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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.
In Ireland, being an Herbalist, being educated, having a profession, owning land or property, speaking Irish, practicing your religion, and even playing the harp became illegal under British Colonization and the Penal Laws of 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 two Irish Hereditary Herbalism Families who practiced from 1100 to 1695. I have reclaimed my ancestral knowledge, my DNA. This is the story of how I went from Registered Nurse to Mom, Artist, and Herbalist, what I've learned and continue to learn along the way. In this blog, I share what I discover and remember — to help you heal yourself.
192. Easy Pee-sy | Organic Herbal Support for Men's Urinary & Prostate Health
By their 50s, half of all men show signs of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary breaks down the peer-reviewed research behind every plant in Easy Pee-sy — why one of them matched Flomax in a 2020 meta-analysis of 1,080 men and why our blend works better.
dartny091
1 day ago7 min read
191. Liver Friendly Tincture | Why Your Liver Is the Real Key to Healthy Cholesterol
Your liver runs 500 functions — including the one that controls your cholesterol. Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary shares the science, her personal story, and the herbs that support
dartny091
Sep 2210 min read
184. The Power of 11,111: A Cosmic Alignment of Healing and Pure Love
Order #11,111 arrived for a Furry Friend. 🐾 In Celtic tradition, the Irish Wolfhound was the sacred guardian — a master healer who could sense what humans could not. Written by Clinical Herbalist Donna Cleary for Spiral Herbal Remedies, August 17, 2026 A customer just placed the 11,111th online order at spiralherbalremedies.com. If you know anything about angel numbers, you already felt the shift. Honestly, I saw the number, knew intuitively it meant something significant,
dartny091
Aug 183 min read
☀️ Celebrating the Summer Solstice: A Journey into Nature's Wisdom
The Summer Solstice 2026, occurring on June 21, represents the peak of solar energy and a sacred transition in the Northern Hemisphere. This period honors ancient Irish traditions, where Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary at Spiral Herbal Remedies bridges ancestral wisdom with modern wellness. Practitioners can integrate rituals like saining—a traditional smoke cleansing—using potent midsummer botanicals. By harvesting mugwort and visiting astronomical monuments, we connect
Donna Troy Cleary
Jun 194 min read
108. Unraveling the Mysteries of Hair Loss: Can Herbal Remedies Revive Hair Growth?
Hair loss affects both men and women — but the cause matters more than the symptom. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary shares her own hair loss story, the herbal formula that grew her hair back, and the organic remedies that address every root cause from stress to scalp fungi.
dartny091
Apr 4, 20244 min read
91. We visited Ireland this past March, traveled to The Bend In The Boyne and Lough Crew
Spiral Herbal Remedies owner Donna Troy Cleary traces her Hereditary Herbalism ancestry through Ireland's Neolithic passage tombs — Loughcrew Cairns and the Bend in the Boyne — where 5,000-year-old spiral petroglyphs inspired her logo and Druidic equinox ceremonies honored the harvest.
dartny091
Sep 22, 20232 min read
90.Discover Plant-Based Healing: A Journey with Master Herbalist, Donna Troy Cleary in Brooklyn, NY.
In the heart of Brooklyn, Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary descends from Hereditary Herbalism Families in ancient Ireland and brings that ancestral knowledge to Spiral Herbal Remedies — where organic plant-based healing, personalized consultations, and community herbalism classes meet modern science."
dartny091
Sep 13, 20233 min read
89. What's the deal with Adaptogens?
Adaptogens are herbs that help the body resist physical and emotional stress — and Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary has spent years mastering their use. Discover how Ashwagandha, Reishi, and other powerful adaptogens can restore balance, boost energy, and build resilience naturally.
dartny091
May 24, 20233 min read
78. "There are nights when the wolves are silent and only the moon howls." George Carlin
Flying to Ireland on a full moon sent Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary down a rabbit hole of Celtic lunar wisdom — Grandmother Moon, the Tuatha de Danann, and the 5,000-year-old passage tombs at Loughcrew and Newgrange that align with the Spring Equinox. Ancient Ireland, alive and howling.
