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Mullein itches.
The aboveground parts of mullein (Verbascum spp.) are covered in itchy hairs.
And yes, that includes the flowers.
So when I make a mullein oil (on a waterbath), I don't strain through a cheesecloth, no, I use a large coffee filter and let things drip through overnight.
When I make a mullein tea, I don't strain through a sieve, no, it's a coffee filter.
And when I make a mullein tincture, that, too, is strained through a coffee filter - unless I percolated, in which case straining through something rather tighter than a sieve or a cheesecloth is included in the making of the tincture.
The roots aren't covered in hair, and they're fairly nice for things like tightening up the trigone muscle at the base of the bladder. It helps with incontinence. Of course, doing kegels helps even more, so combine the two if you're dribbling as you walk, or sit, or cough, or sneeze. Jim uses the root for other things, but I forget what. Jim?
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Related entry: Waterbath setup for making oil - Quick fix: earache - Yellow herbs: Mullein
Comments
mullein root works ~great~
mullein root works ~great~ for back injuries; when there's a subluxation, the back is tweaked, or you can't get yourself straight, a bit of mullein can often fix the problem almost immediately. I've used a tea of the fresh chopped root and the fresh tincture (usually seven drops... I like the number seven...); both work. The dried root? I don't know... haven't tried it but I don't see why not...
How does it work? Mullein's root gathers energy its entire first year to put forth it's strong, tensile stalk. You're just making use of that stored energy.
Now, it doesn't always work (what does?) but I've been using this for close to 10 years, and I find the results quite impressive. Before I take some, I've taken to trying everything to get myself straightened out, and when this doesn't work, I take my mullein, stretch and... straight. It's flat out amazing. I've used this, personally, far more times than I can count.
This is an energetic use, and it helps (if you can get over thinking its "weird") to "ask" the plant to strighten out your back when you use it. This kind've direction helps; think about it like telling a massage therapist where it hurts...
I know a guy whose used it for Bell's Palsy, and cleared the condition overnight, and David Winston told me he uses it for this as well, along with SJW and jamaican dogwood.
A bit more energetically, Mullein is good for restoring "allignment" of all sorts, be it your back or setting you sights towards a personal goal and being able to move towards it without constantly being pulled in other directions.
Fascinating. You don't use
Fascinating. You don't use the aboveground parts in the same way, do you?
Matt Wood uses the leaves
Matt Wood uses the leaves where I would use the root. I did once, based on his entry in The Book of Herbal Wisdom, have a woman use the leaves as a poultice on her broken arm. The bones weren't lining up right, and they were talking about rebreaking it. She was very disinterested in using herbs (outside of smoking two in particular), but was prompted into into trying it by a mutual friend and the threat of having her arm rebroken. I don't even know how compliant she was, but in a week or two, everything was all aligned, and the arm went from healing very poorly to healing very well. Did it really work, or "dismissed as coincidence"?
I also had a "dream" or "insight" or "call it what you will" about picking leaves from the lower, middle or upper third of the stalk just before flowering and using these leaves for kinks in the lower, middle or upper spine. But (hangs head shamefully) I didn't pick them last summer, so I haven't been able to try them out.
Tinctures and Teas
I grew up in the interior of British Columbia, in a town with only 165 residents. Small towns can't get much smaller than that. (I now live in Calgary, Alberta). I saw Mullein all the time. It grew down at the creek all of us kids went swimming at. In fact, it grew everywhere in the ditches and on the sandy hills all over my town. For some reason I was drawn to the plant. I loved rubbing my face with the soft leaves. It made me happy and giddy (nothing to do with a medicinal purpose). The stalks themselves would grow at least 6 feet high. I am very interested in the uses of natural things, be it herbs, ect. I have read so many positive things about this plant that reminded me so much of corn-on-the-cob (the way the flowering tops looked as a child i guess lol).
I, myself, do not have any medical issues except for a mental illness, Schizophrenia. But my mother who I care about so much suffers terribly from Fibromyalgia. No doctors can help her. They just keep saying nothing is wrong. I would like to harvest some Mullein when I go back to that small town for a vacation this summer. The timing will be perfect for harvesting. I only have one problem. I have no idea how to prepare a tincture properly or how to make a tea properly. The last thing I want to do is cause any type of illness or bad reaction due to my inexperience. I could never forgive myself if my tea sent my mother to the hospital. For some reason I just have this begging idea in my head that Mullein could be my mom's miracle. I would do anything for that to happen.
My sister suffers terrible ear-infections and both my mother, and two aunties have problems with bladder control and incontinence. I already read that Mullein helps those two situations. So I'm really excited to try and help them in that way. I don't think pills are always the best offer. I would know, being schizophrenic. I hate pills. All the doctors want is to fill out prescriptions. Grrrr.
Can anyone help me to find out how EXACTLY to make a safe tea and tincture? I'm dying to find out. Like I said, I'm really hoping this amazing plant will be my mothers miracle.
Thank You so much,
Shandy
For herbal teas: go to the
For herbal teas: go to the library and get any herbal at all.
For herbal tinctures: read this.
... your mullein doesn't itch? I think you might want to re-confirm that plant ID. No mulleins I know would be nice rubbed on the face - they'd ITCH.
... as to fibromyalgia, that's a wastebasket diagnosis, not a disease. Try to go completely gluten-free for 2 weeks and see how you feel, then try completely dairy-free for 2 weeks and see how you feel, then (if neither shows as the culprit by a severe reduction of symptoms) try a gluten- and dairy-free diet for two weeks. Then try the one food she can't live without, be it eggs, citrus fruit, or whatnot, and do without that.
If none of those help, find a herbalist to work with, locally, against payment.
I have bad Fibromyalgia, at
I have bad Fibromyalgia, at one point so bad that it disabled me, which led to homelessness, since I couldn't work, later I discovered teasel root tincture, which when using it, I found out that I also had chronic lymes, that is that I've had it since childhood, so I have the belief that Fibromyalgia may be caused by lymes or something similar. I also use mullein though I have not had as great of results as I have spine injury as well, and the teasel seems to help that too. Mullein is good for the joints.
Both plants I find very safe to use even in large amounts, so I doubt you could cause any trouble for your mom, with such small amounts that is used for tea.
If I could go back in time, I would first give myself teasel root and deal with the kill off of the lymes buggers, which actually makes the pain worst for a couple of days to a couple of weeks, yet gives the body strength even during that time, than I would take both teasel and mullein, instead I spent a decade on the doctors pills which did nothing but make my body sicker. I am so much happier, healthier and stronger using the herbs, and not dealing with docs and the bills.