Okay can we just take a moment to appreciate the Summer Solstice? The longest day of the year. The sun at its absolute peak. Herbs flourishing, flowers blooming, and the whole earth basically showing off. I am here for all of it. As an herbalist, the summer solstice is one of my favorite moments in the entire year. It feels like nature is saying "look at everything I made for you." And I genuinely cannot help but feel grateful every. single. time. But here is the thing about the solstice that...

I have lived in this body my entire life. The dizzy spells. The exhaustion that no amount of rest seemed to touch. The sensory overload. The gut issues. The migraines. The feeling that my body was constantly working against me in ways I could not explain and doctors could not seem to see. It was not until I was 55 years old that I finally had a name for it. Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome...

Hot climates don't just challenge your comfort, they challenge your whole system. Summer in places like Phoenix means your body is constantly working to cool down, replenish lost minerals, soothe inflammation, and maintain circulation. Most people reach for cold water. Smart herbalists reach for that too... and then they add the plants that have been doing exactly this work for thousands of years...