dartny091
Mar 5, 20233 min read
76. Scientists at MIT observed that life begins with a Spiral!
MIT scientists filmed the moment of fertilization — and spirals swirled across the surface of the egg. The same spiral is carved into 5,000-year-old Neolithic passage tombs across Ireland. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary shares why this stopped her in her tracks.
dartny091
Dec 16, 20221 min read
75. What do thankfulness and hallucinations have in common?
Before Santa, there were Sami shamans in red and white fur, collecting sacred mushrooms from under evergreen trees and entering yurts through the smoke hole. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary traces the ancient solstice roots of Christmas — from Newgrange to Lapland — and gives thanks for another year.
dartny091
Nov 29, 20223 min read
74. We associate Halloween with costumes and candy but once, it was a sacred day.
Halloween didn't start with candy and costumes — it started with Samhain, the ancient Irish Celtic new year, when the veil between worlds thinned, ancestors crossed over, and festivalgoers disguised themselves as ghouls to avoid being dragged into the underworld. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary traces Halloween back to its Irish roots.
dartny091
Oct 20, 20223 min read
72. The Summer Solstice is upon us.
5,500 years ago, the builders of Newgrange in Ireland aligned its passage with the solstice sun. Today is the longest day of the year — and Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary traces the global tradition of solstice ceremony from Stonehenge to Chaco Canyon, and what this sacred transition means for us now.
dartny091
Jun 21, 20223 min read
71. What to look for with CBD and why people take it.
Not all CBD is equal — and most people are taking it wrong. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary breaks down why concentration, sublingual absorption, and CO2 extraction make Spiral's organic CBD outperform the rest, and how to get the most out of every drop.
dartny091
May 24, 20223 min read
70. Covid this week
NYC is at the center of a new Covid variant with nearly 20,000 infections in 14 days — and the real number is higher. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary cuts through the conflicting information: what it means for vaccinated people, immune-compromised individuals, and what Long Covid looks like now.
dartny091
Apr 7, 20223 min read
69. We could all use a little Leprechaun magic right about now.
What is magic? Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary connects Irish mythology — Leprechauns, the Tuatha de Danann, and the Otherworld — with Stanford neuroscience on mindset, positive thinking, and how what we believe shapes our health. A St. Patrick's Day post worth reading any day.
dartny091
Mar 18, 20223 min read
68. Happy Imbolc
Imbolc marks the midpoint between the winter solstice and spring equinox — when Irish Neolithic passage tombs align with the rising sun and the land begins its quiet awakening. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary shares the Celtic rituals, the herbs for this transitional energy, and why this ancient festival still matters.
dartny091
Feb 1, 20221 min read
67. Witch?
Chronicles of a Witch in Training started as Donna Troy Cleary's account of discovering her Hereditary Irish Herbalism ancestry, the family medical school that ran in Munster from 1400–1700, and the Malleus Maleficarum that burned over a million women healers at the stake. Becoming an herbalist is a reclamation. And a radical feminist act.
dartny091
Jan 21, 20223 min read
66. Halloween? How about Samhain instead? Yes, it's the origin of Halloween. Nov 2, 2021
Halloween's ghost costumes, trick-or-treating, and offerings of candy all trace back to Samhain — the ancient Irish Gaelic new year celebrated on October 31st, when the veil between this world and the Otherworld thinned and the dead came home. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary tells the real story.
dartny091
Jan 21, 20222 min read
65. Phew! July 17, 2021
July 2021 — Spiral Herbal Remedies reopens at 810 Washington Ave in Crown Heights/Prospect Heights Brooklyn, and the community shows up. Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary reflects on the whirlwind reopening, the neighbors who made it feel like home, and the herbal products flying off the shelves.
dartny091
Jan 21, 20223 min read
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