This episode explores herbal support for emotional shock, with a focus on care after police raids. Nicole (she/her) shares several plant medicines for people struggling with sleep disturbances and nervous system distress after this act of state repression.
Links & resources from this episode
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Transcript
Welcome to the Frontline Herbalism podcast with your host Nicole Rose from the Solidarity Apothecary.
Nicole:This is your place for all things plants and liberation.
Nicole:Hello, welcome back to the Frontline Herbalism podcast.
Nicole:I have got half an hour of childcare, so I'm finally able to publish another podcast episode.
Nicole:This one today is about herbal support for basically for shock, for emotional shock after things like police raids.
Nicole:I'm really hoping that you haven't actually ever been raided by the police, if you're listening to this.
Nicole:But I think most people have experienced some situation of like intense emotional shock, whether, that's news of a loved one passing away, for example, or, Yeah, something like that.
Nicole:And I'm not talking about Oh, let's just grab a bottle of tincture like mid police raid or something.
Nicole:What I'm talking about is like, how do we support people in those like acute moments of distress?
Nicole:After they've been raided after we've collected them from the police station?
Nicole:What does that look like?
Nicole:What are some of our tools in the toolbox?
Nicole:Yeah, and which herbs are fantastic for that very distressed state?
Nicole:Because I think, yeah.
Nicole:I didn't talk about this in the piece, but I think what we do in those moments of response to that like initial kind of traumatic event really plays a massive part in how long term something is going to affect us, in my opinion I think if we tend to the nervous system and tend to that person with love and care and solidarity that they feel supported, that they feel strength, that they don't feel alone.
Nicole:Something is then like potentially much less traumatizing.
Nicole:Not always, but I think it is a big factor.
Nicole:So yeah, so I hope you enjoy the episode and learn some things about.
Nicole:amazing plants.
Nicole:You may have seen the announcement episode, but just another cheeky plug, the herbalism PTSD and traumatic stress course is open for enrollment.
Nicole:I'm really relieved that it's online and things seem smooth so far, touch wood.
Nicole:And yeah, I'm just getting lots of emails from people like, are you sure it's okay to use the solidarity price?
Nicole:And I'm like, yes, please.
Nicole:So yeah, if a right.
Nicole:have said before, it really is no one turned away for lack of funds.
Nicole:I also really appreciate the folks who are paying the full amount.
Nicole:It makes such a difference, like in terms of support in myself and, in terms of paying for my like quote unquote salary, but also all the costs of the solidarity apothecary are basically massively funded by this course.
Nicole:Obviously I do a bunch of other fundraising things too.
Nicole:But yeah, it just it's just so enabling of so many things and so much organizing and support work and solidarity.
Nicole:And yeah, just thank you.
Nicole:Thank you.
Nicole:Thank you to everyone who's enrolled.
Nicole:And most importantly, I hope that the course is going to be life changing for people doing it.
Nicole:That's the feedback I've been getting.
Nicole:You can check out all the testimonials on the course page, but.
Nicole:I know for a lot of people it's inspired these like massive journeys into herbal medicine, into understanding their nervous systems and their bodies, into changing how they think about trauma.
Nicole:And that's just so critical in terms of actually feeling different and actually feeling resourced to exist in this world, which let's face it, it's not going to get less traumatic any soon, right?
Nicole:So anytime soon, so yeah, that's, I put the course together as this kind of toolkit for a lifetime, really, and all of these plants that you can build a relationship with over time and how they can support you long term, plants in my life like rose and lemon balm and milky oats it's not that they've just helped me through one bereavement, it's helped.
Nicole:They've helped me through several bereavements.
Nicole:They've helped me through breakups.
Nicole:They've helped me through friends dying and killing themselves.
Nicole:Like it's, like they are literally like amazing allies for a whole lifetime of coping in this world.
Nicole:So like, why do we have to keep going through it alone?
Nicole:So anyway, I'll put the link in the show notes.
Nicole:Please check out the course.
Nicole:It's only going to be open for a week or two.
Nicole:And yeah, please share this episode with anyone you know who's like experiencing state repression right now.
Nicole:I know a lot of people from Palestine Action, for example, have been getting raided and I just, yeah, I wish I was a bit more resourced.
Nicole:Rob's away at the moment.
Nicole:It's a long story.
Nicole:I will talk about it soon.
