Haumanu Herbal Healing

18/12/2025

The Christmas season can bring added pressure and emotional load, Oats offers a gentle, nourishing way to support the nervous system. Helping you calm the farm during the holiday period, as well as any other points in life where you may need a little extra support.

A nice bowl of oats is always a great way to start the day, but did you know that they make a wonderful liquid herbal medicine as well? Both the seed (a bit like what is in your breakfast bowl),1 and the whole fresh green plant,2 are a beautiful supportive medicine. Evidence indicates that oats, whe...

11/12/2025

The second herb in our series is the fabulous Lavender... lavender is more than just a herb to help you sleep. Have a read for this article to find out more

The second herb in our series is the fabulous Lavender. For some, Lavender holds memories of nana, or maybe it is one of those herbs that you know well for helping you get to sleep. But did you know there is research to back up the benefits of our beautiful lavender? Lavender contains over a hundred...

10/12/2025

Its been a little quite over on this page. The rush of the silly season really has caught up. But if you have any questions, ill always respond ASAP.

We are doing our best to still eat decent food, while fitting all activties in. This is our thursday morning go to right now, so we can eat and get out the door and I can get to Herbs on the Hill

Some ramen noodles, some miso, so bone broth and some vege hero for a little extra sneaky boost. Sometimes a soft boiled egg (i forgot today) And the kids love it.

What are your go to easy meals?

06/12/2025

Anxiety played a significant role for me during both pregnancy and the postpartum period. This made me extremely cautious throughout each pregnancy, hyper-aware of everything I ate, did, or was exposed to.

Because of this, I completely understand the hesitation many people feel about taking herbal medicine during pregnancy. Concerns often come up around the use of alcohol-extracted herbal medicines (which I will cover in a separate post), as well as the general uncertainty of introducing any therapeutic agent while pregnant.

One herb I genuinely wish I had known about at the time is Passiflora incarnata (passionflower). Not only is it highly effective for relieving anxiety with research showing its effects to be comparable to pharmaceutical anxiolytics such as oxazepam (a catergory C medication) and midazolam (a catergory C medication). (1) but it is also considered safe for use in pregnancy within appropriate clinical guidance.(2)

Importantly, passionflower is classified as B1 under the TGA pregnancy categorisation system. (2) In comparison, commonly prescribed medications for anxiety during pregnancy, such as sertraline, fall under Category C according to eMIMS. This distinction can be reassuring for those seeking gentler, evidence-informed options for managing anxiety in pregnancy.

While trying anything new during pregnancy can understandably feel overwhelming, please know that I truly understand what that fear feels like. I would never recommend or prescribe anything that I would not feel completely comfortable taking myself. Since this is a medicinal herb, checking in with a qualified herbalist or naturopath can help make sure it’s the right fit for you and your unique situation.

If youd like to know more, or have any questions I'd love to chat. Or if you feel like this could be helpful for and would like to book an appointment please find my booking link in my bio. If you need a telehealth appointment on a day other than thursday send me a message so we can chat.



1. Janda K, Wojtkowska K, Jakubczyk K, Antoniewicz J, Skonieczna-Żydecka K. Passiflora incarnata in Neuropsychiatric Disorders—A Systematic Review. Nutrients [Internet]. 2020 Dec 19;12(12):3894. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7766837/
2. Mills S, Bone K. The essential guide to herbal safety. St. Louis, Mo.: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone; 2005.

3. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Australian categorisation system for prescribing medicines in pregnancy [Internet]. Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). 2022. Available from: https://www.tga.gov.au/resources/health-professional-information-and-resources/australian-categorisation-system-prescribing-medicines-pregnancy

04/12/2025

The first in a series of articles with commonly known herbs to help "calm the farm" and make it through the silly season. First up, Chamomile. Did you know Chamomile has been shown to be safer than placebo?

Surprise! Its Christmas! How did we get here? If you are feeling like this (as we are) you may be thinking about some herbs to help calm the farm. Over the next few weeks, we will be taking a brief look at the evidence for some of the common herbs you may already use or have heard of, this week, let...

02/12/2025

If you've been around for a while, you will know that I began studying with the intention to support families who, like myself, struggled to get pregnant or stay pregnant.

