In this post, I’ll share how I learned herbal medicine, who I studied with, and what I specialize in so you can decide where to go when you’re seeking an alternative treatment.
Let’s get started.
So, how do you find an herbalist?
Herbalist near me
Google would be the first place to search. But, many herbalists take sessions virtually or even offer online education.
I would write down your symptoms, and what type of teacher you’re seeking and ask for a referral from friends.
If you meet with an acupuncturist, they may also be able to guide you toward herbal remedies.
Herbalist certification
There are so many amazing master herbalists to study from. Here are some of my teachers
My women’s health go-to is Dr. Aviva Romm. I completed the very intense Herbal Medicine for Women’s Health, as well as her children’s health courses. You can learn more here: https://avivaromm.com/courses/herbal-medicine-for-women/
It’s a certification through Dr. Aviva Romm covering all herbal remedies from menarche to menopause.
I’ve completed this certification and offer online education and virtual sessions.
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Tara, “what do you specialize in”?
I love getting to the root cause of your symptoms. Here are some of my specialties.
Natural remedies for anxiety
We dive into your gut health, daily diet, and herbs to support heart palpitations and sleep. I also incorporate breathing and meditative exercises from my eighteen years of teaching Pilates, yoga, and movement.
New treatment for fibroids without surgery
From personal experience, I’ve learned how to stop the flooding that comes with fibroids and reduce the pain naturally with herbal medicine. My private health consultations would be great for you if you’re struggling with pain from fibroids.
Your body has a great capacity to heal
\Natural remedies for PMS mood swings
PMS and PMDD stem from poor liver health. In my private health consultations, we’ll discuss how to support your liver with diet, supplements, and herbs to reduce your monthly symptoms.
Natural remedies for perimenopause
Hot flashes, insomnia, short or long cycles. This season of change can be very challenging, but herbs can support you immensely. In a health consultation, we can focus on your current symptoms and the EXACT herbs to help you transition into menopause with grace.
Herbs for bladder irritation and UTIs
UTIs or urinary tract infections can be very painful. And they all stem from your gut health. By “healing your gut”, improving your digestion and elimination you can reduce and stop UTIs for years to come.
Herbal remedies for a yeast infection
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Why do you use herbal medicine?
Your medications are affecting your gut health. When your gut health is affected, your whole immune system can change. Even though this post is for children’s health, it explains why I love herbal and homeopathic medicine.
We discuss your sleep, any changes in your cycle, your diet, supplements, and any new stressors at home.
I inquire about your #1 symptoms and each week we look at different suggestions to get to the root cause of this.
I ask you to write down a 3-day diet. And, send me pictures of the supplements you are currently taking.
You may also want to have blood work done and get tested for the MTHFR gene. Many of my clients have one or two of the SNPs affecting their ability to detoxify.
I offer a 30-day transformational package. This includes 3 private, virtual sessions and 30 days of unlimited support.
After each session, you’ll receive a detailed email with my suggestions.
You can choose what herbs to purchase based on my suggestions.
Natural remedies for a cold
If you hate using conventional medication and need more support when you’re sick; book a 30-min call with Tara to get the EXACT remedies you need to help you feel better faster.
Herbalists take a “full picture” approach with their sessions. The body always works together. From a women’s health perspective, I inquire about your diet, supplements, sleep, cycle of your period, and any additional stressors you are having at home.
From my 18+ years in fitness, I always make suggestions for breathing exercises and inquire about your pelvic floor health, and offer tips to help soothe your nervous system. This is usually the crux of all illnesses.
It’s frustrating when your heart palpitations come to you out of the blue.
You’ve never struggled with this before.
There was a moment I was holding one of my twins, looking out the small apartment window on the second floor, and thinking; “I will never get to leave this house if I continue to breastfeed both of them.”
When I stopped breastfeeding, the insomnia set in.
Picture this.
You finally stop breastfeeding, then you can’t sleep, then you struggle with fatigue, overthinking, and panic attacks.
