Your Herbalist
Since I was a child I’ve grown gardens and found healing from the land.
Like most folks attracted to wellness work, I also experienced a life filled with recurring illness, chronic pain, debilitation, and resource frustration. Having grown up kamaaina in the same plantation neighborhood my migrant great-great grandparents lived in since the late 1800s, my upbringing was filled with historically marginalized identities — furthering me from forms of care.
Access to health, wellness, and supportive resources was difficult, and these same threats still linger. Over a decade ago I began learning about herbalism and weaving in experiences of native Hawaiian plant conservation and social justice. My herbalism practice was formed atop these dimensions as its main pillars, and four years ago this practice went public.
Read more about what I do and my herbal lineage here.
My herbal practice,
over a decade old, is a concoction of blood memory, western herbalism, science and academia, and personal experiences within these limited systems while being heavily informed by biological and social ecosystems in Hawaii. Due to the lack of resources around my herbal interests in Hawaii, I created my opportunities by outsourcing some of the best, radical western herbalists on Turtle Island to learn from.
Plants endemic to Hawaii are never sold here, and I know my scope as a 4th generation kamaaina functioning on Native Hawaiian lands. Indigenous people are centered in my herbal practice — I’m strict about offering culturally competent, trauma and welfare-informed, trans and mahu-centered, body-affirming care.
Forever a student of identity and exploration, I write about my complications with westernized herbal modalities in my newsletter, UNSETTLED, exploring how my ancestors informed European colonists of these healing modalities we see today.
What I Offer
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Accessible Care
Sliding scale and trade options are available for Kanaka Maoli, kamaaina, Indigenous peoples, and lahui-centered community organizers. For the past 4 years, I’ve organized herbal mutual aid with other herbalists on Turtle Island and Hawaii. Opportunities for resource distribution is also available for well-resourced settlers.
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Herbal Consultations
1:1 clinical herbal consultations for short-term and long-term goals. With no physical clinic, I work virtually and at in-person at events. Working with me requires self-accountability and a willingness to look at the other side of your health challenges with openness and care. My practice is both prevention-oriented and can address immediate needs.
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Herbal Resources
Resources — digital downloads and references — to jumpstart or support your herbalism journey. Besides biology and botany basics, there are so many things to consider when practicing herbalism. My resources intend to include reputable sources who are also of historically marginalized populations. Representation matters.