The Roots

Tell us about your roots. What has guided you to be the person you are today?

So many things honestly, my ancestral lineage, my connection to nature as a child, my uncle the gardener, the call to the nature. Beauty, feelings, being curious, seeing through the dimensions of normalcy and into the unseen forces at work. I feel all of these elements have contributed to how I walk in the world!

What returns you to these roots?

People I love, places I love. Connecting to nature, being in my garden. Joyful happenings light me up, and I do my very best to consume joy on the daily.

Nourishment

What are your favorite ways to nourish your body?

Moving my body, taking walks outside; Cooking nourishing food that resonates, grown from my garden or within the local community; Drinking my plant medicines; Stretching, breathing, meditating; Resting.

What’s always in your kitchen?

Coconut oil, Avocados, Pastured organic eggs, Pickled veggies, Spring water, Fresh herbs

What does “feeling good” mean to you?

It really means being in your flow! There is not one perfect way to be well and feel good, so to me feeling good is feeling like everything is in its flow and there is ease and vibrancy abundant with myself and my life.

What supports you in feeling your best? Any daily rituals that support this?

I have really finessed this over time, as being a clinician demands you to show up fortified to hold space for others. So my rituals and rhythms are pretty solid to support myself! Very slow mornings, time in nature, connection with my loved ones, body movement, daily hands in the earth gardening, super nourishing food, a calm peaceful home, power down hours in the evening and candlelight/warm light only when the sun goes down! I also see a few wonderful practitioners/healers who hold space for my process. When I am writing I spent a lot of time on the computer and frequent my Osteopaths office often for structural support!

Creation

What are you currently listening to?

On repeat "Portrait of lady on fire” soundtrack. The dramatic classical selections are perfect to cook to and drive through the countryside roads here to.

What are your sources of inspiration?

I find my greatest inspirations come when I am super quiet. Creating space to sit with my thoughts and feelings is so super essential for my creativity. When I feel compressed I really cannot create very well!

But I absolutely do find great inspiration in nature, sitting with the flowers, the breeze and green expanses.

What are you currently excited about?

Aging! I am embracing the goodness that comes with age, getting more at ease with myself, refining my life and stepping into more spaciousness with my self feels exciting.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?

I have many but right now this really resonates!

“I must have flowers, always, and always.”

― Claude Monet

A beautiful question you inspire your readers to ask themselves and one I would like to return to you, how are you feeling in your body today?

Ahh thank you. I am feeling quiet in my body today. How are you feeling in your body today?!

Will you share with us your roots and the path that led toward your studies within nutritional, naturopathic, energetic, and herbal medicine?

I felt a deep sense of belonging amongst nature for as far back as I can recall. When I think of my childhood, I think of the mighty height of the Eucalyptus tree’s in the park nearby and the fragrant smells of summer coming as the flowers sprung. The plants made an impression early on and called me ever so loudly!

I was always enamored with all things esoteric and mystical from a young age and began studying energetic healing (crystals, reiki, kinesiology, colour therapy, sound healing, breath work) at 16 years old - not your typical teenager thats for sure! I learnt so much in training in the healing realms for many years about the spiritual, mental and emotional bodies, and really yearned to know more about the physical body. This is when I began training in Naturopathic medicine- forking off into deeper studies in Western Herbal Medicine and Nutritional Medicine, graduating with my bachelor in hand as a Herbalist and Nutritionist. I loved learning about how the plants hold an embodied power with a deep affinity for our bodies, and how ultimately nature’s way is the greatest healer.

In your book a beautiful sentence reads “Do the plants activate our innate ability to heal, or is it the plant powers within that provide the compass and road map to healing? I believe it is both.” Will you expand on these two elements of healing present within plant medicine?

There is a deep reciprocity that exists within the relationship of plants and people, we are simply one- KIN you could say. We come from the same places, made up of the same materials.

Plants gently encourage us back to balance, in one way or another- whether it is the plant constituents or pharmacological make up encouraging this or the subtle energetics of a plant awakening the healing response within our bodies/minds/spirits.