This is postpartum anxiety.
It took me a long time to know these words: “postpartum anxiety”, trauma, and triggered.
But, that’s what happens when you’re unable to regulate your nervous system.
Ask yourself, do you have any of these symptoms?
12 Signs of postpartum anxiety
insomnia – can’t sleep
heart palpitations
dizziness, light head
stomach issues
tight chest
shortness of breath
headache
sweating
can’t focus
crying spells
overthinking, circular thinking, or intrusive thoughts
exhaustion
So, what can you do about it?
First, why does postpartum anxiety happen? Here are 12 reasons..
insomnia
postpartum adrenal fatigue
depleted vitamins and minerals {B vitamins}
unresolved trauma; from birth or before and you’ve been triggered
unable to detoxify estrogen from your body
MTHFR gene
lack of help and/or support
your thyroid is off
your iron levels are low
you’re unable to regulate your nervous system
you live in a house with mold or did at one time
Ready to use natural remedies to soothe your nervous system? Start your free email challenge.
How long does postpartum anxiety last?
It can last up to a year and then doctors tend to call it just “anxiety”, but it could be coming from an estrogen dominance that began after birth.
Postpartum Anxiety Treatment
What can you do about it?
get tested for the MTHFR gene and eat the foods that support your body
practice being present with breathing techniques and tapping
soothe your nervous system daily with herbs, homoeopathy and warm cooked diet
make sleep a priority
learn how to remove mold spores from your body and take steps to clear your home of mold
write about your trauma and noticed when you get triggered
I go over these steps in The Present Momma Group training.
Zoloft for postpartum anxiety
Considering Zoloft for your anxiety? Watch this video to see my alternatives to medications
Postpartum anxiety at night
We also tend to get
Postpartum health anxiety
This is just another way for your body to protect yourself. You worry about your health, your children’s health and then anxiety gets ramped up. At the heart of it, you want to learn how to soothe your nervous system.
Give yourself a chance to heal naturally
Conclusion
There are many reasons we struggle with postpartum anxiety. Know that your body can heal when you get to the root cause of this stress and overwhelm. Sometimes medication is needed for a short time until you uncover how to heal your body. If medications don’t work for you, there are many herbal remedies and holistic practices you can start doing; even if you’re breastfeeding.
You’re frustrated and distracted by your stress and anxiety.
Wouldn’t it be great..
If you didn’t have to worry your anxiety would get worse?
If you didn’t have to worry, that your children would get this?
If you didn’t have anxiety before your period, each and every month?
If you could sleep?
Picture this.
Knowing exactly how to soothe your anxiety so you can manage it every day. So you can sleep better and not worry so much.
Let me show you how I’ve overcome anxiety with holistic practices.
Approximately 6% of pregnant women and 10% of postpartum women develop anxiety. Sometimes they experience anxiety alone, and sometimes they experience it in addition to depression.
And… after a certain time, we no longer call it postpartum. We just say ” you have anxiety”.
Want to get started?
In this post, I’ll share how you can overcome postpartum anxiety with holistic practices; including herbal medicine.
So, what does postpartum anxiety feel like?
Postpartum anxiety feels like a cloud hanging over your head. There are waves of irritation and you may have a panic attack once in a while, due to this anxiety.
More commonly, moms may say they have …
constant worry about their children or others
they need to move or work and keep busy to avoid the anxiety
they may get sick more often
they also have PMS and PMS rage
they’re not mentally there and crave to be more present with their family
Why does postpartum anxiety happen?
Postpartum anxiety attacks
There could be many reasons postpartum anxiety happens. As a women’s herbal educator, I help moms identify why this is happening and how to fix it.
Here are some of the reasons postpartum anxiety happens:
Low vitamins; particularly Vitamin D, Vitamin A, Iron, Vitamin B12 & DHA
Lack of sleep
Inflammation in your gut; specifically gut dysbiosis ² Gut-brain axis
Your hormones. Are you in peri-menopause or have too much estrogen in your diet?
