There have been a lot of lessons learned since March of 2020. One of the big ones for me is solidifying my distrust of the supply chain, just in time manufacturing, and other fragile systems responsible for getting us the stuff we crave (like electrolytes from Brondo). The medical supply cain is one I’ve recently been worried about. Also the rice supply chain (pronounced ‘pet food‘) after recent world news, but I digress.
I’m not one to sit around and hand wring over a concern. I quickly deem it a non-concern or start doing something about it. So I’m doing something about it. I’ve always been interested in Herbalism, but I’m doubling down on it. I thought I might share some of the steps I’m taking to anti-fragile my personal and family medical and pharmaceutical supply chain.
Please note: I’m in no way advocating that me, my family, or anyone should abandon allopathic medicine. I’ve had surgeries and am grateful for every part of the process. I’m only learning traditional medicine to ease the burden allopathic medicine places upon myself (financial, time, and even physiological) and have a predetermined plan to execute should the fragile supply chain fail.
I’m going to write my own Materia Medica. I’ve read that it’s something all herbalists do, even if they don’t DO it. Technically, a meter medica is a collection of monographs of herbs and their impact on physiology. Literally, it’s a collection describing medical materials. For me, it’s a collection of notes on herbs. An herbipedia if you will. Wait…is that a thing yet? I need to go check. (It’s weird. I checked. It might be. 🙁 )
So…My Materia will be comprised of herbs I’m studying. I decided to start with 6. Nice round even number. The herbs I intend to handle first are: Lemon Balm, Chamomile, Aloe Vera, Calendula, Peppermint, and Garlic.
Wish me luck…and stay tuned.