The Garden Bed

Herb of the Week - St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum): St. John's Wort is one of my favorite herbs. Internally, I use it to calm my nervous system, to increase my ability to handle stress. Externally, I use it for dry skin, lips, dry cracking hands and feet, cuts, sunburns and other burns. St. John's Wort, as a tea or tincture, has been used for centuries as an herbal mood elevator specifically affecting the nervous system. It may help with nerve-related problems such as stress, stressrelated headaches, anxiety, tension, restlessness, insomnia, depression, melancholy, pain, grief, chronic fatigue and sciatica. In extensive historic as well as more recent studies, St. John's Wort has been found to be an effective option for management of mild to moderate depression. It has been shown to increase one's ability to concentrate, to act as a nerve regenerative and to help in the inhibition of the AIDS virus. St. John's Wort, used externally, as oil, has also been used for thousands of years for treating trauma to muscle or nerve tissue. It has antibacterial agents and reduces inflammation. St. John's Wort oil is healing for cuts, scrapes, wounds, mild burns, sunburns, bruises, sprains and injuries to the nerves, especially in the fingers and toes. It can also be effective in relieving rheumatic pain. I have a friend who had a serious wound from compound fractures and nerve damage. The wound would not heal on its own or with any drugs or ointments from the doctor. She tried St. John's Wort oil and within five days it was clear that her wound would heal and the pain was dissipating.

Herbal Alternatives - Sciatica: Sciatica is defined as pain along the path of the sciatic nerve. The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in the body that goes from the lower back to the thigh. Pain is usually due to the sciatic nerve being irritated or compressed, often by a herniated disk of the lumbar region of the spine. Sciatica is usually treated with pain relievers or anti-inflammatory medicines, injections of anti-inflammatory steroids or surgery. Alternatives include supporting your immune system and using specific pain relieving and anti-inflammatory herbs that help to relieve sciatic pain. Herbs that grow locally that may help include: 1) St. John's Wort used internally as tea or tincture or externally as an oil; 2) Two tablespoons of elderberry juice taken twice a day; 3) Mugwort leaf tea; 4) Elecampane root used externally as a poultice; 5) Flogging (urtication) with fresh nettles externally; 6) Garlic. Other herbs that may be helpful but don't grow locally include Black Cohosh dried root as tea or tincture, and Wintergreen and/or Tea Tree oil applied externally.

References: Desk Reference to Nature's Medicine by Foster and Johnson, "Family Herbal" by Gladstar, "Family Herbal" by Theiss, "Herb Book" by Lust, "Herb of the Sun, St. John's Wort" by Cech, "Medical Herbalism" by Hoffmann, "New Holistic Herbal" by Hoffman, "Herbal Medicine" by Weiss, "Nineteen More Dancing Herbs" by Godbe, PDR for Herbal Medicine, "Western Medicinal Plants and Herbs" by Hobbs.