Speaker Bio

From making potions in the backyard as a kid, spending weekends in the kitchen with my grandma and in the garden with my grandpa and mom, to intentionally learning about herbalism as a young adult – plants and the natural world have always played a major part in my life. Although it wasn't until my early twenties that I learned about herbalism and the medicine found in plants. My approach to working with herbs is a holistic one and mirrors my own experiences. As a child, I was prone to all sorts of health issues – allergies, chronic ear infections, inflamed GI, gluten intolerance, hyper-sensitivity to physical pain/sensations (the doctors called it, “pain-intolerance”), stress/anxiety, and depression. Like most Americans, I grew up taking pharmaceuticals to stave off my various symptoms. And like most Americans, my health issues were never actually resolved, just worsened over time. When I was a young adult, I learned about the benefits of herbs, the foods we eat, and different lifestyles that supported balanced wellness. This changed my entire perspective on what it means to be healthy and how to work with imbalances within the mind, body, and spirit. Learning about herbs shifted my approach from a reductionist to a holistic one - both allopathic medicine and herbal medicine have a time and place, and both can complement each other. 

In 2016, my first ‘official’ herbal education was the 2 year clinical herbalist program at Vital Ways in Portland Oregon, where I grew up. Working closely with Chris Smaka, Hanna Jordan, and Paul Bergner changed my outlook on what it meant to live holistically. During this time, I also took classes with Scott Kloos, diving more into the meditational/psycho-spiritual work with plants. I have since taken classes at the School of Evolutionary Herbalism, Herbal Medics Academy, and am always in the pursuit of more knowledge and experience through ongoing classes and self study.