Essential Self-Care for Caregivers and Helpers by LCSW Howard Brockman

Author:LCSW Howard Brockman [Howard Brockman, LCSW]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Columbia Press LLC
Published: 2011-12-31T16:00:00+00:00

These beliefs summarize the cross-cultural epistemological orientation of nearly all of our ancestors throughout the world, highlighting the underlying theme of the profound interrelationship of humankind with the earth and all things in the universe. Our ancestors did not feel isolated, nor did they suffer from the more modern malaises known as depression and anomie. For them, the earth truly was magical and all things were alive with Spirit. Native North Americans were among those who cherished the plant world for the healing knowledge the plant spirits shared with them. The ethnographic research literature shows that this was true in nearly every tribal group. The Cherokee and the Creek people, for example, had an intimate relationship with the plant world. It was understood among them that the plants had compassion for their human offspring, “and that each plant offered up a remedy to heal one of the diseases of human -kind.”6 Embedded in their cultural epistemology was that plants are our teachers and healers.

These truths were not based on myth. They were based on our ancestors’ ability to enter into “non-ordinary states of being” that their survival depended on. Renowned anthropologist Michael Harner has researched and described these different states of consciousness and asserts that they juxtapose our everyday “ordinary reality” orientation. The different states of consciousness that we are not normally accustomed to experiencing or perceiving were accessed by shamans in indigenous cultures via “non-ordinary reality.” Ritualized shamanic journeys enabled them to relate directly to the spirits of the plants and animals for information and knowledge pertaining to healing.

Since the early 1980s, when Dr. Harner established the Foundation for Shamanic Studies, thousands of people (including myself ) have been trained in this ancient methodology, giving us moderns the same abilities to allow us access to the seemingly magical world of non-ordinary reality. While in this easy-to-access altered state of consciousness, one can immediately perceive and understand that plants are sentient beings that respond to our thoughts and intentions. Scientific researchers have confirmed that plants can respond to shifts and changes in their ecosystem with immediate modifications to their own biochemistry, creating new chemical compounds that are necessary for adaptive survival. To add credence to our ancestors’ paradigm,

when researcher Clyde Baxter connected a lie detector to a plant, he was astonished that it could tell from his thoughts what his intentions were when he was going to burn it or tear its leaf.7

Plants and healing

Our ancestors knew and understood that plants have always offered themselves to us as teachers and healers. Regardless of geographic location, indigenous cultures have always used the local native plants and herbs for supporting, strengthening and healing them. Complementary and alternative medicine are now being used increasingly in the United States. The use of traditional Chinese medicine (the history of which goes back at least 5,000 years) is growing in North America, as acupuncture (and even some traditional Chinese herbal treatments) are now being covered by many health insurance companies.

This phenomenon is the counterpart to the pervasive influence of the pharmaceutical industry.

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