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The Herbalism Thread

When I took herbs, rhodiola and bacopa seem to hang out as some of the top ones for how I felt.

I am pretty sure Foreigner is right that algae is hard for many to digest. When I ate chlorella, my skin turned orange, too. But then again with that I ate a ton for a good while. And the day I tried spirulina (though I had had it before in food bars and kombucha), from Whole Foods, I felt sick, in a way I hadn't yet. Then later I had a gallbladder attack, and I have been dealing with a bad gallbladder since (that was 2010). I can't blame it on the spirulina but I can say that eating all the algae in the first place didn't help at all. Excessive uric acid. I wish I could go back. I thought I could survive on the stuff.

I'd like to try mushroom extracts, like lions mane... But I'm so sensitive anymore to foods/substances, so I have anxiety about trying anything.
 
Bee pollen doesn't provide a mood boost, Foreigner. That's your imagination. It's just a good, highly nutritious food. The extent of the mood boost is the energy boost provided by its nourishing qualities.
 
red22 said:
Bee pollen doesn't provide a mood boost, Foreigner. That's your imagination. It's just a good, highly nutritious food. The extent of the mood boost is the energy boost provided by its nourishing qualities.
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I think that's true... which means it was providing something that I must have been lacking.
 
^ Herbs are not really prescribed in that way. You have to look at what is happening in the whole body. For example, sage is cooling and we give it to menopausal women who are having hot flashes, and because heat really disturbs the mind, the cooling effect brings mental clarity. Rhodiola is a stimulant adaptogen, so we give it to people who are sluggish and inclined to be lazy. Periwinkle is toxic and I don't normally use it. From that entire list, one of the only neutral herbs that does anything is ginkgo.

I don't have experience with bacopa or gotu kola.
 
Thanks Foreigner.. I'll look into Ginkgo more before I try it. I did try Rhodiola before but for some reason, It gave me more anxiety after a few days so iI'd have to be more careful and make sure it will be right for me.
 
Thanks Foreigner.. I'll look into Ginkgo more before I try it. I did try Rhodiola before but for some reason, It gave me more anxiety after a few days so I need to be more careful and make sure it will be right for me.
 
^ If rhodiola gave you more anxiety then you need a calmative nerve tonic like ashwaganda or holy basil (tulsi), taken in the evening at the end of your day. Rhodiola is a stimulant nerve tonic and best taken in the morning.
 
How do you know what's supposed to be stimulant or calmative?

Begun ~1 tsp of red maca every day. Confirms it increases testosterone for me at least. Hair growing significantly faster.

In the past I was taking 1/2 tsp or less of red maca ~3-5 days a week.
 
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That's why I asked.

No one wakes up knowing something. They have sources. They discovered patterns.

I'm asking not what he knows but how he obtained it.
 
ilikestims said:
How do you know what's supposed to be stimulant or calmative?
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Depends on the herb, and depends on the person.

For example, rhodiola is dopergenic and serotonergic. If someone's lack of energy is due to a lack of either of those neurotransmitters, then rhodiola will help. If, however, you already have enough of those, then rhodiola will have a stimulating effect and might exacerbate the symptoms you're trying to calm down.

Adaptogens are specifically indicated for stress and help people cope with stress response. Rhodiola is an adaptogen. Therefore, if any of your health issues are caused by stress, you can investigate adaptogens. They can be stimulating or relaxing, depending on the kind of action they facilitate within your neurochemistry. Their primary effects are endocrine and neurochemical. If your goal is to relax and an herb ends up making you less relaxed, then the action it's facilitating in your body is not right for you and you should choose another herb; same is true if you're seeking a stimulating effect.

Nervines are tonics which restore the nervous system. They specifically incite the sympathetic nervous system to calm down by relaxing nerves and muscles. They also have tonic action and act as restoratives to the nerves. For instance, oatstraw is high in magnesium and helps to calm nerve potentials. Unlike adaptogens which can swing either way, nervines are always relaxing. If a nervine doesn't relax you, then the action it provides is not the missing link that your nervous system needs to calm down. Think of nervines as relaxing + nourishing.
 
I wish I had a place to get fresh schizandra, it is healthy for your liver in ways we don't even know that much about yet and considering your liver is kind of your bodys way of cleaning itself keeping it healthy makes you feel way healthier.

Milk thistle is also really good for your liver having extremely powerful antioxidant properties on liver cells.

there should be a liver detox thread in healthy living IMO because when I fasted for two days on bread water and lots of milk thistle I felt quite a bit healthier after.

I have some water from the great lakes that is a potent natural source of Magnesium hcl that also seems to have a pretty immediate health promoting effects. Apparently it has 'trace minerals' in it as well not that I know what that is.

also potentially a bacteriophages thread? lol
 
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