Nicole:But I am solo parenting with a four month old while trying to do all this stuff.
Nicole:So it's really difficult.
Nicole:And yeah, I just, I'm used to doing a lot more like anti repression and defendant work, but I just haven't been able to do it so much other than the people I already support in prison, which is already a lot.
Nicole:Yeah, but if you are someone who has been raided recently who would like some support like I do hope to have more capacity when Rob comes back in October to be able to sneak off to my herb shed and get packages together for people and have this income boost from the PTSD course.
Nicole:So yeah.
Nicole:Anyway, just bear me in mind.
Nicole:I want to be there for you if I can, but if you are just someone in general who's supporting people, maybe you can listen to this episode and kind of acknowledge like how high impact a kind of shocking or stressful event can be and yeah, how important solidarity and care is in responding to that.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:Thanks so much.
Nicole:Take care.
Nicole:All
Nicole:In this episode I'm going to be talking about police raids and herbal allies for shock.
Nicole:Yeah, I've been raided handful of times over the years, thankfully not for a very long time.
Nicole:But yeah, they are definitely quite significant experience and I've worked with a few people who are like living in that kind of repercussion of.
Nicole:of being raided in terms of it affecting their sleep or their nervous system, and I've supported them as a herbalist quite successfully.
Nicole:So yeah, I included a piece in my herbalism and state violence book about police raids with herbal allies for shock.
Nicole:So specific plants that are very, useful in that kind of shock state.
Nicole:So once again, I'm going to read the chapter and then I'm just going to ad lib as I go.
Nicole:Okay, so a police raid is an unexpected visit by police with the aim of using the element of surprise to seize quote unquote evidence or arrest suspects.
Nicole:There can be many different kinds and they will obviously vary across countries.
Nicole:Commonly, They're on dawn when people are still sleeping.
Nicole:However, they can happen at any time of day and they could be anything from a small group of officers to like a massive group of armed police.
Nicole:Most raids usually involve some kind of a rest at the beginning, a grabbing and a handcuffing of a, quote unquote suspect, before they're able to move or escape.
Nicole:And other raids are more like kind of house searches, where there is a warrant, meaning police can search the property, even if they may not actually have enough evidence to justify even an arrest at that point.
Nicole:So yeah, I've had quite a hardcore raid.
Nicole:before with armed police.
Nicole:And I've also had one where they've had a search warrant and they haven't been able to arrest me, but they've, come into my house uninvited.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:So during a raid items may be taken while there's meant to be like all kinds of legislation regarding what they're legally allowed to take and why, in my experience, like it is an absolute free for all.
Nicole:And even if the items are eventually returned, the goal really of the cops is to cause like as much inconvenience as possible to the person being raided and whatever tactics are used, raids are ultimately meant to intimidate as a tool of repression.
Nicole:So yeah, this kind of element of surprise creates a feeling of shock in the body.
Nicole:Like having police break up your house, smashing your door, breaking your furniture, tipping food all over the floor, looking for people.
Nicole:things like these are all meant to create fear and leave you feeling violated.
Nicole:Houses like aren't homes for everyone.
Nicole:And I don't want to assume that everyone experiences a safe, just a sense of safety.
Nicole:But like for many people, like a house raid is like enough to permanently change how you feel in a space.
Nicole:It can take away that feeling that a room or building is safe and cozy.
Nicole:And instead said, create this like constant feeling of unease.
Nicole:And unfortunately, like the fear of being raided again takes its toll.
Nicole:So many people I know who have been raided like still commonly jump if they hear any kind of noise around dawn, and many people can struggle to sleep for months afterwards.
Nicole:And many people simply find they have to move house in order to get away from the kind of energy and the memories of being stormed by police.
Nicole:Okay, so what roles can herbs play?
Nicole:So see if you've been arrested, like you're not gonna exactly be able to be like, Oh, excuse me, officer I'm just gonna have some tincture, pop it open, take a few drops.
Nicole:Like the feeling of kind of shock, like remains beyond the initial moments.
Nicole:So like herbal support can play a role in this like arrest aftercare.
Nicole:Likewise, like burning herbs may help cleanse the space of the kind of energies of the police or the feelings you have left over after their presence like has been in your space in terms of like other elements of the herbalism and state violence book and the herbalism PTSD and traumatic stress course you know we know that herbs can also play a role in support for things like nightmares, like the last episode was all about herbal support for nightmares.
