137 – New Course & Other Updates!

Welcome to the Frontline Herbalism Podcast with your host, Nicole Rose, from the

Solidarity Apothecary.

This is your place for all things plants and

liberation.

Let's get started.

Hello.

Welcome back to the Frontline Herbalism

Podcast.

How are you doing?

****** hell.

I've had one thing after the next since the

last episode,

so I think I did the interview with Grassroots Remedies and then I recorded the intro in a

car park during the heat wave.

And to preserve the sound quality, I didn't have the AC on in the car and I just got

hotter and hotter after, like, several days in a very hot static caravan.

And, yeah, just ******* was done with heat exhaustion and, like, got out of the cafe,

back to my car, felt really nauseous, started throwing up,

got home, like, *******.

Yeah, we.

Luckily we'd moved into my mum's house because it's just, like, unlivable in the caravan.

We've got ******* air conditioning now, though, haven't we?

Thanks to the old baby daddy, so that's really nice.

But, yeah. Oh, my God, I was.

It was really awful.

I literally felt like I was dying.

I just kept throwing up.

It was like being pregnant again and,

yeah, like, scary.

Like, I hope people are okay.

Like, obviously, you know, I know loads about, like, public health stuff and things and it's

like, yeah, who gets hit by the heat?

But,

yeah, it was really, really scary and it took me a while to recover and then I recovered and

then because I'd been staying at my mum's house, she'd been really unwell for several

weeks with a virus, and then I capitulated to that,

so then I had a virus and then finally got back to work on Monday.

Last week,

Tuesday, my sister arrived to stay for a few weeks with her kids and I was on a Black Flag

Herbal Clinic call and got a message like, nicole, come quickly.

Lee's hurt him and he has basically broken his elbow falling off the side he was holding.

The irony, he was holding a toy slide in his hand,

so his hands weren't holding onto the slide like they should have been.

And so he fell off the middle of it and landed on his elbow and just, like, clean fracture,

like, broke it.

And, yeah, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, if I'm honest.

Like, it's been awful.

Just. Yeah, just seeing him in that much pain and, like, I knew, like, within seconds of

seeing him, I was like, I know it's broken, like, because he's.

Whenever he hurts himself, he's always, like, up and smiling, like, really Quickly

afterwards.

So yeah, we rushed him to A E,

all the normal waiting.

Finally got an X ray which was like also super

traumatic because it was really painful for him and scary and then got a cast on,

had to wait to find out if he'd need surgery,

had to come back, get another cast on, go through it all again with him and like this

time it was worse because he like knew what to expect and he wasn't sleeping very well

because he was in like so much pain and like he's talking now so he was like sad.

He just woke up in the middle of the night and said sad and his burst out into burst into

tears and would just be like mummy pain pain, elbow hurting,

arm hurting, hand hurting.

And yeah, it's just been like.

I think people keep replying to me being like,

oh, kids are really resilient, it will grow back really fast.

But yeah, like seeing the little human that you love more than any human in the world be

in so much pain and distress and need 24 hour constant hyper vigilance because literally

yesterday I went into the bedroom to put the blackout black out, blinds up and like he fell

off the sofa,

didn't he? And was like screaming in pain again.

So it's,

I have to get help if I want to have a shower and stuff and yeah, it's just, it's just

unbearable seeing him like so limited.

Like luckily now our caravan is like you know,

nice with the, with the AC on and you know, we've got loads of stuff for him to play with

and things but he's not able to go to nursery so that's like all my childcare support as a

single mom.

I'm paying my neighbour as like a childminder and she's amazing.

But yeah, the bank balance ain't unlimited, you know what I mean?

So it's just been really tough and as always the podcast has to kind of go down the list

compared to like my client work and the clinic work and stuff.

So yeah, I'm sorry but I think I had grand plans of doing like a kind of pre recorded

series all about medicine making and I'm just not going to be able to do it.

So I'm just here to announce that I can't do it.

