Starting From Traditional Roots

They say that the more you know, the more you know you don’t know! My herbal journal began with a feeling of discontent and casting a wide net. In 2017 I attended the Traditional Roots conference in Portland, OR as I was searching for something “more”. I was particularly inspired by the following classes and teachers:

• The New Herbal Bitters by Glen Nagel
• Mastering the Menstruum in Herbal Extracts by Glen Nagel
• Shinrin Yoku by Chanchal Cabrera
• Healing Application of Hydrosols by Jessica Ring

Cedar Mountain Herb School

My interest in these classes lead me to local instructor Suzanne Tabert of the Cedar Mountain Herb School and Bastyr University. I completed several 11-week internships with Suzanne, learning about herbal medicine, wildcrafting, and making medicine. It was a blissful time to spend the sunny months in the beautiful pacific northwest forests with like minded souls. As my interest in herbal medicine grew so did my appetite for knowledge. I decided to take a break from my work in user experience to study the topic deeply. I decided to undertake a second master’s degree because the high quality of research in such a program is important to me.

Maryland University of Integrative Health

I graduated from the Masters program in Therapeutic Herbalism at MUIH in December 2021. My herbal philosophy is heavily based in a philosophy of Western Herbal Medicine taught at MUIH, in which the “clinical assessment is characterized by a holistic, biopsychosocial approach with treatment aimed at supporting or augmenting vis medicatrix naturae (the healing power of nature)” (Snow, 2016, p. 55). This philosophy emphasizes practices that enrich patient care in the following ways: engaging with patient narrative; practitioner collaboration; and the facilitation of patient empowerment. In engaging with the patient narrative, the practitioner takes an active listening role as they share conversation that explores the entire patient experience. The practitioner works with the patient to collaborate on diagnoses and treatment protocols. The goal of which is the patient feeling empowered in their health outcomes. These practices will strengthen the patient-provider relationship, and indeed this relationship is a concept that contributes to the working definition of Integrative Health. I carry this philosophy and these practices with me as I continue on my wellness journey.

Next Steps

My time at MUIH has ended, but my journey continues. As a capstone to my MS degree, I have written a chapter on herbal medicine and diabetes (HRB 690c). This chapter is a cornerstone to a book that I’m writing on integrative medicine and diabetes!  I think the last few artifacts that I have included in my portfolio (book chapter and mindful eating & diabetes program executive summary) address some of the areas of MUIH values where I was weak (Community and Discernment). I plan to turn the mindful eating and diabetes executive summary (NUTR 672) into a remote, month long class available from my company website.

My Professional Goals

I am an entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of Halebee.com a Diabetes wellness company with an emphasis on Complementary & Alternative Medicine and Herbs. As I continue my herbal journey I plan to build an app that serves the Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) community. I want to include services such as community forums, video education, recipes, Diabetes news, and a 10-minute a day program that helps people manage their blood glucose levels through complementary and alternative practices. I plan to work with herbalists to development and sell a line of herbal products for people living with T2DM. I also want to provide access to certified Diabetes educators. Giving clients access to trained coaches through mobile apps has been shown to reduce A1c values, which reduces the risk of diabetes-related complications (Kumar et al, 2018). With masters degrees in Information Science and Therapeutic Herbalism, I believe that I’m in a unique position to succeed. The values that I have learned at MUIH will help me on my way to making my dream come true!