Nicole:And yeah, general symptoms of kind of post traumatic stress and general recovery from trauma.
Nicole:But yeah, in this like shock context, I think it's worth clarifying like what we mean by like emotional shock.
Nicole:So I've used the framework for like emotional shock to differentiate from medical shock which is a critical condition brought on by sudden drop in blood flow through the body.
Nicole:And that kind of shock may result from trauma from head, like Heat stroke, blood loss, or an allergic reaction.
Nicole:It can also result from like severe infection, poisoning, severe burns, or other causes.
Nicole:Yeah, so emotional shock is a completely understandable response to an experience that has literally shaken us.
Nicole:Emotional shock demands an acute activation of the sympathetic nervous system, the body's fight or flight response, which can mean like an increased heart rate, tightness in the chest, breathlessness, like me right now, as I've just been playing with my rescue doggy, lightheadedness, dizziness, headache, muscle tension, nausea, and many other physical symptoms.
Nicole:So we may be like acutely activated with a feeling of panic or rage, anger, and anxiety.
Nicole:Or we may be stuck like in an immobilized state, such as feeling numb, dissociated or shut down, experiencing difficulty.
Nicole:In expressing our emotions at all.
Nicole:And shock can last from several minutes to several days with an aftermath of weeks, months, or even years of post traumatic stress, depending on the context.
Nicole:Okay, so some like emotional shock aftercare.
Nicole:So here are some tips for taking care of loved ones who have been raided or for taking care of yourself.
Nicole:So ground, like in whatever way supports you, that could be like walking or sitting outside, getting under a duvet, cuddling a companion animal, like breathing techniques, etc.
Nicole:Eat, so eat root vegetables, fatty foods, anything that brings you comfort.
Nicole:Yeah, I personally love carbs in these situations.
Nicole:I think it's like when they're, it's their forte.
Nicole:Surround yourself by supportive people.
Nicole:Stay somewhere else if you can so that you can get some quality sleep before processing the effects of the raid on your home.
Nicole:Okay, in terms of herbal support for emotional shock.
Nicole:Okay, so like any herb can provide support for emotional shock, like if you've already got a relationship with.
Nicole:that plant, for example, that plant medicine helps ground you, soothes your nervous system or just helps you feel more steady in the world.
Nicole:I'm going to go through some of the herbs that would be my sort of personal first point of call.
Nicole:So the first is lavender.
Nicole:Lavender it's like a wonderful, calming, gentle relaxant.
Nicole:I love lavender because it's very accessible, even like a high quality bottle of the essential oil can be affordable.
Nicole:I'm not saying it is, I'm saying it can be sometimes.
Nicole:I make this like infused lavender oil, which I've spoken about a few times, which is like different from the kind of highly concentrated essential oil, but the yeah, infused oil is really wonderful rubbed into the temples or aching muscles from stressed out tension.
Nicole:And lavender can like also be found in people's gardens, obviously.
Nicole:So I've lost count of times that I've been out and about.
Nicole:Feeling super stressed, maybe I'm on my way to a prison visit or something.
Nicole:I need to pinch a little bit off a bush somewhere to smile as I try and move through the day in like a calmer way.
Nicole:And you can also make like lavender tea.
Nicole:It's quite strong, but it's also lovely.
Nicole:Yeah.
Nicole:You can just put a few flowers in hot water for an instant calming tea.
Nicole:Yeah.
Nicole:And I definitely think lavender oil used externally can support people experiencing disturbances in their sleep following a police raid.
Nicole:And chamomile.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:So again, generally an accessible hub.
Nicole:You might even be able to get chamomile tea in the police station.
Nicole:I, yeah, I've seen like more random fucking things in the cop station, to be honest, or maybe if you are lucky to get picked up from the cop shop, like on the way home at a petrol station, for example, you might be able to get a chamomile tea or at least access some hot water.
Nicole:So chamomile tea is like Instantly calming, especially for people whose kind of guts seem to be the first thing affected by stress.
Nicole:It's also wonderful as a tincture and it's like a warm infused glycerite.
Nicole:It's absolutely heavenly.
Nicole:If I was doing police station support, meeting people from police stations, I'd have a big flask of chamomile tea and they probably hate me and just want beers instead.
Nicole:But hey, beers are also made from hops, which is a herb.
