Birdsong Apothecary: The Journey Here

Birdsong Apothecary began as "Temple Of The Spirit", my final project for the Master Certification in Intuition Medicine® (MIM) program at the Academy of Intuition Medicine. I created a body and spirit care kit of 13 different botanical formulations to illustrate how plant allies can support the energy work in deepening self and soul awareness. To help us become more aware of who we really are: Divine, Sovereign and Embodied Spirits fulfilling our soul purpose.

Along with a set of suggested affirmations, each element of this toolkit - from body butters and anointing oils to tinctures and herbal teas - supported the application and integration of various Intuition Medicine® concepts taught in the MIM program.

The practice of simply allowing myself to acknowledge my passion of working with medicinal plants without fear or judgement reflected the deep transformation that had occurred. Daring to dream this project into being as Birdsong Apothecary and weaving it with my MIM training, I realized: I was being invited to dream and create in a whole new way.

I was asked to listen more and to do less. To wait and observe, instead of jumping in and making decisions from a place of urgency. To recognize my limits, instead of pushing ahead into burnout. To apply the tools I had learnt to recognize the quality of my inner landscape, and knowing when to take action to recalibrate as needed.

What emerged was a profound experience of my personal power and creativity, and a lesson about the importance of cultivating receptivity and stillness when bringing an idea into reality. And to participate in the process as a co-creator, in a way that is sustainable, fulfilling and delightful.

The choices that brought me to this moment started with my study of medicinal plants in the South American vegetalismo tradition. Over a period of two years, I completed many plant medicine immersions (dietas), working with plants at the etheric level while incorporating shamanic and ritual practices of the Amazon, specifically in the Shipibo tradition. Participants are required to change their lifestyles and avoid certain categories of food for a period of time as they commune with the spirit of the plant.

At the end of this period, as I considered pathways for continuing and sharing this work, I met a MIM Alumna at an Ayahuasca retreat in the Peruvian jungle who spoke about the Academy and his teacher. Intrigued, and following a series of synchronicities, I enrolled to learn more about grounding techniques, thinking it would be a helpful skill for whatever I wanted to do next. I signed up for six weeks and ended up staying for 18 months.

In a nutshell, Ayahuasca led me to the Academy of Intuition Medicine and my MIM studies were the integration of the powerful ceremonies I attended in the jungle.

This experience was a necessary course correction - some may say a divine intervention - from the trajectory I was on and the community I was in. I was ready to level up and to connect deeper with my own inner wisdom, to put in the work to cultivate the right conditions for manifesting the intentions I brought to each ceremony in the jungle.

Birdsong Apothecary reflects the integration of two fields I am most passionate about: energy medicine and working with medicinal plants. Being a part of both communities, I have observed how each modality can be greatly enhanced by introducing elements of the other field (bringing energy medicine into herbalism and vice versa) and my offering is a way to explore this possibility.

By offering formulations that anyone can use in personal rituals to strengthen their energetic boundaries, return to center and affirm self-love, my hope is for clients and customers to discover the joy of embodiment and how easily it can be integrated into daily life. Inner peace and self-love are accessible every moment, every day, it is simply a matter of paying attention.

As a survivor of domestic violence and child physical and emotional abuse in a high-pressure, conservative society, I spent my youth just trying to survive and dreaming of the day when I could escape and build a life for myself on my own terms. My superpower must have been dreaming and manifesting because that is what has unfolded into my life today. As a child and teenager I constantly dreamt of a better world, a better life. I did not know if that would be possible but I spent many waking (and sleeping) hours dreaming of other realities and possibilities. I now know that this was simply manifesting and creative visualization, but at the time, this was how I self-soothed and stayed the course.

Trauma, especially when experienced in childhood, affects our energy bodies in deep ways as all our systems are still developing in this phase of life. Left unaddressed, and exacerbated by social and familial frameworks which incubate hostile attitudes towards emotional needs and expression, we internalize messages that interfere with our flourishing as complex human beings. Symptoms of this pattern show up as, among others, self-doubt, self-denial, fear of disapproval and disenfranchisement, seeking external validation and deference to authority.

The antidote to all this is self-love, compassion and acceptance. They are simple remedies but potent in application because it requires you to tap into a deep well of courage to dare to disobey, to counter the embedded narratives of who or what you think you are. For someone who has spent their entire life unconsciously believing that they're both "too much" and "not enough", this can be daunting.

Fortunately, the path to self-love is paved with small decisions that can be made in the quiet of your day. From choosing not to respond to someone else's urgency, to taking an extra 10 minutes to do something that you truly enjoy, you are sending the message - to your body, your nervous system and your spirit - that you care, and that you're starting the process of reclaiming and rewriting your own narrative from a place of gentleness, love and compassion.

My personal journey has taught me, repeatedly, that we are much stronger and more powerful than we realize. And that the life, futures, realities, that we deeply long for, are closer than we think. The work is in removing the obstacles - physical, emotional, mental and spiritual - to realizing our dreams, and to build these dreams on a foundation of radical self-love and present time embodiment. These principles inform my work and all my relations - to help others reconnect with their inner spark and experience the depth of true unconditional love that is waiting for them on the other side.