Plant Spirit Medicine or a Plant Journey is any experience where there is a connection and a meaningful exchange that takes place in non ordinary reality. The giving can take the form of healing, knowledge, spiritual growth, or acquiring a teacher/guide. These “journeys” can be facilitated, planned, structured or take place in a group. The plant offers its medicine to us in a form that is not limited to chemical constituents, physiological effects, or its history of medicinal use.
Plant Spirit Medicine often involves the consumption of toxic plants. Botanicals known to create intense reactions in the form of poisoning, purging, hallucinations and changes in brain chemistry/neural pathways. This breaks down the barriers we have to entering an altered state. We can let go of or expand our understanding of reality.
There are a lots of modern trends around the consumption of certain plants for both healing and spiritual use. Not only do we see cultural appropriation but also over harvesting/unsustainable practices and careless use. This jeopardizes the sacred agreement between plant and human. The “medicine” becomes nothing more than an interesting experience or a very unpleasant event with unpleasant side effects that resemble poisoning.
If a plant is misused/or improperly handled it bites back. There are certain plants I know better than to use or harvest. I know I lack of a connection or karma with them.
Plant spirit medicine
Is a way to create a contract with a plant
Allows us to receive healing from a plant when it can’t be physically present.
Sometimes happens spontaneously when we are alone and least expect it. Ensuring an authentic unappropriated experience.
Can take many different forms-dreams, a symbolic encounter/sign, ritual, art, meditation, journaling etc. These may not be as intense as experiencing the symptoms associated with internally consuming a toxic plant. It does not mean these other “journeys” can be as healing or powerful.
Can be consumed internally or externally.
Plant toxicity
As herbalist we are all familiar with the term “contraindications”. Conditions related to age, pregnancy, health issues, medications, and allergies that require restriction or more careful use of herbal medicine. Most of us know that skin contact with certain plants can cause a rash in sensitive individuals due to an allergy or exposure to sun shortly afterwards. After my own interesting reaction to a plant I got curious and started to do research. I realized that there was so much more to toxic skin reactions. It just was not being discussed or thought about by herbalists. Here is what I found out.
Fresh plants that herbalists should be aware of when harvesting, touching, or processing
Echinacea, witch hazel, rue, St. John’s wort, juniper, lavender, borage, chamomile, elecampane, mugwort, yarrow, feverfew, dandelion (wild lettuce/poppy family), burdock, ginkgo, yellow, dock, motherwort, nettles, parsley family (dill, fennel),nettles, hops, oregon grape, blackberries, raspberries, roses, borage.
Types of toxic and irritant skin reactions to plants-a plants defense mechanism.
Chemical: Saps, resins, oils, etc. directly contacting the skin. Examples- poison ivy, hogweed, poison oak, poison sumac, belladona/nightshade.
Contact urticaria: Irritating hairs that can inject a chemical or cause physical irritation. Examples-bamboo, nettles, hops.
Phytophotodermatitis: Contact with a plant and then exposer to the sun shortly afterwards. Examples-rue, St. John’s wort, parsley family, citrus family.
Mechanical/irritant through thorns, sharp edged leaves or spines/glochids, fine hairs. Examples-cacti family, holly, blackberries, roses, oregon grape, borage.
Mechanical through rough surface on stems. Examples-hops, echinacea, motherwort.
Allergenic as the body’s immune system overreacts to a substance produced by the plant. Examples-asters/daisy/ragweed family
Plants can induce allergic or irritating reactions by breathing in their oils, pollen or dust. External contact can also occur through the eyes or through the use of enemas, douches, poultices, compresses, liniments , salves, baths, washes and boluses.
Treatment for reactions
Wash with mild soap and water
Remove fine hairs or spines with duct tape. Tweezers are good for larger thorns
Use antibiotic cream if infection developes
Ice, cold compresses, oatmeal baths
Over the counter lotions or ointments to treat itching, redness, welts, dermatitis, and hives
See a doctor if there is an increase in redness, warmth, pus, oozing of blisters. Symptoms that include heart racing, vomiting, difficulty breathing, dramatic swelling, dizziness, etc. indicate a serious anaphylactic reaction. Immediate medical care may be required if this is the case.
Minimizing the chance of an allergic reaction
As an herbalist wear a mask and goggles when processing dried or fresh plants that can release a fine dust or essential oils (plants in the mint family). This protects your lungs over time and safeguards your eyes. Wash your hands after handling plants to avoid spreading irritating chemicals to eyes, lips, or other sensitive skin tissues. Wear gloves and shirts with long sleeves when handling plants known to induce toxic skin reactions or which have botanical parts like fine hairs and thorns. For clients or family members you can do a small patch test on the skin (forearm) if you suspect the person might be allergic to an herb before applying a larger amount or to an area where the tissues are very thin.
