Becoming A Clinical Herbalist
The Mission
Weaving my past experiences in movement modalities with my deep-rooted desires to research natural medicine practices, I'm answering an intuitive call to be of great assistance to those in my communities that are looking to find healing and vibrancy, everyday.
- Rosie Hope
I believe one of the most beautiful things about this life is being able to bear witness to the unfolding of your pathway and through the process of reflection, connecting the dots to see just how everything that you have experienced has been leading you to exactly the place you need to be.
I’ve experienced many perspectives of my career to date. It’s been faceted and I’ve been fortunate to be taken on so many exceptional avenues, by being open to opportunity and taking risks when needed. However, at many times, I’ve felt deep despair and disconnection, trying to figure out ‘what’ I should do and a pressing sense of a lack of purpose that kept trying to emerge.
Each aspect of my career to date has seen me experience levels of success, that whilst I’m truly proud of, left me still aching for more. I never reached a point of deep satisfaction that I was serving and delivering what I truly was on this Earth, at this particular moment in time, to do. The more I pushed to do what I thought was the ‘right’ thing to do, mostly by general society standards to measure up to my peers, I felt more and more frustrated, hitting blocks both physically and energetically.
As I slowly began to listen to the soft whispers, that would emerge when I found myself in moments of stillness, was the desire to return to my roots, to nature, to healing and to my skills of connecting with others, in an offer to serve, assist and comfort those in my communities.
The Impetus For Change
Through my teaching work and indeed this very site, I was regularly asked for advice and help by women who were really suffering from elements of their health and wellbeing. It used to cause me distress, that as an empathetic human, there was limited action I could take to be of assistance to those who reached out to me, recognising the limitations to the scope of my practice and never wanting to overstep the bounds of this professional obligation. Slowly, as it became more regular to have these questions asked of me in both my professional and personal arena, the message started to slot in, that perhaps this was what I was meant to be doing. Perhaps it was beyond just movement. Perhaps the years I had spent testing out different modalities of healing, researching techniques, trialling remedies, speaking to practitioners and exploring alternative therapies – perhaps that was the key to unlocking my pathway forward.
As this understanding dawned, everything began to feel light – there was an ease, a rightness, a sense of truly profound knowing and more than anything, I felt excited to my very core by the prospect of expanding my knowledge base and re-establishing connections to my roots.
A Naturopathic Background
I’ve been exceptionally fortunate to have grown up in a household where alternative and complementary medicine practices were utilised and encouraged. My maternal grandmother ran a Naturopathic clinic prior to her passing and my mother would regularly offer up handy home healing remedies that had been shared with her. I can recall taking flower essences in my young childhood, getting acupuncture regularly from my teens, trying cranial osteopathy in high school and attending yoga sessions as a way to deal with stress. In my adulthood, this turned into utilising herbal remedies and naturopathic principles to manage PCOS, Adrenal Fatigue and stress, alongside a solid spiritual and meditation practice and ever-expanding desire to research these topics.
This isn’t to say that my entire upbringing was fully cemented in that world – I was nicknamed the Doctor at my Arts College university as I was regularly injured and would have a medical bag of conventional sprays, anti-inflammatories and pain medication to get me through long hours of dancing – but holistic methods were always included in our repertoire; arnica featuring heavily as a staple product in my kit too! However, as my personal studies, own healing experiences and professional practice took off in my twenties and I began exploring various modalities of holistic health, I truly believe this lineage began to emerge and fuse with my own desires to work within these fields.
So begins the process of becoming a qualified Clinical Herbalist!
A Personal Healing Journey
Like many who enter the field of Clinical Herbalism, my personal healing journey with hormonal and metabolic conditions, as well as mental health wellness and managing heightened stress, has certainly been pivotal in propelling me towards reaching my own practitioner status. Being truly fortunate to find incredible healers, doctors and practitioners across the breadth of complementary therapies across the globe, has been a great source of inspiration and a sounding board for what kind of practitioner I myself would love to become when the time comes to enter professional practice.