But there's a couple of other cool announcements which I'll come on to, including

a new course that I'm teaching on.

So I'll talk about those shortly.

But yeah, I'm sorry, I just figured by the time I managed to actually record the medicine

making stuff, it's going to be like ******* autumn, do you know?

I mean, and then I need to start promoting my PTSD course.

So it just felt like something that had to get dropped, sadly.

So, yeah, sorry about that.

But if you want to learn about glycerin and

how to make the most potent, sexy, amazing, tasty, delicious, hyper effective, wonderful

alcohol free medicines for your community,

I am running a sale on my Making Herbal Medicine With Glycerin course.

So it's only £20 and there is a code, which is Black Flag all cap, socks,

caps lock.

I never say that word properly, but basically

it's a fundraiser for the Black Flag Herbal Clinic.

So that's like the Free Anarchist Clinic I run, which is like, I see like a couple of

people a week and they get the same service as people paying me in terms of,

like, herbal support and care and free medicines.

And it's been set up for comrades who are experiencing health issues due to, like,

poverty, due to being involved in, like, struggle and dealing with repression and state

violence.

And yeah, there's an amazing little collective now, got lots of signal chats.

There's like herbal students and people that have been studying herbalism for a long time,

but, like, don't practise clinically in a kind of formal way.

But yeah, just amazing environment of like, collaborative, like, learning.

And yeah, we're gonna be launching a fundraiser with some bandanas, which I'm like

super ******* excited about because the illustration is going to be gorgeous.

So, yeah, so that's all in the pipeline, but for now we just need an injection of cash.

So if anyone wants to join that workshop,

it's ******* awesome.

You will hear me be passionate about

glycerites and how to make them in different ways in like a kind of cold method, just, you

know, like infusing things in jars and then like a warm method with slow cookers.

And you'll learn what works in glycerin, what doesn't, which constituents are better in

glycerin,

the role of things like he.

Yeah, troubleshooting, like storage preservation, things like that.

So I will put the link in the show notes, but please, please, please cheque that out.

And the other announcement is I got invited to teach on a course,

which is awesome.

I love, like, guest spots if anyone ever wants

me in your courses or memberships or whatever.

But yeah, I was really excited about this one, so I'm gonna.

Out of.

Yeah, just kind of time pressure because I've only got a little bit of time in my herb shed.

I'm going to read an email out that I sent to my email list about this course.

But before you listen to it all,

the ******* enrolment deadline is like, literally tomorrow, Thursday.

Actually, you might be listening to this on the day.

****, I'll make sure I publish this tomorrow morning, which will be today, if you're

listening to it.

But basically go on the website.

They've got a countdown timer.

You can see when it closes for enrolment.

But it's super, super, super soon.

Like you' have hours to do it, basically.

But yeah, it's a really, really amazing online course.

It's called Celtic Plant Rebellion, Resilience and reciprocity.

What beautiful three Rs are those?

And, yeah, their blurb is discover how plants have historically aided communities in times

of turmoil and regrowth and how this kinship can strengthen our resilience today.

And basically they contacted me and they were like, would you like to teach on this course?

Blah, blah, blah.

And I was like, I'm gonna be honest, I'm not

like a folklore person.

Like, I just, like.

I don't know if I'm like, yeah.

Anyway, I just was like, it's not my strong suit.

If you want to know how to bandage someone up after they've been beaten by police, how to

deal with nightmares from trauma from prison, I'm your girl.

But I'm not like the most kind of, like, historically informed herbalist, if that makes

sense.

And they were like,

no, we just love what you're doing.

We want to support the solidarity apothecary.

And. Yeah, so we're kind of like mixing it up, if that makes sense.

So my session is called Remedies for Solidarity.

And, yeah, I'm just going to ******* read the blurb.

So throughout history,

people have turned to plants to sustain themselves and one another through war,

imprisonment, displacement and social upheaval.

