October 07, 2022
If you’ve experienced trauma, who hasn’t right, then there’s one classification of plants you absolutely must work with.
Adaptogens.
Trauma leads to a number of health issues, like PTSD, chronic pains and illnesses. It also keeps our nervous systems dysregulated and stuck in fight, flight, freeze or shutdown.
Because of past trauma, we behave and respond to life as if we’re still in the past. While our presence is in the today, but our bodies and minds are reenacting what we did to survive that past, traumatic event.
Adaptogens help us recover from chronic stress and modulate our stress response, so that we react appropriately in the present moment.
We have memory and don’t easily shake off bad experiences. We tend to rehearse, overanalyze, and anticipate situations. Whether we are thinking about a present day situation or something that happened in the past, our bodies and emotional states respond immediately and accordingly.
Every thought you think generates a response from your body and emotions. Every. Single. One.
On top of that, current events as well as minor and major stressors can trigger our body and mind’s memory.
Your power, however, is in the present moment. Adaptogens can help you flee when there’s a fire and swerve to avoid a crash. These are appropriate responses to those situations.
Adaptogens can help you remain engaged and here when traumatic memories are triggered. And instead of shutting down due to overwhelment, they can help you not feel burdened, despite the mounting pressure.
Adaptogens give you spaciousness to reach for the appropriate response instead of the exaggerated, conditioned one. They help your mood, resilience, focus, and strength so that you can human well.
For the past three weeks, I have been drinking an adaptogenic blend of Schisandra Berries, Holy Basil, Astragalus, and Siberian Ginseng. I have felt more physically energized and less reactive to situations that would have normally caused anxiety. I am finding it easier to let go and harder to tense up.
Some other adaptogens you can consider trying to find the one that most resonates with you are listed below. Being adaptogens is just one of their many properties. These herbs and fungi each also have different properties ranging from inflammation and immune system modulating, blood sugar balancing, liver and kidney restoration, and even tumor suppressive properties.
Do your research and happy thriving!
Licorice
Ashwagandha
Chaga
Cordyceps
Maca
Panax ginseng
Reishi
Comments will be approved before showing up.
July 08, 2025
If you're a Black woman exploring herbalism, you're probably not new to herbs. But maybe you’re wondering:
"What do I actually need to study to really help myself, my family, or my community heal, deeply and sustainably?"
July 01, 2025
If your anxiety isn’t responding to the usual advice meditation, exercise, journaling it’s not because you’re doing it wrong. It’s because your body may be asking for something deeper. For Black women especially, anxiety often shows up in ways that aren’t always understood by mainstream medicine: tightness in the chest, knots in the gut, spiraling thoughts that wake you at 3 a.m. You’re not weak. You’re not broken. Your nervous system is trying to protect you.
June 24, 2025
Discover the real reasons your hair isn’t growing and how to fix it naturally with herbs that support scalp, hormone, and liver health from the inside out.
© 2025 Iwilla Remedy. Powered by Shopify