Your thyroid is off-hypo or hyperthyroid
Your nervous system is overreacting due to stress
Your body is not healed postpartum
Post-traumatic stress; unresolved anger from past events
Postpartum anxiety treatment natural
5 holistic practices to reduce postpartum anxiety
#1 Identify your triggers
When you’re “triggered” you’ll feel an intense overwhelming sensation take over your body.
You may sweat, shake, go numb, cry, or feel like you can’t breathe.
Sometimes you smell, hear, think, or see something that reminds you of a traumatic event – even if you don’t remember that traumatic event!
For example; when I hear ambulance sirens it reminds me of my husband’s death.
Your goal when triggered is to calm your nervous system.
#2 Tapping for anxiety relief
Have you heard of tapping yet?
This is an amazing practice to soothe your anxiety every day.
Have you ever wondered if you have anxiety because you are suppressing something? Something that you want to say something or do?
Do you feel like you’re always worried about the future?
Writing can help you release anxiety and overcome what is bothering you.
👉Action step: Begin writing. Write 100 things that you want right now. Write down 3 places you want to go. Write down what you want to do for work. Then write your perfect day out in complete detail.
It may seem silly, but when these dreams come true… you feel amazed.
Conclusion
Holistic practices can help soothe your nervous system and stop panic attacks. When you begin soothing your nervous system daily, you’ll notice your panic attacks decrease.
What has worked for you? I’d love to know. Comment below.
10-20% of moms experience postpartum depression lasting a few months and up to a year {or more} after birth ¹
And, up to 20% of women report feelings of anxiousness, sadness, depression, panic, frustration, and feeling hopeless.
What does this mean for you?
You need a postpartum plan.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the five most common mistakes I see moms making when they have postpartum depression and anxiety. Ready to get started? Join this 5-day email challenge.
Several studies have suggested that breastfeeding could help protect women against PPD ²
Yet, many women complain that their doctor has suggested they stop breastfeeding due to postpartum depression.
Breastfeeding could help reduce your postpartum depression. And although it’s time-consuming and exhausting, breastfeeding may help you sleep better due to your hormones and ease of feeding in the middle of the night.
There is an enormous amount of depletion after childbirth. This, along with sleep deprivation can lead to insomnia, anxiety, and depression. Watch this video, to learn my favorite supplements to take after each and every birth.
If you’re struggling with insomnia, you need deep nourishment. You’ll want to stop drinking coffee and/or alcohol and address your nutrient gaps.
It may take time, but keep with it and soon you’ll be able to fall asleep every time you’re woken in the middle of the night. Watch this video to learn my favorite remedies for insomnia.
#4 You don’t take an adaptogen
What’s an adaptogen? They help us “adapt” to stress. And, if there was ever a stressful time, it’s when you have children! Here is one adaptogen you can take while breastfeeding, there are others I’ll be writing about real soon.
#5 You don’t address your mindset
Becoming a mother is life-changing. We crave our old selves. Those who struggle, are experiencing a shamanic death. The death of the old you, shedding into the new version of yourself.
By changing your thoughts, you can learn to fall in love with motherhood.
#6 You don’t take enough nervines
Nervines are a category of herbs that help soothe our anxiety. And, as I mentioned above anxiety & depression go hand-in-hand.
You want to soothe your anxiety and stress if you’re struggling with postpartum anxiety and/or depression. Watch this video to learn my favorite remedies.
#7 You only take medication
Anxiety medications can be so helpful when you’re struggling with anxiety and depression and raising a family. But, keep in mind you can also work on your nutrient gaps, insomnia, and anxiety WHILE taking medications.
It’s not the end. By making self-care a priority, your body can heal. It’s not selfish and anyone who tells you it is, is not worth your time.
#8 You don’t see a therapist
This is the biggest mistake I made when I had postpartum depression. I didn’t want the therapist to judge me! But, after my husband passed away, I knew I needed therapy for the trauma, and wow did it change my life!