Together, we'll explore herbalism as a practise of mutual aid rooted in relationship,

collective care and the plants growing within our own bioreathe region.

Drawing on storeys from grassroots herbal projects, alongside practical approaches to

supporting the nervous system through prolonged uncertainty and grief, we'll ask,

what is herbal mutual aid? What can history teach us about collective

care and what remains of herbalism when we have no equipment, no dispensary and no

pharmacy, only ourselves,

the plants and the relationships we build with them.

So I still got a design.

It's a bit of a high pitch in it, but I've still got to design my workshop, but it's on

my August plan, so to be working on it while My baby boy is sleeping and while I get the

odd.

The odd childcare hour.

But yeah, it's going to be like, linking all the kind of stuff I'm doing,

like, or have done with the apothecary, you know, like, whether it's stuff like with the

Ukraine project or Calais or like the Prisoner's Herbal, but, like, really

integrating practises of, like, how can you connect with plants, like, where you are now?

Because, like, in prison, for example, you don't have fancy equipment, you don't have

slow cookers, you can't do percolation, you don' infused oils.

Like, you've literally just got you and the plants and, you know, when I was speaking to

the, like, beautiful facilitators, like, that's what I was saying,

like, okay, I live in England and my heritages are, like, English, Welsh and Irish.

But, like,

you know,

l man, like, I grew up not knowing a single plant, right?

And I think that's the same for most kids in the uk.

So it's like,

how do we rebuild that relationship, you know, with these lands now, like, let alone if

you're a settler in a different place? But, like,

yeah.

So anyway, I'm really ******* excited about

it.

And what I'm also excited about is that I get

to listen to all the other workshops that are shared.

So please go on the website to see the overview.

But, like, ******* dream team of facilitators.

I'm so excited about it.

There's like herbal folklore sessions.

There's sessions about kind of like, you know,

looking at a kind of Celtic identity stuff.

And, you know, I know that stuff gets

interrogated a lot, but, like, more about, like, how do we live in a kind of like,

animistic, cyclical way with plants and ecology.

There's a session.

I mean, how awesome does this sound?

Like Labour Herb Storey and Plant Ballads of Rebellion.

What do plants have to do with the advancement of workers rights,

you know, man.

So there's gonna be loads of, like, songs about, you know, from the Chartists, about

plants and, you know, social change and, like, struggle and it's just gonna be awesome.

And there's a session about, like, just like Ethnobot General and how do we sort of

preserve knowledge?

Lucian island is doing something about,

like, eating disorders and colonialism and, like, relationship to, like, food.

There's like a session,

like, with a person who's like a songsmith, who's, like, talking about kind of like

Scottish music and heritage and island dwellers and.

Oh, my God, it's just gonna be lush I really feel like I've been craving like a witchy

loving container where I can just kind of like turn my brain off and just like tap into my

body.

Do you know what I mean? Like, it's been hard having a baby.

Like I don't get as much kind of like medicine making time,

but that's a whole other episode.

I mean, I still make loads of medicine, but

like, compared to like pre baby life, I know when he's a bit bigger, he's gonna be like my

right hand man and we're gonna be like doing all the fun stuff together.

But right now he just ******* run off, wouldn't he?

Or fall down to slide.

No, I'm joking anyway,

so please ******* join it.

I'm sorry, it's not my course, so I can't

offer a free place if that makes sense.

But like when they shared it with me, like, I

do think it's quite reasonably priced and there's like a payment plan,

you know.

I know like I offer free places on my courses

and stuff, but like, that is an economic decision for me and I, like, I don't want to

judge like other facilitators and stuff because I think everyone is like kind of

different and you know, they're paying all the facilitators and stuff.

And what's ******* snazzy is that we have an affiliate link.

So basically when you enrol in the course, I get like 20% or something.

25%.

I mean, how ******* awesome is that?

So, yeah, I'm really excited.

Like, I think like maybe like 20 people or

something have joined through with my code.

