Jennifer Caravella

Herbalist & Founder

I was raised in the old redwood forest of Northern California. Foraging for wild berries and edible flowers was part of my childhood.

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In lieu of prescription medication, I was given homemade herbal powders and bitter tinctures to soothe just about any ailment. I was taught that the cure lies in understanding the root cause of an illness, not merely masking a symptom.

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I believe that dis-ease is a reflection of imbalance, which cannot be mended superficially or numbed away.

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In my late teens I began the journey of self-healing in response to addiction and depression. It was years later, drowning in a well bottom, while attempting to scrape up the pieces of my shattered nervous system, that the plants showed up for me in a way that changed the course of my life.

It started with Rosemary. I was breaking off a few pieces in the garden and wondering how it felt to be the plant. Did it hurt to have a limb snapped off? How could I eat them without causing harm? Do they like being eaten?

Suddenly a voice responded as if speaking inside my mind from another realm.

'It is how you pick me. If you come to me angry or with careless disregard, violently ripping away what you want, that causes pain. But it's not the pain you know, we have a different perception of pain.'

Then I was guided as to how to feel for the sweet spot and easily snap off sprigs without effort. I've never used scissors to gather Rosemary again.

Ok, so yeah, I did question whether I might be losing my marbles all alone out in the countryside. I thought about those people you sometimes read about who emerge from some ancient Siberian forest after 40 years, wild eyed, feral and alien to humanity. Was that where I was headed?

Then Thyme showed up shortly after in a "you can't make this shit up" kind of way. I was really getting into wildcrafting. Thyme was native to the region, though I hadn't found any. As I wandered down a mountain trail with Thyme on my mind, again I was guided by an etheric voice. "Go left." Left meant no trail, full of brush and brambles. But, I listened. "Keep walking up." More wild terrain. This went on for about 5 minutes until I found myself standing in front of a patch of huge Thyme bushes. Huge. All together like a little family.

I didn't tell too many people about these experiences back then, but this is what truly initiated my path into herbalism. My relationship with the plants has grown ever stronger over the years and they have become some of my closest allies; physically, psychologically and spiritually.

The most valuable gift I have received in this life is the re-awakening of my senses to the animate world. Everything in Nature is alive and conscious. And with that knowing, one is never alone.

My work is rooted in facilitating your remembrance of the language of Nature. One not of tongue, but of sentience. A language that lays deep in your bones. Your birthright. A language that was understood for millions of years and has only been dormant to a portion of the world for a recent sliver in time. I believe that our bodies are the gateway, and through tending our inner garden and the rich soil of embodiment, we find our way Home.

Jennifer was raised using herbal medicine and has spent many years learning through direct engagement with Nature and the flora. She studied the Western Alchemical Tradition of Vitalist Herbalism with Sajah Popham at The School of Evolutionary Herbalism, as well as animistic herbalism and the art of shamanic healing with poisonous plants with Kathryn Solie at Persephone’s Path. She learned the art of making botanical oil infusions with Kami McBride, author of "The Herbal Kitchen" and founder of Living Awareness herbalism school. Jennifer has a degree in anthropology and a 15 year international teaching background in kung fu, qigong and Taoist meditation.