top of page
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.
183. 🌿 Natural Ways to Boost Libido and Sexual Health
Elevate your sexual wellness with Spiral Herbal Remedies. Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary shares how Ashwagandha root extract and our Benjamin Button Got His Groove Back tincture support libido and vitality for both men and women. By reducing stress-induced cortisol and optimizing hormones, these botanical remedies improve arousal, circulation, and performance. Discover the power of plant-based healing for a more vibrant, satisfying intimate life
Donna Troy Cleary
Jul 244 min read
Understanding Seasonal Allergies in New York City: Natural Remedies and Solutions
Seasonal allergies in NYC are getting worse — and 'botanical sexism' in urban tree planting is partly to blame. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary explains the science behind pollen, histamine, and how organic mushroom blends, Nah-Choo Tincture, and Vite-Achoo Tea offer natural allergy relief.
Donna Cleary
Apr 224 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.
Donna Cleary
Apr 4, 20244 min read
95. Unleashing the Power of Medicinal Mushrooms: Nature's Gift to Holistic Wellness
In the realm of herbalism, few of nature's bounties have garnered as much attention and admiration as medicinal or functional mushrooms. These fascinating fungi hold an ancient legacy of promoting well-being, with a rich history of use in traditional medicine across various cultures. In China, there is a 5000-year history of use. In Eastern Europe and Russia, just as long. As the modern world seeks to rediscover the wonders of plant-based, organic healing, medicinal mushrooms
Donna Cleary
Oct 18, 20234 min read
92. Inflammation can be both Metaphysical and Physical
Inflammation is now considered the root cause of most disease — but Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary goes deeper, exploring the metaphysical roots of inflammation alongside the physical, and the organic herbal remedies that address both.
Donna Cleary
Sep 27, 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.
Donna Cleary
May 24, 20233 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.
Donna Cleary
Nov 29, 20223 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.
Donna Cleary
Jan 21, 20223 min read
51. Recovering from Covid. May 28, 2020
Covid recovery is taking weeks, sometimes a month. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary explains why — cytokine storms, lingering virus, immune dysregulation — and what her organic herbal remedies do to help the body find its way back: Reishi, Gone Viral, Reclaim Your Lungs, CBD, and more.
Donna Cleary
Jan 21, 20225 min read
45. The Corona Virus March 13, 2020
March 2020. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary translated the science in real time — flattening the curve, masks, hand washing, immune support, and the herbal remedies that help your body fight back. One of the earliest and most comprehensive Covid guides published by an independent health practitioner in NYC.
Donna Cleary
Jan 21, 202211 min read
39. Stressssssssssss, the Immune System and Finding Home November 23, 2018
Most inflammatory conditions — eczema, arthritis, Hashimoto's, IBS — have stress at their root. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and former RN Donna Troy Cleary explains how stress hijacks the immune system, why wild-foraged Reishi and Chaga modulate it better than warehouse-grown mushrooms, and what she takes every day for the rest of her life."
Donna Cleary
Jan 21, 20224 min read
32. Art and Herbalism April 3, 2018
What does a grimacing Irish stone carving found over medieval church doorways have in common with the Hindu Goddess Kali? Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and MFA artist Donna Troy Cleary explores the shared legacy of matrifocal cultures in Ireland and India — and what both say about the feminine divine, the body, and the reclamation of ancestral knowledge.
Donna Cleary
Jan 21, 20221 min read
30. Setting up shop! Feb 21, 2018
This is an old post. We are now located at 810 Washington Ave in Brooklyn. This weekend I'll be setting up shop at Artists and Fleas #artistsandfleas in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Come sample and buy Ginkgo and Reishi tinctures along with Body Butters, salves, balms and sprays. Talk to an Herbalist. Learn about preventative medicine that every New Yorker should use. Everything is Organic, freshly made with ethically wildcrafted herbs, using the best ingredients. No water, no
Donna Cleary
Jan 21, 20221 min read
26. Healing and Love from Plants Dec 20, 2017
he first product launch from Spiral Herbal Remedies — Reishi Tincture Double Decoction, ethically wildcrafted in a Pennsylvania forest, and Love Warrior Wild Rose Water, made from wild rose petals and lavender. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist Donna Troy Cleary introduces the remedies that started it all."
Donna Cleary
Jan 20, 20221 min read
21. Recycling, returns and rrrr- NARS Open Studios. :) October 6, 2017
A prose poem to Reishi — recycler of energy, transformer of dying body — written after completing Level II Herbalism Apprenticeship at Sacred Vibes Apothecary. Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and MFA artist Donna Troy Cleary reflects on the mushroom that worked its way into her life the same way it works its way into a tree.
Donna Cleary
Jan 20, 20222 min read
19. The silence. July 19, 2017
Why do the women in Donna's family lose their memory as they age? A 2017 essay on silence, voice, and what happens to the brain when it stops being heard — updated in 2021 when her mother's neurologist reconsidered his Alzheimer's diagnosis after five years on Lion's Mane, Reishi and CBD: 'If you had Alzheimer's, you'd be gone by now.
Donna Cleary
Jan 20, 20226 min read
18. Come see my Reishi at Freight and Volume Gallery July 2017
Brooklyn Clinical Herbalist and MFA artist Donna Troy Cleary brought her Reishi sculptures to Freight + Volume Gallery for The Secret Life of Plants — a group show exploring the interdependence of humans and plants, co-curated by Jennifer Coates and Nick Lawrence, alongside 40 artists including Alexis Rockman and Phoebe Washburn.
Donna Cleary
Jan 20, 20221 min read
17. Immortality and Fungus June 16, 2017
The day before leaving for Mildred's Lane artist residency, Donna Troy Cleary chose Reishi as her walking herb. Within 24 hours a giant Reishi appeared from the forest. By the end of the week she had found eight trees. The Reishi whisperer — Clinical Herbalist, MFA artist, and the woman who named a foster dog after a mushroom — tells the whole story.
Donna Cleary
Jan 20, 20225 min read
bottom of page