Nettle, a plant we are all very familiar with.
If you have ever harvested nettles, you have experienced urtication at least one time. That sudden painful sensation, rash, and unpleasant tingling/numb sensation that lasts for hours or even days.
There is an ancient tradition of using urtication as a healing treatment . The intensional flogging/skin exposure to fresh nettles has been used to provoke inflammatory response. Scientific studies have found this helpful in autoimmune conditions such allergies and osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. Urticating hairs in plants have sharp, pointed, hollow bristles attached to a gland which secretes an acrid chemical. These points break off in the skin and the fluid is pressed into it.
Nettle contains several chemicals including histamine, acetylcholine, and serotonin. Its tiny hairs stimulate urtication and C fiber discharge. The stems of older plants are also slightly abrasive.
For More Reading
plants that cause allergic reactions-sun sensitivity, rashes, dermatitis, or allergies symptoms.
My Plant Spirit Medicine Story
My hops plant this year was gorgeous. So much lush foliage due to weeks of unusual rain. Its growth pattern suggested something feral and masculine. I nicknamed it Green Man, sometimes imagining a grinning face under all those leaves. I enjoyed a fantastic harvest of fresh brilliant green hops last summer and was looking forward to all the things I would do with the cones to come. I left the US for a trip abroad and came home to a shock. The hops was covered in thousands of tiny white aphids and lots of invasive lady beetles. Its leaves were brown and falling off in piles. I decided to let the adults and their larvae do the job. I waiting for signs of recovery and for the population of aphids to drop. My hops only looked worse and I worried about the future impact of that non native species in the garden next summer and in my house come winter. My quick solution, cut down all the hops and put it in the garbage bin as soon as possible. It was done in a few minutes. I went on with my plans for the day, an uneventful afternoon hike with a friend. That evening my arms were covered in dozens of welts the size and shape of those hops vines. They were hot, bright red and covered in a fine rash as well. At least it did not hurt or itch.
Hops contains lupulin, a yellow powdery secretion (pollen) of the glandular hairs on the scales of the hop cones. It also contains myrcene, humulone and lupulone as volatile oils. Studies conducted on hospitalized hop’s pickers found “hop rash”, “hop eye”, and “hop gout”. The rash was believed to arise from scratches on the skin and the inoculation of proteins found in juices and pollen. There was dermatitis and welts due to abrasions from rough surfaces on the vines. There are accounts of beer drinkers also having allergic reactions to the consumption of the beverage.
As my symptoms resolved over the next 24 hours. I pondered their cause. I did not react when I harvested the hops cones last year or drank it fresh as a tea on many occasions. My allergy to bees took took two seasons and many stings to occur. Maybe my allergy was delayed and needed multiple exposures.
Or was there a lesson from the plant that I was missing? In my haste to cut down the plant I did not consult or ask permission. I was not being mindful of what I was doing. I did not treat the hops as a sentient being. I did not give it due honor or well deserved respect. I violated our contract. I did not follow the terms agreed upon.
The strong message of hops (Humulus lupulus ) was a reminder of the power of Wolf (Canis lupus). Hops is a hungry, voracious and all consuming plant as it grows. Maybe not not so considerate of its neighbors but focused only on its own survival. My cutting it down felt violent. The plant at that moment was unwanted. I did not appreciate the important role it was playing in my garden or life. I took its gifts/life force without any thought of return. It lashed back at me in the from of “heat”. I am often a bit too like Wolf in my response to things that trigger me.
The reminder on how to relate in a positive and conscious way to other people and my surroundings was the medicine that hops gave to me that day. It is hard to say if any of those chemicals absorbed into my skin stimulated a physical healing process. One I was unaware that I needed and the plant decided it needed to gift me. I did not ask for hop’s wisdom or healing but yet it knew what was best for me in that moment. This is something that has to be experienced. It can’t be learned from a book or class. Plant Spirit Medicine is ancient and powerful. It is not easily forgotten and can be life changing. It can rip our world view wide open and take us on a journey we never expected.
If you wish to explore Plant Spirit Medicine I suggest that your find an experienced guide. It has a history of cultural appropriation and risk. It would not be appropriate for me to go into greater detail on how to truly do it. I can say that it is important to write your experience down. Details of everything you saw, heard, and felt. In order to find “the meaning” you can research books on symbols, mythology, folk tales, dreams, flower remedies, the collective unconscious, spirituality etc. You can also get insight from a materia medica or and studies you have done on herbs.
I would love to hear your plant medicine stories or about any personal experiences you have had with the “toxins” in plants.
Blackbird's Backyard Pharmacy 