Length

1 hour 20 minutes

Class Description

Frequently I come across the assumption that just because something is natural, it is safe. Herbal medicines and herbal products, while being generally safer than pharmaceutical medicines, do have safety considerations. First, we will place plants used for medicine on a spectrum from those that are most food-like and most safe to those that are more toxic and therefore more likely to carry risk. Next, we will discuss specific herbal actions and plant chemicals that carry safety concerns and contraindications. Finally, we will shift our focus to discuss different health situations that warrant caution regarding the use of herbal medicine. Participants will leave class with a better understanding of herbal medicines that are generally safe as well as a better idea of when and how to be cautious when using herbal remedies. References for further research on safety concerns and herb-drug interactions will be provided.

About the Teacher

Cal Janae Wolfpack, is a clinical herbalist, botanist, herb grower, forager and plant educator located in Milo, IA in the Raccoon River and Des Moines River watersheds. They have been studying plants for their entire life: as a child they were led on plant and bird watching walks in Iowa and Minnesota by their father before they could walk on their own. Later, they formalized their passion for the natural world and living sustainably in it with a degree in Ethnobotany from Drake University. Cal then studied and apprenticed with herbalist 7Song at the Northeast School of Botanical Medicine where they were later employed. During this time Cal practiced as a clinical herbalist at the Ithaca Free Clinic in Ithaca, New York for several years. Cal currently works as a self-employed herbalist and botanist in their private practice offering sliding scale, holistic herbal consultations, growing and foraging herbs for medicine making, teaching herbal medicine and botany, leading plant walks and offering plant identification. As a clinical herbalist Cal is a general practitioner with focus in areas of women’s health, queer health, first aid, mental health, harm reduction, addiction and recovery. They are the owner of the Profound Existence Herbs products line available through online ordering and shipping. In their free time Cal maintains a strong wanderlust and rapt interest in the botanical arts, bird watching and homesteading with their family.