September Medicine Notes
September has really come so quickly. I am sitting down to write this after putting my baby girl down for the night – this month she turns 1. What? How? Where the hell did this year even go?! Since 2020 I have been in deep transition. I have been like 8 new “Me’s” since the pandemii. But this new role of “Mama”, this one, is something different. I didn’t think that this would be on my path in this lifetime. I felt the extensions of me would look like art, classes, medicines etc. For a long time my energy was really focused on BreadxButta, my business baby. Which is also celebrating another rotation around the sun this September. The 9TH rotation!! Nine years of BxB. I am so in awe.
This last year has taught me so much about mothering and caretaking. It’s forced me to examine the relationships with the maternal figures in my life and has been a practice of embodying the maternal role that I am now in aand how I want to show up in it. Whew. Shout out to therapy, plant medicines, prayer, meditation, weed, my boo, my friends, laughter, good food, yoga, sunshine, weed & sunshine in tandem, music, dancing and memes ;’) because this year has been a year of reaching into my handy dandy tool bag for support. “It has only begun” - I can hear the parent readers now, lol. I am so appreciative of the love, support and deep conversations that this community has offered to me and my partner in this time. I feel like I am slowly emerging from the depths of the thicc parental forest, the fog is clearing and I am like ‘oh heyyyyy’ (Forest Gump wave)
Needless to say, this month the celebrations will be HAD. I am so excited to celebrate 1 year of mamahood and 9 years of BreadxButtaaaa! Throughout all of it, so many of you have been such a beautiful part of these milestones. So thank you, thank youuu for seeing me and for allowing me to see you too. Its been a huge honor to create medicines for you, be in community with you and to walk this life alongside you. Pa’lante!!!
This month I am reaching deep into my astro herbalism bag to bring you a cute medicine note for Virgo season. We are talking Astrology, the Orisha, Caribbean herbalism, sacred earth medicines and rituals.
Let’s start by breaking down the ase of Virgo.
The essence of Virgo is such a lovely energy to work with. This mercurian, earth energy starts during the last quarter of the year just after a mercury retrograde period. It asks us to take a look at the contracts, the procrastinations, the plans and intentions we’ve made for the year… its the halfway reassessment point!
Virgo szn offers us so much medicine around coming up with a plan, re-organizing, being more health conscious, diving deeper into our healing and opening the roads to being successful in your pursuits. In my spiritual path this sign is associated with the orisha Exu and with our second brain– the gut. In astrology, Virgo lives in the 6th house of our daily life, including work, wellness, and lifestyle. Here is a quick breakdown of Virgo’s energetics:
Element: Earth
Mode: Mutable
Planetary Connection: Mercury
Direction: West
House: 6th House
Gemstone: Moss Agate, Peridot, Carnelian, Jasper
Tarot: The Hermit, the Magician, 8 of Pentacles
Deity Connections: Eshu, Persephone, The Virgin, Istar, Demeter
Body Systems: Abdomen. Gut brain and intelligence. Intestines, lower liver (especially the purifying functions), spleen. Digestive enzymes. The nervous system related to digestion. Diaphragm. Spleen. Pancreas.
Gifts of Virgo: Purification, practicality, discernment, organization, analytical, discipline, health-conscious, efficient, activating, road opening, the healer
Acts of Ritual for Virgo: Healing and creating new healthy habits, goal-setting, creating functional systems of change and well-being & developing discernment.
Virgo Guardian Herbs: Fennel, Lavender, Peppermint , Skullcap, Licorice, Anise, Agrimony, Thyme, Basil, Bleo Blanco, Anamu, Rompe Saraguey
During this season we have the opportunity to tap into road clearing energy as well as creating a virgo-like fool proof plan of action to finish out the year strong. What are some actionable steps to harnessing this energy you ask?
Astrology tip:: head to astroseek.com to get your free birth chart to see what your 6th house has going on. Understanding the sign and energy of the 6th house will offer insights and shed light on how you feel about your daily life, including your work, your wellness habits, spiritual practices and overall personal lifestyle. It can also provide insights into your schedule and how to better navigate it.
Wellness Tip:: The energy of Virgo rules the gut – this is a wonderful time for a gentle detox on a physical level, as well as emotionally and spiritually. The gut is where our intuition lives. This is the space that our ancestors and spirit can really connect with us on a deep ‘knowing’ and embodied way. Unfortunately, a lot of our diet in the US consists of processed foods that can tamper with our connection to our gut/sacral/intuitive space. The high levels of stimulation from the news, social media and the fast paced culture we live in all contribute to the lack of connection we have to ourselves. We are very focused on what is outside of us more often than what is happening internally. We all know it but maybe not all of us take action on what we consume - for many, many reasons, situations, currently realities etc. Something that we can control is being as mindful as possible about what we intake. Through things like food, energy exchanges with other folks, social media consumption, following unhelpful thought patterns, the ways in which we speak of ourselves and our lives…all of this is a part of the detox process I am talking about. Think about what feels realistic for you to detox, start small. The most subtle changes truly make way for bigger and bigger changes as we shift. Be patient and gentle!
Herbal Tools:: A few herbal allies that can assist us on this path are the Virgo guardian herbs, Fennel, Lavender, Peppermint , Skullcap, Licorice, Anise, Agrimony, Basil and Thyme. These are all helpful for the digestive system, our nervous system, immunity health as well as cooling the mind and purifying spaces. These are wonderful herbs to drink in teas, to add to meals or take spiritual baths with. As a tea, combining Fennel, Anise, skullcap and ginger will help with activating your gut, acting as a gentle detox, supporting a calm, grounded nervous system and supporting a healthy gut microbiome. Creating a Lavender, peppermint and skullcap tea is a sweet way to wind down, calm an anxious mind, feel safe in your body and relax. Adding Fennel, basil and Thyme to meals help to warm up the food on an energetic level and act as a nice offering to your ancestral altar– an Ajeum.
As a spiritual bath you can make a great energy clearing and road opener with these herbs. Stay tuned for our next post on making a spiritual bath with these guardian herbs.
