Herbal Medicine Lincoln

22/04/2026

Just completed a fabulous two days of teaching in clinic with three wonderful students from and this week in addition to seeing patients- we did a stock check and order from Phyto pharmaceuticals who had everything in stock and delivered next day! It was fantastic service which meant the students saw everything arrive safely and helped to restock our dispensary
🌿⚕️
Then my partner Richard taught them some basic lymphatic drainage techniques for self care, which along with some nettle and cleavers can be great for a “spring clean” of your body!

Thanks to Sadie, Orla and Jen for sharing these insights 💚

07/04/2026

A Small Favour for Your Favourite Small Business 🤍
I love what I do, and I love the client community we’ve built here. But today, I wanted to pull back the curtain a little bit on something that hits small businesses like ours pretty hard: Late cancellations and no-shows.
When a slot is booked, it’s more than just a time on a calendar. For me, it’s time spent preparing for you. For other clients, it’s a slot they were desperately hoping to snag.
Why it Matters:
• The "Waitlist" Woes: We often have a list of people waiting for an opening. When a session is cancelled at the last minute (or not at all), that's a wasted opportunity for someone else to get the service they need.
• The Small Business Reality: Unlike big corporations, there’s no "backup" here. A no-show doesn't just mean a quiet hour; it means overhead costs aren't covered and income is lost.
• Preparation Time: I put a lot of care and prep into every single appointment before you even walk through the door!

How You Can Help:
• Check Your Calendar: Life happens! If you think you can’t make it, please let me know as early as possible.
• Set Reminders: A quick alarm on your phone goes a long way.
• Review Our Policy: Just a reminder that cancellations made with less than 24 hrs may be subject to a £30 fee. This helps keep the lights on and the schedule fair for everyone.

I’m so grateful for those of you who show up, value our time, and support our clinic. You make what we do possible!
Can’t wait to see you at your next appointment 🌿💕

10/01/2026

Some wise words from my colleague Garreth who I had the pleasure of working with teaching on the Heartwood Professional program 🌿

Why the "Gold Standard" Doesn't Work for Herbal Medicine.

The double-blind RCT is hailed as the gold standard of evidence. But that bar was built for pharmaceuticals, not plants. Trying to fit herbal medicine into that frame breaks what makes it work.

Research doses are almost never what herbalists actually prescribe. Extraction methods are wrong. Time frames don't match clinical reality. You can't blind someone to the taste and action of a real herb.

Isolating a single constituent makes sense for patenting. But whole plant St. John's Wort is remarkably safe. Isolate hyperforin and you have drug interactions. You've removed the buffering effect of the whole plant.

We have thousands of years of knowledge about how plants work, where they grow, how to extract them safely. That's not anecdotal—that's data.

No research model can capture the complexity of a whole plant, individual variation, constituent synergy, or the clinical wisdom from daily practice.

When someone says herbal medicine isn't "evidence-based" because it hasn't passed a pharmaceutical trial, ask: evidence according to whose standard?

The evidence is in thousands of years of safe, effective use. It's in the clinical outcomes we see every day. It's in the fact that whole plant extracts work safely in ways isolated constituents often don't.

We don't need to apologize for that. We need to stop fitting our medicine into a box it was never meant for.

02/01/2026

Still amazing value!
Happy new year to all our clients, students and friends 🥳✨
Let 2026 be a healthy and prosperous one 😊

04/11/2025

A fantastic event at Complementary Medicine Clinic - Lincoln College details are below 👇🏻

🌿 Discover the power of herbal medicine at the Lincoln College Herbal Conference! 🌿

Join us for a day celebrating herbal medicine, connection, and community - whether you’re a practitioner, student, or simply curious about the healing power of plants.

What’s included:
🌱 Expert talks from leading herbalists & practitioners
🪴 Interactive workshops to expand your skills
📚 Exhibitor stalls with herbal products & resources
🤝 Networking with like-minded professionals
🎓 7 hours CPD for practitioners
🎁 Branded goody bag to take home
🥗 Free lunch included!

📅 Date: 25th April 2026 from 9am to 4:30pm
📍 Location: Lincoln College

Don’t miss this inspiring day of learning and connection in the heart of Lincolnshire.

