Nettle

Nettle doesn’t naturally grow on my property, likely because it’s too dry here. So, a few years ago, I decided to order some seeds and grow my own. I have to say that I abhor the idea of purchasing herbs, particularly something that should grow naturally here, but on the High Desert, there are some limitations to that.

Chickweed used to grow here in a shaded spot, but over the years died out and I did the same, bought some seeds, planted them in some pots inside the house and the other patch began growing on its own. My husband says that I call for something and it seems to show up. He’s correct. Invariably, it does.

[wordads]

Urtica dioica is considered energetically bitter and cool making it a wonderful ground level herb that functions as a liver alterative. Nettle’s astringent properties also tone the respiratory and urinary systems, clearing the sinuses and relieving hay fever and other respiratory complaints along with both chronic and acute urinary problems.

As many who have read this blog over the years know, I achieved clinical remission from severe rheumatoid arthritis in 2011 using cannabis concentrates and continue my remission using both cannabis preparations and medicinal herbs. Now, this may seem odd, given that rheumatoid arthritis is considered an auto-immune disease, but I view RA as an allergic response. That may be metaphorical, but hear me out.

[wordads]

I believe that our food supply is ultimately the main issue leading to gut permeability that results in autoimmune conditions. However, it may also be related to glyphosate but we’ll know that for certain in time. Emotions, in my opinion, play a central role as well. Taken together, the body’s defenses become challenged and stressed and, at least in my case, rheumatoid arthritis was the result.

After I achieved remission, I began thinking about the notion of one big allergy. After all, the immune system sees the body as a threat and attacks it with an inflammatory response and after experiencing it for thirteen years, it sure felt like an allergic response. I noticed that herbs such as nettle, dandelion (leaf/root), yellow dock root, burdock root, and other herbs that alter (improve) liver function also relieve allergy symptoms. They also work in a diuretic manner, removing retained fluid from the body.

[wordads]

When I was ill, I retained a massive amount of fluid that every single rheumatologist I saw did nothing about. It felt as if I was sloshing around in boiling hot liquid, peering out at the rest of the world as it passed me by. When my blood pressure skyrocketed, I demanded a blood pressure pill that contained a diuretic. I was already taking a beta-blocker but I needed more help so my primary care doctor prescribed a second blood pressure medicine containing hydrochlorothiazide. Three weeks later, I had lost most of the fluid I had been retaining and immediately went into a flair that would last two weeks longer than a year, something that my doctors ignored.

That was in September 2009 and I’m not sure how I survived the next year. By June 2010, I was prescribed mycophenolate off label because I was so ill. My C-Reactive Protein level was 46.5 which was insane. I stopped taking it in November 2010 due to extreme side effects that my rheumatologist didn’t ask or warn me about. The flair had ended at the end of September 2010 as quickly as it began. It just took over a year for that to happen. But when I told him that I discontinued it, he just looked at me and said that he would try to keep me as comfortable as he could, but it was what it was.

[wordads]

Yep. I was in trouble. I didn’t tell him that my cannabis harvest was in and I was making medicine. I didn’t tell him that I began medicating and I didn’t tell him when I was in remission the following March. Two and a half months into my treatment, I had achieved clinical remission from rheumatoid arthritis. Just like that. He responded by noting in my chart that I was in remission saying nothing to me. He soon moved to the East Coast and I never saw him again.

So, back to the nettle and my theory about ground level herbs. Well, it’s not my theory exactly, because every herbalist out there would no doubt say, Duh. But I believe that I’ve stayed in remission by controlling what I eat and staying away from anything that increases toxicity and inflammation. I take probiotics to deal with any gut permeability issues that might arise but my primary focus is on nutritious herbal teas that tone and nourish the master cleanse system, otherwise known as the liver.

Liver alterative herbs tone the liver, purify the blood and help keep everything moving properly through the body’s various systems. When that doesn’t happen, allergies and autoimmune conditions may arise. Nettle is great to keep allergies at bay, both respiratory and skin related. Hay fever and skin conditions such as eczema are relieved by taking nettle in capsule form or by including it in tea blends and tinctures.

[wordads]

Nettle is somewhat bitter, therefore, it’s also an effective choice as a digestive herb and when eaten, its spinach taste provides a source of dietary fiber and protein. Regarding the removal of uric acid in gout conditions, the herbalist Matthew Wood reports that instead of nettle stimulating the kidneys to remove waste…

Nettle contains high levels of protein because it articulates these nitrogenous waste products into proteinacious structures. It removes uric acid waste products from the system, not by stimulating the kidneys, not even by sweeping waste products out of the corners of the organism, but by using protein building-blocks and not allowing them to pass uselessly into the general economy of the system. Nettle is a remedy that gets the job done. It works with complicated protein building-blocks to build some of the most complicated molecules used by the body. It is a highly nutritious food which supplies these materials, but it also supplies the know-how, the intensity, to use them.

Matthew Wood

I believe that nettle, along with other liver alterative herbs, keeps my liver functioning so well that it helps stave off any further disease process so that I remain in clinical remission. And you’ll notice, if you look back at the group of herbs listed earlier, that roots are used along with aerial parts of the plants, ground-level medicine for sure. Along with nettle, they provide a foundation for my continued health.

[wordads]

Until next time…

Herbal Blessings to All!

References

• Wood, Matthew. The Book of Herbal Wisdom (p. 481). North Atlantic Books. Kindle Edition.