Watch this video to see how EMDR can help you through PPA & PPD.
You don’t have to struggle with anxiety and depression for years. Ask for help!
What’s stopping you? Let me know in the comments below.
Why are you awake while everyone else is sleeping?
I spent twenty-four long months with insomnia before I discovered why this was happening to me.
In this post, we’ll discuss why postpartum insomnia happens and the natural remedies to help soothe you back to sleep.
What is postpartum insomnia?
It’s when you cannot sleep after childbirth. Usually, you’ll notice when everyone else is sleeping and you’re awake – that is a true sign.
9 Postpartum insomnia symptoms
anxiety when bedtime comes
unable to go back to sleep after a feeding
awake at night when everyone else is sleeping
OR anticipating a feeding, so you wake up to be prepared for when your child wakes
waking up @ 5:00 am with your heart beating out of your chest
anxiety during the day or excessive heart palpitations
tired @ 3:00pm
you may feel a bit depressed as well
if your cycle has returned you may feel this more the week before your period
Can postpartum hormones cause insomnia?
Yes! Your body is trying to flush out all of the hormones from your pregnancy AND if you’ve had twins, it’s been said you may struggle with postpartum insomnia more due to these excessive hormones.
Additionally, when your cycle returns – you may notice you get insomnia before your period due to excessive estrogen and the inability to clear it from your body.
So, detoxifying the postpartum hormones with sweating and a whole foods diet is very important to healing.
We’ll go over this in The Present Momma training.
How long can postpartum insomnia last?
It can last years. Typically, women stop calling themselves “postpartum” after they reach a certain date – 6 months or a year, but insomnia began after childbirth.
So, why does postpartum insomnia happen?
There are many reasons, but some of them include:
sleep deprivation – your sleep gets interrupted night after night and loses it’s rhythm
hormones – after birth, your body is trying to detox from all of the hormones you’ve had in your body for eight months. If you have poor detoxification pathways, you may struggle more.
anxiety – when you don’t sleep for weeks or months this turns into postpartum anxiety and then depression
environment – if you don’t feel comfortable in your home or bedroom you may experience insomnia
trauma – or unresolved trauma that comes out after pregnancy
Treatment for postpartum insomnia
We want to get to the root cause of your insomnia. What I’m finding in most of my clients are two recurring themes
#1 The MTHFR SNPs and inability to detox excessive hormones
#2 Most of us struggling postpartum, tend to have excessive estrogen and cannot clear it naturally.
#3 Medications don’t work for us, possibly due to the MTHFR gene and we’re searching for natural remedies to support us.
Here are 5 ways to heal postpartum insomnia naturally
#1 Homeopathy for postpartum insomnia
As the alcohol in tinctures may bother you and make your insomnia worse, you may want to try homeopathy to support your insomnia. Here are my favorite remedies.
#2 Address postpartum adrenal fatigue
#3 Address your trauma
Seek a therapist to work through any unresolved trauma. Watch this video, as I talk with my therapist about how my postpartum thoughts came back when my husband passed away.
#4 Skip the coffee and integrate these drinks everyday
#5 Add in nervines’ to soothe your nervous system
Nervines are a category of herbs that help soothe our nervous system.
They can be gentle, like Chamomile or more intense as a sedative like California poppy.
By soothing your nervous system with herbal medicine and other holistic techniques – you’ll discover you can sleep more soundly
Here are my favorite botanicals to soothe insomnia
#6 Add in postpartum adaptogens
My first breakthrough with insomnia was when I added in a new adaptogen called, Ashwagandha. Adaptogens can help us come out of fight or flight and prevent burnout.
You can overcome postpartum insomnia when we get to the root cause of your anxiety; healing your nervous system. It takes time, but know it is possible to heal. Of course, when you don’t sleep this turns into more anxiety, anxiety about sleeping and then depression may set it.
