Your,Own,Herbal,Expert,Inour,f health Be Your Own Herbal Expert - Pt 5

If the vagina is not offering the firm grip to your male partner, he expresses displeasure in lovemaking. You need to tighten the orifice and regain lost elasticity. You can make use of herbal remedies for loose vagina treatment naturally. H The technology behind listening devices has improved dramatically in recent years, giving new hope to those with impairment. While still far from a perfect replacement for the natural ability to hear, these devices give those with a disabili

Inour first session, we learned how to "listen" to the messages ofplant's tastes. In session two, we learned about simples and how to makeeffective water-based herbal remedies. The third session helped us distinguishsafe nourishing and tonifying herbs from the more dangerous stimulating andsedating herbs. Our fourth session focused on poisons in herbs and herbaltinctures, which we made and then collected into an Herbal Medicine Chest.  Inthis, our fifth session, we will find out how to help ourselves and ourfamilies with herbal vinegars, one of the green blessings of the Wise Woman Way. Why Use Herbal Vinegars?Herbalvinegars are an unstoppable combination: they marry the healing and nutritionalproperties of apple cider vinegar with the mineral and antioxidant richness ofhealth-protective green herbs and wild roots. Herbal vinegars are tastymedicine, enriching and enlivening our food while building health from theinside out. Herbalvinegars are far better for the bones and the heart than soy beverages. Theyhave a reputation for banishing grey hair and wrinkles. Sprayed in the armpits,herbal vinegars are highly effective deodorants. As a hair rinse (try rosemaryor lavender vinegar) they add luster and eliminate split ends. Anythingvinegar can do, including clean the kitchen, herbal vinegars can do better.Vinegars Seek MineralsMineralsare important for the health and proper functioning of our bones, our heart andblood vessels, our nerves, our brain (especially memory), our immune system,and our hormonal glands. No wonder lack of minerals can lead to chronicproblems and getting more can make a big difference in health in a few weeks.One of the best ways to get more minerals - besides drinking nourishing herbalinfusions and eating well-cooked leafy greens - is to use herbal vinegars. Vinegar & Your BonesItis not true that ingesting vinegar will erode your bones. Adding vinegar toyour food actually helps build bones because it frees up minerals from thevegetables you eat and increases the ability of the stomach to digest minerals.Adding a splash of vinegar to cooked greens is a classic trick of old ladieswho want to be spry and flexible when they're ancient old ladies. (Maybe yourgranny already taught you this?) In fact, a spoonful of vinegar on yourbroccoli or kale or dandelion greens increases the calcium you get byone-third. All by itself, apple cider vinegar is said to help build bones; whenenriched with minerals from herbs, I think of it as better than calcium pills.Vinegar & CandidaSomepeople worry that eating vinegar will upset the balance of gut flora andcontribute to an overgrowth of candida yeast in the intestines. Some peoplehave been told to avoid vinegar altogether. My experience has led me to believethat herbal vinegars help heal those with candida overgrowth, perhaps becausethey're so mineral rich. I've worked with women who have suffered for years andkept to a strict "anti-candida" diet with little improvement, andseen them get better fast when they add nourishing herbal vinegars (andfermented foods such as sauerkraut, miso, and yogurt) to their diets.Making Herbal VinegarsFillany size jar with fresh-cut aromatic herbs: leaves, stalks, flowers, fruits,roots, and even nuts can be used. For best results and highest mineral content,be sure the jar is well filled and chop the herb finely. Pourroom-temperature vinegar into the jar until it is full. Cover jar: A plasticscrew-on lid, several layers of plastic or wax paper held on with a rubberband, or a cork are the best covers. Avoid metal lids - or protect them wellwith plastic - as vinegar will corrode them. Labelthe jar with the name of the herb and the date. Put it some place away fromdirect sunlight, though it doesn't have to be in the dark, and someplace thatisn't too hot, but not too cold either. A kitchen cupboard is fine, but chooseone that you open a lot so you remember to use your vinegar, which will be readyin six weeks. Youcan decant your vinegar into a beautiful serving container, or use it rightfrom the jar you made it in. WhichVinegar? Iuse regular pasteurized apple cider vinegar from the supermarket as themenstrum for my herbal vinegars. I avoid white vinegar. Malt vinegar, ricevinegar, and wine vinegar can be used but they are more expensive and mayoverpower the flavor of the herbs. Applecider vinegar has been used as a health-giving agent for centuries.Hippocrates, father of medicine, is said to have used only two remedies: honeyand apple cider vinegar. Some of the many benefits of apple cider vinegarinclude: better digestion, reduction of cholesterol, improvements in bloodpressure, prevention/care of osteoporosis, normalization of thyroid/metabolicfunctioning, possible reduction of cancer risk, and lessening of wrinkles andgrey hair.  