But like, makes a ******* difference.

Like I need the funds right now to like keep up all this stuff.

So, yeah, that's a bonus.

Like all the money will just be used for

solidarity, apothecary things, you know, like books to prisoners and care packages to people

experiencing state violence and sustaining the Black Flag Herbal Clinic, which is like

hundreds of pounds a month in herbs and medicine making costs and ******* postage

costs.

Oh my God. Me and Royal Mail, we're like, I.

You would just be horrified at how much I

spend on post a month.

It's like really extreme.

Like, I was going through my QuickBooks before doing a bit of a, like, financial audit.

I was just like, where's this ******* money going?

And it's just going to Royal Mail.

So anyway, I'm gonna stop rambling now because I have to go back to my baby boy.

But I'm sorry, I don't know when I'm gonna be Back.

I think hopefully his cast should be off in like three weeks.

But I had planned to go to like, the other side of the UK for like a bit of a holiday for

him to see his cousins.

And I was gonna go visit my friend Kevin

prison and stuff.

So I'm not sure, but it is my.

My herbalism PTSD traumatic stress course is

coming up in September and this is a critical month where I'm building my waiting list.

So I'm trying not to spiral and panic about losing all my childcare hours.

I feel like I just need to, like, take it on the chin of, like, I get to spend all this

time with my beautiful, beautiful baby boy and he's okay, you know, like, he's going to be

fine.

And yeah, me and his dad have always thought about encouraging him to like, learn how to

surf and stuff, but I've been like,

just joking, saying I'm going to push him into like getting into ******* chess because this

has been so stressful.

Anyway, I'm just joking.

He can do whatever he wants.

But yeah, okay, that was a ramble.

Thank you for listening to me.

Oh, yeah, sorry, I meant to say about the Rosehip Clinic as well.

I'm still supporting my clients who I've already got packages with.

And my dear Lee's grandma has been.

Is coming up to help me out for a couple of days so I can catch up on clinical work.

And my dispensing assistant is still working once a week so she can still get medicine out

to people.

So that's absolutely fine.

So I haven't emailed my clients to say this

has happened because I feel like will blink and I'll be back to work, if that makes sense.

So it's all good.

And my lovely, amazing admin assistant,

Chantal will pick up my emails anyway.

But yeah, but if you are interested in herbal care, like one to one,

feel free to drop me an email.

But I think I'm not going to take any new

people on until Lee is like solidly back in nursery.

Just because I don't want to be like a bottleneck in terms of like someone's support.

And you know, I do spend like several hours after each call, like, planning their

recommendations, doing extra research, like, expl.

In quite a comprehensive protocol of like, what I think would be helpful.

And it's like, it's very involved and that's why,

you know, that's how I practise as a herbalist and what I'm passionate about.

But it's just not compatible with this kind of like patchwork of childcare, if that makes

sense.

So anyway, I would love to work with you in the autumn.

Hit me up.

Please cheque out the PTSD course if you haven't seen it already.

It's going to be launching on the the autumn equinox.

I think it's the 22nd of September.

Need to cheque.

But yeah, it's an amazing online offering like self paced course all about herbal medicine

and trauma and different types of herbs that support the nervous system.

So yeah, please cheque that out.

Please enrol in Celtic plant law if that floats your boat.

I'm sure you'll love it if you're listening to this podcast.

And yeah, thank you for listening.

I hope you are having a good summer.

And yeah, take care.

Also my care packages are still going out

because my dispensing assistant preps those.

So please feel free to keep putting your requests like through the form for like

grassroots groups or prisoner family members,

sites of resistance.

All the info is on my website, but basically,

yeah, that stuff's still kind of like ticking on without me, which is good.

So.

Okay, I'm gonna stop talking now.

All right, thanks so much for listening.

Take care.

Thanks so much for listening to the Frontline Herbalism podcast.

You can find the transcript, the links, all the resources from the show at Solidarity

Apothecary.

Org Podcast.