Nicole:So what can you do?
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:Lemon balm?
Nicole:So again, super grounding, calming, gentle, relaxing herb, has an instant effect on the nervous system, reducing this like sympathetic activation.
Nicole:You can have fresh lemon balm tea, it's delicious, or take it as a tincture.
Nicole:And it makes a super wonderful like cold infused glycerite.
Nicole:So that's when I'm picking fresh lemon balm and putting it straight into glycerin and some water.
Nicole:Hawthorne.
Nicole:So again, Hawthorne is like a gentle relaxant on the whole system, has an affinity for the cardiovascular system.
Nicole:So if you're struggling after a raid, with that feeling of panic in your chest with heart palpitations, like I'd strongly recommend Hawthorne.
Nicole:It's also like a traditional remedy for grief, fear, and worry.
Nicole:And all of these feelings like commonly accompany police raids.
Nicole:Hawthorne berry or flower or both combined, it's like really wonderful as a tea, tincture and glycerite with all the methods, warm and cold.
Nicole:infused methods.
Nicole:And if this does not make sense to you, I recommend checking out my Making Herbal Medicine with Glycerin Workshop.
Nicole:Cheeky plug there because it goes into all these like really simple methods for making amazing medicine with glycerin.
Nicole:Okay, Motherwort.
Nicole:So yeah, it's a nervous system relaxant, particularly indicated where there is anxiety in the chest, including heart palpitations.
Nicole:I personally think it's fantastic, most as a tincture but can also be taken as a tea.
Nicole:If someone was having like very recurring kind of panic attacks, fast heart rate, I would definitely be thinking about Motherwort.
Nicole:And again, I should say this at the beginning of the episode, but obviously, please don't take any herbs without checking that they're safe with whatever medication you're taking, as well as, they're safe if you're pregnant, for example.
Nicole:Okay, Rose, everyone knows I love roses.
Nicole:Again, very gentle, relaxing, that offers soothing to the physical and emotional heart.
Nicole:Rose can be very comforting in time, in terms of in times of shock and grief.
Nicole:And, this kind of sweetness as a flavor is very nourishing to the nervous system, especially after this like acute activation of the fight or flight response, which is really commonly why we crave roses.
Nicole:sweet things like when we're super stressed.
Nicole:No, it's no accident, it's not just the corporate food system that creates that, like our body really craves sweetness.
Nicole:Yeah, rose glycerite is like heavenly in its sweetness and comfort it brings.
Nicole:If you've been trying to not to cry after an arrest, don't cry.
Nicole:Or a raid like I think Rose would gently open you up open up your heart to support with emotional release.
Nicole:So yeah, it's good for that stage as well as yeah, like I mentioned, like grief because often the raid, I'm going not off topic, but I'm, going on one now A raid like it's commonly like the start right like the start of a wave of repression of are we going to go to prison like have my friends been remanded am I going to be remanded like is this going to affect my relationship am I going to get kicked out of my house like I had so many consequences of the big raid which led to this operation which was part of this operation that put 12 of us in prison like It really was this like rupture in my life.
Nicole:And I think Rose is really brilliant for that kind of shock and grief.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:Milky Oats.
Nicole:Milky Oats are generally taken as a kind of nervous system tonic over the long haul to support with stressed and depleted nervous systems.
Nicole:So it's not something I would like necessarily reach to straight relaxant, but I would.
Nicole:I actually know I'm lying.
Nicole:I would for sure.
Nicole:I used it in my kind of postpartum blends after quite a traumatic birth, but generally I would be working with milky oats long term if someone was experiencing like ongoing repression.
Nicole:But yeah, it would definitely bring you comfort during this kind of like acute state of emotional shock.
Nicole:I don't know if people can hear this dog snoring.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:Passionflower.
Nicole:So yeah, Passionflower is like my go to medicine to support someone struggling to sleep after a house raid.
Nicole:This is because Passionflower has like a direct sedating effect on the nervous system, making it a great port of call for someone needing help with falling asleep.
Nicole:Its qualities also make it effective during the daytime, if someone is acutely activated, especially as part of blends.
Nicole:Passionflower is great for racing thoughts, so if you were like intensely Like scanning for noises or like suspicious of further arrests or just like exhausted and consumed with what has recently happened, like maybe you had some like dodgy shit in your house that you can't forgive yourself for.
