Navigating the body's river

& standing on the edge of eternity

From the apothecary

Last spring I hosted a small workshop at the brick and mortar store on herbs for stimulating and cleansing the elimination pathways of the body. Some might call these “detox” herbs, but I don’t think the body can be toxic. There’s too much emphasis on detoxing these days anyway. We don’t need to make our body less toxic, we need to bring it into balance.

In traditional Slavic folk healing it’s believed that an ailment is simply a visitor. It wasn’t an inherent part of our being, but something that could be banished to the wilds of the forest or crossroads, like a pesky rodent getting into your food stash. I think there is a power in this. To know that a malady is entirely separate from who we are makes it seem so much more possible to heal from.

In this particular workshop I focused on herbs for the lymphatic system. Many conventional doctors will deny that it is even possible for the lymphatic system to become sluggish or imbalanced. Yet herbalists, acupuncturists, body workers and beyond know the power of lymph.

Rivers within us, painting by Olaf Hajek

It lives just below the skin, parallel to the blood stream, rio abajo rio, the river beneath the river. The lymphatic system catches the toxins shed by the blood stream and delivers them to the lymph nodes to be expelled. Essentially, it is the body’s garbage shoot.

This vast array of tributaries navigates the body’s landscape, constantly encouraging the flow of energy and liquids. These internal waters typically become stagnant indirectly due to another imbalance somewhere in the body. But some telltale signs of sluggish lymph are swelling, congestion, chronic infection, fatigue and skin issues.

Like streams and rivers, where the lymphatic system bends, debris can collect. These bends in the body are our joints. As debris collects, inflammation and stagnation can occur. This can also cause general soreness, stiffness, or potentially what some would be quick to call arthritis.

The lymphatic system is a river navigating the landscape of bones, joints, blood and body.

I bring all of this up because last week I had a lady who attended the class come into the shop. She told me she has been using the lymphatic herb blend I suggested in the workshop and has noticed a big difference in the arthritis in her hands.

Typically people may think of anti-inflammatories as soon as they hear arthritis. While these are helpful, there may be more going on. If the joints are swollen and tender, it may be a matter of sluggish lymph. Likewise for the same reason, if the painful joints are often cold, it may be a matter of sluggish blood, the lymph’s sister stream. This is why Traditional Chinese Medicine often uses blood cleansing herbs to treat arthritis.

If both coldness and swelling is present, using both lymphatic and blood cleansing herbs may be useful. Luckily, there are some herbs such as burdock that are great for both the lymph and the blood.

Arthritis is such a common issue, with potentially many causes, so it is worth doing a little digging to see what is actually causing it.

One last interesting note: the lady from the shop noticed that the swelling and pain got worse after eating a fatty or sugary meal. This inflammation caused by sugar or fat can exacerbate conditions, but taking the blend quickly helped to bring the swelling down. The tea blend listed below not only helps stimulate lymph, but assists in the break down of sugars and fats in the liver.

Lymph Love Blend

This is the tea blend the woman who came into the shop uses. It works best as a long infusion to help stimulate blood, liver and lymph. Adding in dry brushing and greater water intake can also help.

Ingredients

• 1 part cleavers (can substitute for violet leaf)

• 1 part dandelion leaf

• 2 part alder bark (if chronic infection is present)

• 2 parts burdock root

• 2 parts dandelion root

Directions

1. Infuse one tablespoon of the herb blend per 8 oz of hot water. I usually do about 3 tablespoons in 24 oz of water for a full day of sipping.

2. Let infuse for 3-8 hours and strain. Drink cool or warm. Enjoy daily for best results.

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From the forest

The end of November reminds me of the edge of a sharpened knife, cold and efficient in its dismembering of things. There is no gentleness once the snow starts falling and the sun hides its face. It’s this precipice of winter that brings forward that feeling of standing before the edge of something monumental.

It’s that feeling that burrows into the bottom of your gut when you stand at the edge of a mountain or under a starry sky unpolluted by our manmade lights. The vastness of it, but also the anticipation of it, creates little butterflies within us. I’ve decided we get butterflies not when we are nervous, but when we are standing before the unknown. There are stories in this endless expanse that our human minds can’t fashion into words.

While we don’t have mountains here, standing on the desolate icy shores of Lake Superior gives me that same feeling. The words from the local lore of The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald capture the spirit of this place that is so cold and massive. The eerie cords of the guitar strum and bend feelings deeper and untouchable:

The legend lives on from the Chippewa (Ojibwe) on down
Of the big lake they called Gitchigumi
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy

{Years ago on the edge of Lake Superior. Looking back I would not have wandered onto the ice caps, very dangerous!}

The tides of November recede and the waves of December inch closer mirroring the power of that ice water mansion. While the light disappears from the sky, we bring it into our hearths, our candles, our ovens. We hold it close, a small guide, a gift from our ancestors, to help us hold fast against the wiles of winter.

It’s only in my adult life that I’ve figured out how to thrive in this harshness. Appreciating both the sting of the cold and the embrace of a warm fire becomes a dance of sensations and experiences in these short days.

The wood is cut, the herbs and fruits are dried and stored, the garden is quiet, now we wait for the scales to tip.

Much love,

Val

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