In this episode, we explore herbs, flower essences, and homeopathy through a shamanic lens with celebrated herbalist, author, and teacher Matthew Wood. He's been a practitioner of these modalities for forty-five years and teaches at the Matthew Wood Institute of Herbalism.

Matt shares stories from his life's journey with the plants and from his most recent book, A Shamanic Herbal - Plant Teachers and Animal Medicine.

In this wide-ranging conversation, we touch on fascinating connections between wild animal archetypes and plants, including some of the flower essence plants that we know and love. Taking it further, we discuss shadow work that may come up for processing during the dark of winter and these broader Plutonian times, and the light-bringing plants that can help us through.

Full show notes and transcript on the Flower Essence Podcast website.

🌸 The Flower Essence Podcast is hosted by Rochana Felde and Kathleen Aspenns of The School for Flower Essence Studies, and additionally supported by our wonderful patrons and listeners like you.

✅ Join our PATREON community to help with expenses and get some perks too!

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This podcast is meant for educational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult with your own health care practitioner regarding any medical information discussed by the hosts and guests on the Flower Essence Podcast.

Recorded during the liminal time of year when the veil between the worlds is thin (Halloween, Samhain, Day of the Dead), Rochana and Kathleen discuss how we connect to the unseen — plant devas, our dearly departed, ancestors, angels, and spirit guides.

Animism, a belief that spirit is alive in everything, is a basic principle of making flower essences as we view it as a co-creative activity between ourselves and the spirit of the plant.

We don't need to turn to psychedelic plant medicines to connect with spirit beings. Flower essences can help us open to spiritual connection, practice discernment, and invoke protection on our journeys. Join us for this interesting conversation as we bring in some of our favorite plant spirit helpers.

Essences discussed:

• Angelica
• Hairy Angelica
• Forget-Me-Not
• Hound’s Tongue
• Mountain Forget-Me-Not
• Yarrows
• Siberian Yarrow
• Black Tourmaline
• Hematite
• Rainbow Hematite
• Guardian
• Purification
• St. John’s Wort
• Mugwort
• Queen Anne’s Lace

Full show notes and transcript on the Flower Essence Podcast website.

🌸 The Flower Essence Podcast is hosted by Rochana Felde and Kathleen Aspenns of The School for Flower Essence Studies, and additionally supported by our wonderful patrons and listeners like you.

✅ Join our PATREON community to help with expenses and get some perks too!

❤️ Like this episode? Let us know! Heart, follow and share on Instagram or Facebook.

🙏 Your positive reviews on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube help other like-minded souls find us.

This podcast is meant for educational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult with your own health care practitioner regarding any medical information discussed by the hosts and guests on the Flower Essence Podcast.

In this episode, Katheen and Rochana navigate the nervous system responses when triggered or emotionally activated. How do we recognize when it’s happening and what are some things we can do immediately to cope? How can we work with these deeply embedded reactions that at minimum feel uncomfortable but often are painful and uncontrollable? We discuss the importance of releasing emotion from the body and using flower essences to assist in creating a safe container for this work, as we strive to increase resilience and regain equilibrium in our lives.

Full show notes and transcript on the Flower Essence Podcast website.

🌸 The Flower Essence Podcast is hosted by Rochana Felde and Kathleen Aspenns of The School for Flower Essence Studies, and additionally supported by our wonderful patrons and listeners like you.

✅ Join our PATREON community to help with expenses and get some perks too!

❤️ Like this episode? Let us know! Heart, follow and share on Instagram or Facebook.

🙏 Your positive reviews on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube help other like-minded souls find us.

This podcast is meant for educational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult with your own health care practitioner regarding any medical information discussed by the hosts and guests on the Flower Essence Podcast.