Chronicles of a Witch in Training

Herbalists and other autonomous women operating outside of the patriarchy were labeled "Witches" in the middle ages. It is thought that upwards of a million women were systematically killed, many of them were Herbalists. This ended the practice of Herbalism in Continental Europe. This is also when "Western" Medicine was born.

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In Ireland, Herbalism, being educated, having a profession, owning land or any property, speaking Irish, practicing their religion, and even playing the harp became illegal under British Colonization in 1695.
 

That's when the Hereditary Herbalism practices of my ancestors ended.

Becoming an herbalist is an act of resistance, a political statement, and a powerful feminist move. I descend from Irish healers who practiced in the Middle Ages. I am reclaiming my ancestral knowledge.

This is the story of how I went from Registered Nurse to Mom, to Artist and Herbalist and what I've learned along the way.