Simply put, Herbal Medicine is the medicinal use of plant material in the form of teas, tinctures, topical applications and so much more.

Phytotherapists practice clinical herbalism in the Western Traditional model which blends the use of medicinal plants native to both Europe and Turtle Island.

The clinical use of plant remedies are used to support a wide array of health concerns, and allows us to take a highly personalized approach to supporting a patient’s body, mind and spirit.

No, but we have our own autonomous governing bodies that we register with after we have completed all the educational requirements & supervised clinic hours.

In Canada, the governing associations are broken down provincially, each with slightly differing educational requirements, with the Canadian Council Of Herbalist Associations being the main over seeing body.

The most common designations you may see next to a professional, practicing herbalist’s name are:

RH - Registered Herbalist

Dip.Phyt. (RHT) - Registered Herbal Therapist / Phytotherapist (Canada, BC Herbalist Association)

FNIMH - Fellow of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists (Europe)

RH (AHG) - Registered Herbalist with the American Herbalists Guild

When I have graduated from my Diploma program I will be able obtain the designation of Registered Herbal Therapist - Dip.Phyt. (RHT). This will show that my training included a minimum of 2000 accredited hours of study and 500 hours of clinical supervision.

Visit this link to read more about the clinical designation I am working towards: https://www.bcherbalists.ca/page-18090

Visit this link to learn more about the Diploma program I am currently completing: https://www.pacificrimcollege.com/faculties-programs/program/diploma-of-phytotherapy/

Naturopathic Doctors, NDs, are licensed physicians in Canada who have additional training in the use of herbs, nutrition, acupuncture, and homeopathic medicines, with only two campuses currently training ND students in Canada. Going to Naturopathic medical school is extremely expensive, which creates the issue of massive student loans coupled with the fact that OHIP does not cover Naturopathic care. This means the out-of-pocket costs for patients seeking clinical alternative & complementary care are astronomical and inaccessible to the average person.

Herbalists are not doctors or licensed healthcare practitioners, but a well-rounded, in-depth, accredited education in Herbal Medicine costs half as much as a Naturopathic medical school, and our 3-4+ years of formal education is focused on the extensive depth of a smaller handful of modalities, allowing us the ability to go deeper into the world of this complex art. Herbalists are considered specialists in the field of Herbal Medicine. Consider the difference between a Pharmacist and an MD; MDs are trained in pharmacology but won’t have nearly as much in-depth knowledge of all the subtleties and interactions to be considered in each medicine. Herbal Medicine takes a lifetime to learn, and even then, we might only consider ourselves ‘advanced beginners’ after decades of immersion in this path.

Homeopathic medicine has only been around for about 200 years, while herbal medicine goes as far back as we have fossilized evidence for human kind.

Homeopathic remedies are ‘vibrational’ remedies. Essentially, they are extreme micro-doses of plants and other organic and non-organic materials that are taken in such a diluted form that they do not contain any remaining, detectable chemical evidence of the original material.

The concept is ‘Like heals Like’ in extremely small doses.

Herbalists work with all aspects of plant medicine and train extensively in the scientific and biochemical side of plant medicines, utilizing a wide array of phytochemicals that have a variety of pharmacological effects on the human body.

We also utilize traditional energetic modalities that have remained unbroken for thousands and thousands of years, such as Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda, both of which are ‘Living’ systems that continue to expand and grow and make use of modern scientific research to expand their understanding and depth of medicine.

No. Herbal Medicine is not covered by OHIP. I try to keep my practice accessible and offer sliding scale options for those who are currently struggling.

No. As far as I’m aware, no insurance policies currently cover Herbal Medicine. I try to keep my practice accessible and offer sliding scale options for those who are currently struggling.

No. In order to get testing done, you’ll have to petition your GP to get lab work done. I can, however, help you read and understand your testing when you get it back, and I encourage you to upload the lab results you have when you book an appointment with me. Lab work gives us a lot of useful information to go on, but it requires leaning into your formal care team to acquire those tests.

Yes, when used properly. Of course, everything used outside of its dose range, and proper context can became harmful.

Overall, Herbal Medicine is very safe and offers far fewer side effects than pharmaceuticals and a much wider range of use and accessibility to medicines.

Though, there are highly deadly plants out there in existence, some that are even used by some far more advanced practitioners as medicines.

I use very safe plants, and will always discuss the plants with you before hand.

Yes! There is lots of research dedicated to the pharmacological study of plant phytochemical compounds, a simple google scholar search will bring thousands and thousands of results.

At least 25% of pharmaceuticals were first identified and synthesized from raw plant material. Many of which are still named for the original plant’s latin binomial.

A whole-foods, plant-based diet is a style of eating that predominantly consists of a wide variety of minimally unprocessed plant foods, such as grains, beans, seasonal veggies, fruit and nuts.

Not at all!

If you’re asking this question, I’m assuming that something about plant-based eating resonates with you, but you’re weary about adopting the restrictiveness of veganism.

If you want to lean into plant-based eating on your own terms and figure out what plant-based eating means for you, then I’m hear to help!

A few common reasons people become plant-based curious; for some people, learning about the environmental impact of factory farming is what sparks them to give it a try, or perhaps you don’t feel good about participating in a world that treats animals like in-organic, products or maybe you’re learning about the vast health and longevity benefits of plant-based eating.

Whatever your personal why, I’m here to offer guidance while you learn to adjust to shifting your diet towards more a plant-centred lifestyle.

Yes, Plant-Based is a more fluid and flexible term that means you incorporate the majority / or all of your food from whole, plant-based foods.

Vegan is an ideal or value system that usually removes ALL forms of animal product from their diet and lifestyle.

You can be plant-based and vegan, or you can be plant-based, but not vegan. You can even eat animal products and still follow a plant-based, whole foods lifestyle.

Dogma is not required to explore the world of beautiful, colourful, nutritional plant foods.

Not at all!

I’m very aware of how tired and weary people are of fad diets and diets that revolve completely around restricting or cutting out macros, or entire food groups.

I don’t focus on cutting anything out, instead I encourage adding more food, more colour, more variety. I value simplicity and ease, and want to help people heal their connection to the foods that will nurture their body for many years to come.

We would only focus on removing foods if we need to work on gut healing or acute issues of some kind that might require us to start slowly and focus on working on the condition at hand first.