species living in caves and, like, going out and harvesting the plants for food and for medicine. And, you know, we didn't have access to this overload of information that comes at us, and yet we were able to. Survive and even thrive enough to create future generations and generations.

5:08 So, this embodied kind of knowledge is so much a part of who we are as humans. And so, to just remember that and honor that piece feels really important. And especially in these times as the infrastructure around us is really changing right now. It feels like we're We're moving from one way that we've been on this planet to a new way. You know, we don't know what that's going to look like yet as things start to shift and change. And this course was kind of a response to these times. We were really inspired to take some time and really listen to the earth.

5:53 And the course is a prayer from ourselves and the earth. And it's like the way that we taught the course was to open a ceremony and to. Listen and trust that what came through us was what the earth and the plants wanted to be delivered to the humans at this time. So, you know, we, of course, made our outlines and, you know, made sure that we're delivering value to all of you. And, yeah, it's kind of a course where you step outside of time a little bit and into this realm of deep connection with the earth and the plants. Hmm.

6:40 You know, and the people who listen to this podcast are largely herbalists and nutritionists. And I'm wondering, you know, we can take these groups one by one, but let's start with the herbal folks. You know, a lot of us as herbalists do have intensive training, and many folks started from that place of connection with plants. And then once you get into clinical practice, sometimes you're spending so much time, way more time than you ever thought it would be, behind a computer screen, you know, doing admin and websites and charting and all this stuff. And I think it's very easy as a practitioner to kind of lose that connection with the plants in a visceral, hands-on way. Do you think this class would be appropriate for somebody who actually does have a lot of herbal training, but that's maybe kind of veered away from that just guided experience nature? Or do you think this would be better for somebody who's truly more of a beginner?

7:36 You know, a lot of the information is geared to people who are beginning, and yet I do think it's very appropriate for people who are in that space of just, practicing and having kind of lost track of that part where they're wanting, to be an experience with the plants. Because we're going to be, you know, offering these home plays where you can do a plant sit and really dream, learn to dream with the plants and bring them in and ask for information through your dreams. And there's a lot of experiences that we're creating with this course. So it will give you a chance to be with other people who are just playing in these realms again.

8:21 And to, I think there's something about that, like the community aspect of it. Of course, you can go do a plant sit on your own and you can, you know, play around with your dreams, but this would give you a group of people who are all doing that at the same time so we can, you know, lift it up and really just learn from each other. And I think there's something about that, that group energy that's going to bring more vibrancy to that exploration for you. So if it's, you know, if it's something that you're wanting to reinvigorate, I think it would be a fun experience to come through the class with us. Oh, I love that. And yes, I do love that.

9:02 It just seems like sometimes when you do something for work, you lose that beginner's mind of play and joy and exploration, and you're sort of coming at it from a different mind angle. So I like the idea of, you know, either reconnecting, like you said, and doing it on your own and getting back to that thing. But if a lot of people might be better served to have some guidance. Yeah, you know, we have that intention to go and do a plant set, but do we actually take the time for that? But if you're, like, in a class where everybody's going to do that and you're going to come back together on a live and share about what you did, you know, it's going to give you some motivation to actually be out and doing it.

9:42 Yeah, and it's a chance to really connect with the seasons again and with, you know, the moon. And there's kind of a ceremonial aspect to the course too where we go into a moon lodge or a moon temple and we have this vision of doing our live that week with everybody kind of creating their own red tent and coming into it and so we'll be meeting on Zoom, from our womb space where we're really held and nurtured. So it will also just give that boost to the feminine parts of your life and really. Hold you in this beautiful, nourishing way. So, I love that.

10:27 And just a small sidetrack before we get to our nutrition folks. I know you said a couple times it's a feminine guide in, or is it open to people who identify with all sorts of, you know, genders and expressions? Or are you really hoping to kind of limit it to people who identify in that feminine way? Or is it more like, well, everybody has a feminine side, so come on in no matter what. Yes. Yeah. No, it really is open to people of all genders, you know, however you identify gender-wise. And just to know that we're really focusing on the feminine in this particular course. And I think that, yeah, like you said, everybody has that feminine and masculine within themselves.

11:07 So whatever gender we are identifying as, I think we can benefit from just, coming into this feminine way, which is very nurturing, and it's interconnected, and it's intuitive. So it's some of those ways that the current culture, you know, the patriarchal culture kind of pushes down and. And so it's an opportunity for any of us to just reconnect with that feminine part of our knowing and lift it back up and bring it into the way that we're practicing our herbalism.