Notesfor Herbal Vinegar MakersCollect jars of different sizes for your vinegars. Iespecially like baby food jars, mustard jars, olive jars, peanut butter jarsand individual juice jars. Look for plastic lids.The wider the mouth of the jar, the easier it will beto remove the plant material when you're done.Always fill jar to the top with plant material andvinegar; never fill a jar only part way.Really fill the jar. This will take far more herb orroot than you would think. How much? With leaves and stems, make a comfortablemattress for a fairy: not too tight; not too loose. With roots, fill your jarto within a thumb's width of the top.After decanting your vinegar into a beautiful jar,add a spring of whole herb. Pretty.My Favorite Herbal VinegarPick the needles of white pine on a sunny day. Make herbalvinegar with them. Inhale deeply the scent of the forest. I call this my"homemade balsamic vinegar."Using Your VinegarsHerbal vinegars taste so good,you'll want to use them frequently. Regular use boosts the nutrient level ofyour diet with very little effort and virtually no expense.Pour a spoonful or more on beans and grains as acondiment.Use them in salad dressings.Add them to cooked greens.Season stir-fries with them.Look for soups that are vinegar friendly, likeborscht.Substitute herbal vinegar for plain vinegar in anyrecipe.Put a big spoonful in a glass of water and drink it.Try it sweetened with blackstrap molasses for a real mineral jolt. Many olderwomen swear this "coffee substitute" prevents and eases theirarthritic pains.  Coming UpIn our next sessions we will learnmore about herbal medicine making, with a focus on oils, explore the differencebetween fixing disease and promoting health, learn how to apply the threetraditions of healing, and how to take charge of our own health care with thesix steps of healing.Experiment Number OneTest vinegar's ability to absorb minerals. Put a freshbone in a jar and completely cover it with vinegar. What happens? Does the bonebecome pliable and rubbery? How long does it take? Will eating vinegar dissolveyour bones? Only if you take off your skin and sit in it for weeks!Experiment Number TwoMake eggshell vinegar. Fill a jarone-quarter full of vinegar. Drop crushed eggshell into it. What happens? Doesthe vinegar foam? How long does it take? Eggshells are exceptionally rich inbone-building minerals. Can you taste the calcium in this vinegar? Add someeggshell to your other vinegars if you wish to increase their ability to keepyour bones strong.Experiment Number ThreeMakefour or more vinegars with the same plant, using different types of vinegar,including both pasteurized and unpasteurized apple cider vinegar. (For theothers, use rice vinegar, malt vinegar, wine vinegar, or even white vinegar,but not umeboshi vinegar.) Tasteyour vinegars daily for a week, then weekly for five more weeks. You may, ifyou wish, decant some of your vinegars for use after six weeks. But you mayalso wish to keep observing them as they age (for years, if you wish). I havesome vinegars which are more than thirty years old and still in good shape.Note which stay edible the longest, and what happens to those that becomeinedible.Experiment Number FourBuy a quart or more ofunpasteurized apple cider vinegar. Use two cups to make several small herbalvinegars: one with roots, one with leaves, and one with flowers. Boil the othertwo cups. Make one herbal vinegar with the boiling hot vinegar. Make anotherwith the boiled vinegar after it has cooled. Continue as in experiment numberthree.    Further study1.           Redo experiment number two using different kinds ofeggshells - white ones and brown ones, store-bought and farm-bought, from cagedbirds and free-range birds. Can you see any differences? Taste or smell anydifferences?2.            Make vinegars at different times of the year andcompare them. Advanced workUnpasteurized vinegar can form a "mother."In a jar filled with herb and vinegar, the vinegar mother usually grows acrossthe top of the herb, and looking rather like a damp, thin pancake. Kombucha isa vinegar mother. Does your local health food store sell mothers? Kombucha?What is a vinegar mother? Is it harmful?What is an ionic form of a mineral?What is a mineral salt?How do our bodies take up and utilize minerals? PlantsThat Make Exceptionally Good-Tasting Herbal VinegarsApple mint (Mentha sp.) leaves, stalksBee balm (Monarda didyma)flowers, leaves, stalksBergamot (Monarda sp.) flowers,leaves, stalksBurdock (Arctium lappa) rootsCatnip (Nepeta cataria) leaves,stalksChicory (Cichorium intybus)leaves, rootsChives and especially chive blossomsDandelion (Taraxacum off.) flowerbuds, leaves, rootsDill (Anethum graveolens) herb,seedsFennel (Foeniculum vulgare)herb, seedsGarlic (Allium sativum) bulbs,greens, flowersGarlic mustard (Alliaria officinalis)leaves and rootsGoldenrod (Solidago sp.)flowersGinger (Zingiber off.) and Wildginger (Asarum canadensis) rootsLavender (Lavendula sp.)flowers, leavesMugwort (Artemisia vulgaris)new growth leaves and rootsOrange mint (Mentha sp.)leaves, stalksOrange peel, organic onlyPeppermint (Mentha piperata and etc.) leaves,stalksPerilla (Shiso) (Agastache)leaves, stalksRosemary (Rosmarinus off.)leaves, stalksSpearmint (Mentha spicata)leaves, stalksThyme (Thymus sp.) leaves,stalksWhite pine (Pinus strobus)needlesYarrow (Achilllea millifolium)flowers and leaves WeedyHerbal Calcium Supplement Use one or more of the following plants to make an herbal vinegar thatcan reverse and counter osteoporosis. Dose is 2-4 tablespoons daily.Amaranth (Amaranthus retroflexus)leavesCabbage leavesChickweed (Stellaria media)whole herbComfrey (Symphytum officinalis)leavesCronewort/Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris)young leavesDandelion (Taraxacum off.)leaves and rootKale leavesLambsquarter (Chenopodium album)leavesMallow (Malva neglecta) leavesMint leaves of all sorts, especially sage, motherwort, lemon balm, lavender,peppermint Nettle (Urtica dioica) leavesParsley (Petroselinum sativum)leavesPlantain (Plantago majus)leavesRaspberry (Rubus species)leavesRed clover (Trifolium pratense)blossomsViolet (Viola odorata) leavesYellow dock (Rumex crispus andother species) roots HerbalVinegars Where You Eat the Pickled Plants Too BurdockChicoryDandelionPurslaneYellow DockRosehips Raspberries/blackberries Study with Susun Weed in the convenience of your home!Choose from three Correspondence Courses: Green Allies, Spirit &Practice of the Wise Woman Tradition, and Green Witch - includesaudio/video tapes, books, assignments, special mailings, plus personaltime.  Learn more at http://www.susunweed.com or write to:  Susun WeedPO Box 64Woodstock, NY 12498Fax:  1-845-246-8081