I love the way you focus on the elements of appreciation, connection, and intuition within plants, bridging the worlds of science and energy within your work. Will you talk on how you experience energy and vibration playing a role within our ability to heal our bodies?

We simply are not one dimensional beings. We are made up of energy! So to negate the impact of energy, seems so counter intuitive right? You know the difference between walking into an environment that makes you feel good, or an environment that makes you feel like running away. These are the underlying dynamics and principles of felt energy. It is sensory!

Applying this sensory experience to healing your body is the essence of healing with energy, feeling it, leaning into it and allowing it. Plant medicine offer and ask that of you too, when working with them. You need to activate your senses, and the senses lead the way to attune to the energetics, the unseen forces!

I read a quote of yours and absolutely adored it – ‘Plant medicine is your birth right’. Will you dive into what this quote means to you?

The plants are for all, they have no bias, they are simply here to help. To be our companions through our lives. To support our processes, to offer a deeper relationship and trust in self.

We are intrigued by energy work at Monfefo. Would you explain the importance of energy within your work and what forms you practice?

For me it is a driving force of how I work with each and every client, and each and every plant medicine. I lead with my intuition, even though my training may take me down a bath that makes "sense" - I will always enquire if the energetics match. Does this plant match the feeling of the person, etc. Listening in to that wisdom, and trusting this has shaped me into the practitioner that I am.

Being a nutritionist, an herbalist, and an energy healer. How do you explore and experience the synergy amongst these medicines within your work?

Such an interesting question and one that has taken me years to unravel. Training in all of these different areas has given me a unique take that is for sure. But in truth they all work so beautifully together.

Healing takes place on many levels, and considering all the layers of the body, the mind and the spirit is essential. My work bridging these gaps with these modalities addresses all of these elements and the synergy of this all has allowed me to witness such profound shifts as people get better with the plant medicines, with food as medicine, with energetic practices and lifestyle changes. Ultimately my training has helped me assist to unearth the roots of ill health for my clients, and I am so grateful to be able to work on these different levels to create union!

You take a very holistic view on medicine, with the intention of unveiling the root of the problem and from there welcoming harmony and healing into the body. There is also a large emphasis on gut health within your practice, can you dive into the central role that the gut plays in inner balance and overall wellbeing?

The gut is the deepest root! Honestly if you are keen to work on your health and unsure where to begin, the gut is a great place to start. Often its tricky to create profound health shifts unless you get to whatever may be going on in the gut. Its the deepest topic, and one I employ everyone to learn more about!

I love your methodology of practice, which reads “Bridging together the science and the spirit, merging modalities and ethos of healing”. Will you talk a bit more about this methodology and how it is reflected and embodied within your work?

Yes! This really is my life work thus far of learnings to allow the communion between herbalism, nutrition and energetic healing. Over the years I have woven these modalities and threads deeper together to create this system of healing. As the years tick on working in clinical practice you see these patterns emerge, and then you see completely new things that you never expected. It is the constant lesson and evolution as a clinician and my methodology evolves with me!

I adore a quote from your book that reads “The collective call is to return to the simple way.” Will you talk on why simplicity holds such importance in our lives and how we return to this way of living?

Yes! We are just moving so fast in this modern day, taking in so much information and operating beyond our capacities often. Burn out is rampant, and I believe this is why so many people are feeling the deep call to strip back their lives and sink into more spacious quiet.

I believe the first step is to really refine your commitments and look at where your energy is being spent. Editing is a powerful step to reclaim your energy. Next up, connect to nature more! The ultimate fuel and cup filler.

What are your favorite plants & what do each of them embody?

Honestly this is ever changing! Right now I am loving the gentleness and nervine soothing support of Chamomile.

I am growing so much Tulsi (Holy Basil) and it just smells like pure heaven when you walk past it in the garden, I add it into tea with fresh mint and the combo is just beautiful. So uplifting and calming at the same time.

Will you share a favorite recipe with us from your new book, Plants for the People?

Ahh it is very hard to choose one! I do really love the Elderberry elixir recipe, super delicious and a great staple to keep in the fridge to support immunity.

Imagery: Georgia Blackie