11:48 So, you know, there's these modules where we invite you into the Moon Temple and we talk about the phases of a woman's life. And at the same time, it's information that, you know, people of all genders are going to get something out of. And we really, in the Moon Temple episode, we, like, welcome everybody in. Like, come on, this is your chance to come into the Moon Temple, you know, and find out what we do in this space, you know, in this feminine space. So you can lift up your feminine, regardless of what gender you're identifying with. I love it. Love it. Yeah, it seems like whether people menstruate or not, there's still that, you know, there's that yin and yang component that does seem quite out of balance at a larger level worldwide.

12:41 Yeah, I think the world is really calling for the feminine right now. So, yeah, we wanted to kind of respond to that call and say, okay, we're going to, you know, do this course to really bring that in right now. Yeah. And just, okay, so to go back to our nutrition practitioners, we have a number of nutrition practitioners who know a lot about herbs, maybe are co-trained. Then we have some folks who are more dipping their toes into the practice of herbalism and bring herbs into their clinical practices. Do you think this might be a reasonable place to dive in as a nutritionist? Oh, you know, want to speak to that a little bit, perhaps?

13:23 Yeah, there's a section of the course where I bring people into my kitchen. Like, I am more of a kitchen herbalist. So I just wanted to share with people, like, the ways that I bring the herbs into my diet for nutrition. So I talk about nourishing herbal infusions and making herbal vinegars. And, you know, these might be all things that we know. But also just like looking at the kitchen and realizing that, you know, if we're actually going to bring these things in, we need to make them accessible in our kitchens and we need to have, you know, strategies for not only gathering the plants. And making things with them, but how do we actually get those into our diet?

14:05 So there's all these different components to that, right? Like when to gather the herbs and how to preserve them. What are the different ways that we can do that? And then how do we actually prepare them so that they get into our food? And so we talk about, you know, making pestos or once you've got the vinegar infused, you know, you can make a salad dressing or you can make a shrub or here are some different ways to actually get it into your body and into your family's body. And so I think for nutritionists, that kind of information is important, not only for themselves, but for people that they're working with.

14:45 Because, you know, you can recommend an herb to a person, but if they don't actually get it into their body, then it's not going to actually help them, right? So, like, just thinking about the different parts and how to bring that in in a way that's actually going to work can be a part of this course. And you might get some new ideas along the way and get a sense of, you know, how I've done it. And then from the community, we can also learn from each other, you know, so much, which is one of the things I love about having the live component is that we can all be learning from each other. Yes, I love it. I love it. Amazing.

15:28 Well, is there anything else you wanted to share to our herbal and nutrition folks who are listening just in terms of. The course or just the overall kind of, I hear in your words, almost like a call to lean into this component of your life and your practice, whether the course is relevant or not, but just this acknowledgement that, in order to balance, we need to think about academics and studies and books and computers and things like that sometimes. But to balance it out with also the more embodied, feminine, intuitive approach to understanding people and plants and life in general as well.

16:15 So anything else on your heart or your mind to say at this moment in time before we wrap up? Just that I would really love to, you know, welcome any of you into this course. I think it's going to be an experience that we are going to be in together and, we're really going to be stepping into this shared kind of ceremony together, as a course and moving through something that is really unique and is really going to bring us to places that we don't even know yet. It will really be informed by who joins us and we can do so much more with each person bringing their gifts to what we're creating here.

17:02 So I would just, I would really love to welcome any of you in. Yeah, my friend Lauren, her passion is really about dreaming with the plants. And so she brings a wealth of information about connecting with the plants through our dreams. And if that's something that entices you, like she's become quite an expert on this aspect of herbal learning. And so I think that will be something that might also spark the interest of, different folks. So, yeah, we'd love to have you join us for this journey. I love it. Well, I will put, I will absolutely put the registration info in the show notes.

17:46 So if anyone wants to find out more about the course and sign up, I will make sure that that's possible. And then, of course, I'll put in the Learning Herbs links as well and more information about Kimberly. So, amazing, Kimberly. Thank you so much for coming on to talk to us. I just love hearing about the different programs that people envision and bring into the world. And this one in particular seems really special and really different than what's out there. And I'm so glad that you have taken the time and put in all the love and effort that I know goes into this like this. So much. Yes. All right. Thank you so much. Thank you so much for having me.