For this post, I think it’s important to share this “origin story” (because yes… herbal medicine truly feels like my superpower). It helps explain why I’m so passionate about sharing knowledge, especially when it comes to pregnancy and postpartum care.

Looking back, I often think about how different my own experience might have been if I had known what I know now. If I had had passionflower, would  have I been able to cope better? If I'd had St. John's Wort, would I have been a better mum?

I understand firsthand what it’s like to be pregnant, trying to fall pregnant, or navigating loss while overthinking every tiny step because of all the “what ifs.”

It's because of this that I understand how difficult it can be to know what to do and who to trust on what to take while pregnant or trying to be pregnant. So I will always share research or resources for anything I share.

And most importantly: everything I share is general in nature. Herbal medicine is powerful, and every body, every journey, and every pregnancy is different. Please always speak with a qualified herbalist or naturopath before taking any herbal preparations.

My hope is that by sharing knowledge, it will help you to see how herbal medicine can be your superpower too, in all stages of life.

Tomorrow lll post on one of my favorite topics right now, Raspberry leaf during pregnancy 🌿❤️

01/12/2025

Herbal medicine in pregnancy...

I've been doing a lot of reading, writing, and researching lately. And I'd love to hear from you. What do you think or what do you know, or what would you like to know about herbal medicine in pregnancy?

I have alot id love to share, but i thought before i did, id ask you first about what youd like to hear.

24/11/2025

I put up a story last week asking about flower essences, if you knew about them and if you'd be interested in knowing more. But as life does, it got busy. But now Id love to know if flower essences is something youd like to see in consults with me?

I've been considering adding flower essences as an option to be prescribed through a consult with me, but to be a bit different, I've been looking at First Light Flower Essences of New Zealand.

These gentle vibrational remedies are made from native Aotearoa plants and are designed to support emotional balance, clarity, and a deeper sense of well-being. Each essence works on a different layer of your energetic and emotional well-being, helping with things like stress, overwhelm, feeling stuck, transitions, confidence, and reconnecting with your inner strength.
In a consultation, I create a personalized blend just for you, based on what's happening in your life right now. It's a beautiful, subtle way of supporting healing, growth, and emotional resilience.

I would love to know if this is something you'd be interested in?

Should this be something I add to appointments when needed? Either comment on this post or send me a message. Id love to hear from you

24/11/2025

Interesting read about blueberries and childrens allergies 💙

Could the answer to the current allergy epidemic in our children be as simple as feeding them blueberries? A rigorously run infant RCT suggests that adding blueberries as one of the first solids may nudge immune balance in an anti-allergic direction and help allergy-type symptoms settle during the first year—while also shifting the gut microbiome in potentially favourable ways.

The first year of life is a critical window for establishing immune competence and preventing allergic diseases. Dietary exposures during this period can influence the induction of immune tolerance, epigenetic programming, and gut microbial succession.

In a double blind, randomised, placebo-controlled feeding trial in Denver, USA, exclusively breast-fed infants (n=61, start age 5–6 months) received freeze-dried blueberry powder (10 g/day) or an isocaloric, colour/flavour-matched placebo until 12 months of age.

The blueberry group started out with more respiratory/allergy-like symptoms at baseline yet showed a greater resolution over time vs placebo (trajectory p=0.05). Immune biomarkers: IL-13 (pro-allergic/Th2 response) fell significantly with blueberries (p=0.035); IL-10 (anti-inflammatory/regulatory) trended up (p=0.052). However, the changes in these cytokines could not directly explain symptom changes. However, specific gut microbiome changes at 12 months correlated with the cytokine changes, hinting at gut-immune crosstalk.

In a companion paper in the same cohort, blueberry introduction altered gut microbiota composition/diversity (trends toward higher alpha diversity; increases in short-chain fatty acid-associated genera such as Subdoligranulum/Butyricicoccus and reductions in potentially unfavourable organisms such as Escherichia/Streptococcus).

The findings align with broader evidence showing that diverse, fibre- and polyphenol-rich complementary diets plus early allergen introduction help shape the gut-immune axis toward tolerance.

For more information see: https://bit.ly/4i7mr2M
and
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40944184/