🎟️ Book your Early Bird reduced ticket now - limited number available:
👉 https://bit.ly/4nBWbyG

15/10/2025

Today we completed our Crataegus fruct (Hawthorn berry) tincture with our lovely Heartwood students and got 3 litres for use in our dispensary and clinic. They loved the class and learned about pressing from the Marc and filtering & bottling the tincture. Crataegus is used to stabilise blood pressure, tonify the circulatory system and support the heart ❤️ - it’s a great addition to our personalised prescriptions for patients who get their own unique herbal medicines after a comprehensive consultation 🌿
Thanks Sadie, Orla and Tam for letting us share your photos 🧑‍🎓👩🏻‍🎓💚

08/10/2025

Richard Hardy is continuing to get rave reviews for his massage techniques and we are happy to have him share these great client testimonials ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

20/08/2025

You might have noticed that trees are turning 🍁🍂and there’s a rich abundance of berries and fruit this year that seems very early.
I took my lovely Heartwood Students to harvest some Hawthorn Berries (Crataegus fruct) for a tincture making class, which they thoroughly enjoyed
During the harvesting several passers by asked for information on what we were doing and took information about the herbal medicine clinic- so it was a lesson in marketing as well - Never go out without some business cards! 😉🌿

Hawthorn is great for cardiac health, strengthening and toning the circulatory system, helping with hypertension and other related issues. It might also help with dealing with emotional pain and grieving a loss - mending a broken heart 💔 Science is now catching up with what herbalists have known for millennia - our emotional state affects our hearts ♥️
It’s a really beautiful herb 🌿
Thanks to Sadie, Tam and Orla for sharing these wonderful pictures 🥰

12/08/2025

We’ve got two more Heartwood Student Clinic days coming up on Monday 18th & Tuesday 19h August 🩺👩🏻‍🎓🌿
Monday is already fully booked but we still have some appointments on Tuesday - these student led consultations are fully supervised and free 🆓!! You only pay for any herbs you’re prescribed at about £11 per week
To book in please email:
martinsw2@gmail.com

04/05/2025

One of my favourite herbs 🌿 we use it often in our clinic 💚

🌿 Herb of the Month: Hawthorn - Crataegus monogyna and Crataegus laevigata 🌿

There are over 200 specis of Hawthorn, however Crataegus monogyna and Crataegus laevigata are usually used in medicinal preparations. Hawthorn is a cardiotonic, hypotensive, and helps to dissolve cholesterol and calcium deposits which can form plaques in arteries. One phytoconstituent called epicatechin, helps to repair heart and skeletal muscle, making it good for people who have been over-exercising or who experienced long term cardiac symptoms from stress and anxiety.

It works best when flowers, leaves and berries are all taken together, but the berries by themselves are full of procyanidins, which also modulate gut microbiota and heal the intestinal barrier, inhibit insulin resistance, oxidative stress and liver inflammation – making it good choice for those who have hypertension contributed to by high alcohol consumption past or present.

In folklore Hawthorn has a bit of a mixed reputation. It is associated with death, the symbol of spring, fertility and abundance, unlucky to bring in the house, except for in ancient Rome, where a sprig was hung over baby’s cradles for good luck. It is the symbol of the heart, the home of fairies (roads in Ireland were rerouted as recently as 1999 to avoid destroying a hawthorn hedge), and protects you from lightning.

Some of the folklore is rooted in truth, for example trimethylamine, found in hawthorn blossom, is also one of the first chemicals formed in decaying animal tissue - we would once have been far more familiar with that scent, so perhaps its unsurprising Hawthorn became associated with the afterlife.

A famous Hawthorn grows in Glastonbury, where according to legend, Joseph of Arimathea visited with the Holy Grail and thrust his staff into Wearyall Hill, which then grew into the original thorn tree, which flowers at Christmas as well as summer. Sadly the original was removed during the civil war, and two more trees have been replaced since!

Note: When taking herbs, we recommend seeking the advice of a qualified medical herbalist.

25/04/2025

Appointments are available Monday & Tuesday next week!

11/04/2025

🌿 Herb of the Month: Cardamom - Elettaria cardamomum 🌿

Aromatic and resinous, many people enjoy the scent of cardamom even if they aren't partial to the taste! Known as True or Green Cardamom, and from the 19th century as 'The Queen of spices' - it has been recorded for thousands of years as a useful digestive aid.

In the same family as Ginger, it is considered a more cooling alternative when an anti-inflammatory or digestion remedy is needed. A primary constituent α-terpineol and also 1,8-cineole, have been demonstrated to possess anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-nociceptive (analgesic) properties, alongside mucus thinning effects, making it useful in clearing mucus and helping a weakened digestive system, or to give alongside digestive bitters to avoid 'griping' sensations.

Cardamom's antiseptic action has also made it a popular breath freshener, and a remedy for colds, tonsillitis and bronchitis, where it can also help clear mucus congestion in the lungs. Myrcene is also present, lending Cardamom a gentle relaxing quality, another useful component when stress and stomach are so closely linked!

Personally I can happily chew on the seeds and work with Cardamom a lot in clinic, but would love to know how other people feel about cardamom, do you consider her a medicinal herb or more something to be used sparingly in cooking?

Note: When taking herbs, we recommend seeking the advice of a qualified medical herbalist.