Returning To Study
The decision to return to study and undertake a BSc: Clinical Herbalism began by taking a period of introspection to truly come to terms with the concept of returning to study as a “mature age” student. This will be my third tertiary-level degree – so comprehending the financial, durational and emotional commitment of another higher-education study period was crucial for not only myself but also my fiance and our life plans. As is my nature, I set out to research all of the available schools and colleges (at this time, in Australia or New Zealand, as we were living in Singapore and believed we would be returning back to the region), who offered degrees in this area.
Due to my experiences with practitioners and my personal beliefs around the issue, I’ve been adamant from the start that the degree I were to undertake must be fully qualified at degree level, to allow entry into the regulatory awarding bodies who govern professional practices. This means that the courses must meet strict requirements and include high levels of practical clinical hours, to ensure upon graduation, you are well and truly equipped to enter the field.
After my groundwork research, I decided upon entering the BHSc: Naturopathy with Endeavour College, where it was possible to undertake the first of four years remotely, before the final three in person at one of the Australia-wide locations. I started my first semester in 2019 and I was o b s e s s e d. The workload was intense but fully engaging. Returning to topics of Biochemistry after 10+ years since I last looked at a periodic table was, interesting, shall we say… but the topics of Philosophy and Naturopathic principles made my heart completely sing. I felt such a surge of connection to the study and was energetically lit up by learning. Truly, I’m just a huge nerd and love studying, so returning to study a topic I am so passionate about, just felt so right. The Endeavour course offers a huge range of support for students and even though I was studying remotely, you felt a true part of a cohort and had access to your tutors and support staff whenever you needed.
A Pivot In Life Plans (Of Course!)
The end of 2019 took a pivot when my fiancee got offered a new work opportunity that would lead us back to the UK. As part of deciding whether this was something to proceed with, I began exploring the options available to continue studying there. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t be able to proceed with Endeavour *so* remotely and across international borders, there are different technicalities of what is classed as Naturopathy VS Herbalism, so my credits wouldn’t so easily transfer over. However, fuelled with the knowledge that I felt so connected to the study, my semester with Endeavour served as a little boost, solidifying my knowledge that this was the right path to pursue for my future.
So as I began researching colleges in the UK, I looked for one that would likewise offer a full qualification and be recognised internationally, because as my experiences have taught me, crossing the globe tends to be a regular part of life for us! Through my research, I found Lincoln College to be the most comprehensive program on offer within the UK and upon having my entry interview, while on some shaky wifi in a hotel in New Orleans as we were travelling during the period, connected with the tutor team immediately. This gave me the sense of knowing again, that this course would be able to provide exactly what I was looking for when we relocated in 2020.
BSc: Clinical Herbalism
The BSc: Clinical Herbalism is a three-year degree qualification, offering the opportunity to explore the philosophical undertones of holistic principles, learn and meet the herbs, but lays rooted in its science base. With an extensive undertaking of clinical practice hours, the course is accredited by the the European Herbal and Traditional Practitioners Association and entry is offered into the National Institute of Medical Herbalists upon completion, the course ticked all the boxes of what I was searching for.
So here begins my next big adventure – getting fully qualified and immersed in the world of Herbal Medicine!
I’m profoundly excited about diving in and having the opportunity to focus on my studies and be grounded within the next three years of learning. As my visions for my future career grow, I feel the ease of being in alignment with my purpose and feel energetically open to the expansion that will come with absorbing miles more of knowledge as it comes.
I look forward to being able to bring you along the journey of this qualification and the process of adding greater skills to my repertoire. Knowing that this began by the soft nudges from my community asking for more from me and recalling the knowledge that resides in my lineage that will, in time, allow me to best serve you all.
In health and true happiness,
Rosie x
Photo by Matt Briney on Unsplash