Nicole:I don't know, like Passionflower is like fantastic for that kind of like mental loop.
Nicole:Okay, Skullcap.
Nicole:So Skullcap is a wonderful hypnotic nervine that acts as a general relaxant and sedative, especially on the musculoskeletal system.
Nicole:While its tonic effects are supportive longer term, I also find it helpful in cases of acute stress and emotional shock.
Nicole:Valerian is next.
Nicole:So Valerian was actually used in the First World War and the Second World War, I believe, to treat Soldiers experiencing shell shock.
Nicole:So it's very useful as a sedative and a relaxant and it's effective for many people in soothing anxiety.
Nicole:It's worth noting that for some people they have the opposite effect taking valerian and find themselves more agitated.
Nicole:And I would say that's only 5 10 percent of people can increase nightmares and disturbing dreams.
Nicole:I'm definitely one of those people, unfortunately.
Nicole:However, for most people it is very supportive to help soothe the nervous system during emotional shock.
Nicole:Okay, wild lettuce is one of the last herbs here.
Nicole:So wild lettuce is like a stronger sedative that may be appropriate when other herbs such as lavender or passionflower are not doing the job, so to speak, in terms of supporting someone to get to sleep.
Nicole:So I've worked with wild lettuce during times of like acute distress and emotional shock following a traumatic bereavement or several bereavements.
Nicole:But yeah, in my experience, it has this more kind of instantaneous effect when supporting someone who needs to sleep following trauma.
Nicole:And the other thing I wanted to talk about is burning herbs.
Nicole:So people have been burning herbs over millennia as part of rituals to cleanse spaces and objects and for other kind of spiritual and practical means.
Nicole:For example, burning bundles of thyme in hospitals during infectious disease outbreaks, for example.
Nicole:Yeah, and really unfortunately several herbs have fallen victim to capitalist commodification, with the exploitation and packaging of indigenous herbs from different lineages to sell globally, which has threatened the existence of species such as white sage, for example.
Nicole:So yeah, I strongly encourage people to research the practices of burning herbs.
Nicole:in their own lineages and bioregions.
Nicole:For those of us sharing lineages from English, England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, yeah, there are many beautiful herbs that have been used in different ways in practices of burning bundles.
Nicole:For example, sage, like garden sage, rosemary, lavender, rose petals, mugwort, cedar, juniper, elderberry, and many others.
Nicole:So you can tie them together and in a bundle of dried herbs like the ends and move around your space to help cleanse it with the smoke.
Nicole:Please use common sense and take care of everything in terms of fire safety.
Nicole:Okay, so that's, yeah, that's what I wanted to talk about in terms of herbs for emotional shock.
Nicole:If I wasn't in baby land right now, I would be encouraging you to get in touch if you need support following a raid, but I'm just yeah, I'm not quite there yet in terms of being Like back to everything in terms of like practical stuff in the hub shed, I'm, I'm launching my online offerings, but I'm not, yeah, I'm not processing packages at the moment, but it's definitely something that is on the horizon.
Nicole:And yeah, I'm keen to be supporting different crews who are facing this kind of repression regularly, because it could be something, for example, that I could get out in the post rapidly to people, or even people that are doing a lot of like arrestee support work could have a bunch of stuff.
Nicole:in their car, know what's safe, know what they can give and what they can.
Nicole:And then, when they meet someone from a police station, they can offer those medicines.
Nicole:I think that would be a really nice way to do it.
Nicole:So yeah, get in touch basically, if you're keen to potentially like collaborate on that.
Nicole:And yeah, I will be getting the herbalism and state violence book as an ebook available again on my website super soon so that yeah, you can order it.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:Thanks for listening.
Nicole:And yeah, I just want to say as well yeah.
Nicole:Just take care.
Nicole:If you're someone who's experienced a police raid and that's been part of your life I know they've definitely created contributed to this general feeling of unsafety for me for a really long time.
Nicole:I could barely sleep past, five, six in the morning for several years after a really dramatic raid.
Nicole:Yeah, I'm definitely sending my, solidarity and sympathy.
Nicole:Okay.
Nicole:Lots of love.
Nicole:Take care.
Nicole:Bye.
Nicole:Thanks so much for listening to the Frontline Herbalism podcast.
Nicole:You can find the transcript, the links, all the resources from the show at solidarityapothecary.
Nicole:org forward slash podcast.