How to pick a Herbalist with 5 easy questions!
I recently heard a therapist complain that, although she practiced in sector and was an expert in her field, she wasn’t sure how to select a practitioner to work with herself, for her own wellbeing needs.
What a common problem!
That made me reflect that you too might be wondering what factors to take into account when selecting a Herbalist to work with. Whilst we often hear about a certain healing modality or a practitioner from a friend or family who have had success working with them, this referral may not be helpful if you are looking in a different geographical area, or seeking a different type of therapy. Since so many Herbalists now also work remotely, the range of practitioners available can even be global, thus making the choice of who to work with, even more overwhelming at times.
So what to do when you’re ready for herbal help?
I use a specific formula when seeking out a new colleague to work with myself, and recognise that although not all Herbalists will suit every client, I’ve shared below a few questions you might like to try asking yourself when deciding to connect with a new Herbalist:
Are they fully qualified and engaged in their ongoing Continual Professional Development (CPD)? In the UK, herbalism is currently an unregulated profession without ‘protected status’ as a professional title meaning that nearly anyone can call themselves a ‘Herbalist’. Whilst this enables a thriving folk tradition to develop, and in some cases it allows for knowledge to be shared in an informal way or via more accessible (but unregulated and potentially inconsistent) online courses, it can also mean that accessing an appropriate Medical Herbalist with suitable clinical experience, professional skills, strong working knowledge of pharmaceutical medicine prescriptions, and relevant medical conditions can be tricky to clearly identify. Due to the potency of many herbs, and the risks of drug-herb interactions, its always worth considering selecting a Medical Herbalist who has extensive, reputable training and offers evidence of having carried out sufficient supervised practice to be a fully-skilled practitioner.
Since medical research and wellness understanding are fast-paced changing areas of science and cultural understanding, working with a practitioner who has been formally trained offers you the reassurance that they can offer an educated, research-informed, and up-to-date understanding of the most relevant protocols for your unique medical context.
Equally, selecting a Herbalist who engages in their own Continued Professional Development (CPD) can reassure you that they are committed to developing their practice to include most recent understandings and protocols, as well as being aligned to the natural theme of growth as an individual - an important value in a nature-inspired therapy modality!
Don’t forget, if unsure, you are entitled to ask a Herbalist for evidence of their qualifications, and to ask about their recent CPD in relevant areas - hopefully they will be proud to geek out with you about their latest training courses or conferences!
Are they registered and insured with an appropriate professional registry for their industry? There are 3 main Herbal Registers for Herbal Medicine practitioners in the UK - The College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy, The National Institute of Medical Herbalists and the Unified Register of Herbal Practitioners - these professional organisations are also members of The Herbal Alliance which has an online practitioner listing service. By being a member of these organisations, you will have the peace of mind to know that the Herbalist you select has been recognised as insured, qualified and is subject to a code of strong ethical standards in their practice.
Are they ‘General Practitioners’ of Herbalism or do they specialise in an area relevant to your needs? Many of us connect with service-based industries due to a personal recommendation from someone in our network. This means that the practitioner may be a trusted local person, but what helps your cousins sore knee, might not be the most suitable therapeutic relationship or healing modality or toolkit to use for your recent trauma and insomnia situation. Accordingly, you may wish to seek out a Herbalist with a particular specialism or enthusiasm for working with clients experiencing challenge or illness in the area you are seeking support in. Herbalism can be a very diverse profession and you will encounter Herbalists who specialise more in medicine growing and making, or teaching herbalism, or in clinical practice - all will suit different clients needs.
It is worth considering however, that a fully trained and experienced Herbalist will also be able to work as a ‘General Practitioner’ too and, subject to the relevant trading standards legislation, will be able to support you with much more varied medical needs. Herbal medicine is fantastically diverse and varied toolkit and many Herbalists will be skilled in applying their skills to all the medical contexts you are encountering, or will be able to ethically advise you where to work with a more suitable practitioner for your needs if that are unable to offer suitable services or if your context is outside their scope of practice. If you are unsure about their suitability for your case, most Herbalists will be happy to direct you to testimonials from existing clients and to discuss their experience working with similar cases to yours.
Do they offer the chance to meet before working together? Many Herbalists will offer you a chance to try a ‘Discovery Call’ or an opportunity to connect without a full consultation cost to ‘try before you buy’ their services and see if this is the right therapeutic relationship for you - after all, you both want to be clear that this connection will be suitable and helpful to you. If you’re uncertain, but considering working with me, I offer a free ‘Quick Cuppa’ service so we can connect and chat together before booking a session.
Do they feel right for me to work with? Once you explore a Herbalists website, social media platform or web listing, you may find yourself having a sense of if they are fully aligned to you, if you have shared values and ideals, and if you feel confident that they are able to understand and hold the unique aspects of your experience. Trusting your instinct on the suitability of this therapeutic relationship is really important since you want to be able to feel held, safe to share complex or confidential and personal information with them, and to be really understood in your medical experiences. Without this sense of trust, it can be hard to ‘activate’ the medicine of the healing connection you form with your Herbalist.
Many practitioners in wellness sectors share their ‘origin story’ on their website biographies in order to demonstrate their commitment to their healing modality, and where they have experienced profound benefit of the modality in their own lives. Whilst finding those who have had a similar journey is very important for some people, an experienced Herbalist will have worked with a wide range of clients in their training- some similar to themselves with relevant personal experience and some wildly different. Trust what feels right for you, and know that the intention of a practitioner to work with empathy and to fully research your case may also enable the right connection to be possible, no matter how diverse you are from the practitioner yourself.
Above all, do trust what feels right for you and allow your self to be surprised by your Herbalist’s expertise - the above list of questions won’t always create for you the perfect therapeutic relationship fit, but might be a guide to finding a skilled professional herbalist with the professionalism to support you on your journey.
Finally, it is important to note however, that the most skilled and powerful body worker I know of, doesn’t hold formal training in one particular modality but has formulated the most potent healing toolkit from doing the work over many years and honing their unrivalled natural skillset. Different tools are needed for different modalities and different clients in different phases, so if you’re unsure what a practitioner might be able to offer you, just ask them!
If you have a question about us working together, feel free to pop me a message or book in for a Quick Cuppa so we can meet and discuss your unique context. Looking forward to connecting with you!
