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These days, the world is full of supplements of all kinds, including herbal supplements. Go to any chemists or health food shop and there will often be a large variety of herbal formulations for anything from joint pain, menopause, prostate or digestive problems, Look on the internet, and various outlets from allopathic websites like Mayo clinic to naturopaths and nutritionists have content discussing the virtues of one herb or another. So why should you consult a herbalist? Here, I must confess that this was also my thinking before I saw a herbalist. This article will discuss what is involved in a herbal consultation and why it is beneficial to consult a herbalist for tailored support.
So what do you get in a herbal consultation
Once I had my first herbal consultation, I realised it was not at all like chatting to someone at the counter of my local health food shop, which I used to do regularly. Like many alternative healthcare consultations, first full herbal appointments run for over an hour, and explore in detail the medical history of the patient from childhood to the day of the appointment. Herbalists are also very interested in diet and lifestyle, including, for example, if the patient’s job or home circumstances are stressful, and any recent significant life events. My first herbal appointment was also thorough, and no symptom was treated as trivial. I felt heard and understood.
Holistic diagnosis
All herbalists formulate a holistic diagnosis using this very detailed information from the consultation and combining traditional knowledge with modern medical research. Like many traditional healing systems such as Ayurveda, herbalists understand the body as interconnected set of systems, rather than a set of disparate systems.
A different way of understanding
In holistic thinking, eczema, for example, is not just a skin condition, it is the result of dysfunctions in a variety of body systems, often involving digestion (including food), waste processing and elimination (such as liver, kidney and bowel) and the immune system. Some herbalists use energetic and traditional knowledge from other modalities to help diagnose and analyse the cause of disease. Thus, immune system dysfunction in eczema could be understood as “spleen-chi deficiency” in Traditional Chinese Medicine (Lin&Zheng, 2021; Wu 1998), or dysfunctional Ojas in Ayurveda (Walton&Pugh, 1995).
Herbalists often treat patients who are not responding to standard medical treatments
When I went into herbal training, I thought herbalists support patients with “less-serious” medical complaints, such as eczema or indigestion. However, I realised quickly that many symptoms, even when they are considered “less-serious” can still be very life-altering. But also, patients seek herbalist care often because they are not responding to standard medical treatments, with some trying to avoid having to move onto stronger medicines with potentially higher side-effect profiles.
Unique prescription
After the appointment, guided by the diagnosis, medical history and symptoms, herbalists formulate a unique prescription tailored to every patient. The route to an illness, and the causes of imbalance leading to the symptoms differ for every patient. So the prescriptions will vary, even in patients who on first glance suffer from similar complaints. Thus for example, eczema prescription could be more liver or gut focused; others might need more depurative “blood cleansers”.
You are what you eat – dietary guidance
The statement “We are what we eat” is truer than many give credit. We are literally made of the things we put into our digestive systems. So if we keep eating things that disagrees with our bodies and induce inflammation, we will compromise the body’s natural capacity for healing. If you unfortunately develop metabolic disorders like diabetes, radical changes to your diet could significantly improve your symptomatic picture as well as your longer-term outlook (Unwin et.al., 2023; Unwin et.al., 2020).
Lifestyle-coaching
Lifestyle-coaching involves various aspects of your life, from sleep and stress management to movement. As discussed in a previous Zen Maitri blog, optimising sleep and reducing stress are key aspects to maintaining health (https://zenmaitri.com/blogs/natural-health-blog/natural-stress-relief). In addition, as many doctors will tell you, you must exercise. And exercise is not about running the marathon; rather, just a half an hour stroll around your neighbourhood can significantly improve your health. If you do that stroll next to the seaside (Antonelli&Donelli, 2025; Fayet-Moore& Robinson, 2024; Menger&Schellhaas, 1980) or in the forest (Bandyopadhyay et.al., 2026), you can bring even more benefits to your health. And for some, recent fads like cold-water exposure can really help with health maintenance (Kunutsor et.al., 2025).
Why we need to move
Human bodies are designed to gain health through movement. Take the lymph system, for example. It helps bring nutrition and defensive immune components to your cells, while removing waste products. Most people think it is blood that brings nutrients to your cells and this is true. But if your lymphatic system is clogged up, the movement of nutrients and other things the cells require from the blood to the cells will be rendered suboptimal. But unlike your blood, lymph does not have the heart to pump the liquid around your body. Instead, what pumps the lymph liquid around your body is your muscles – so if you don’t move, lymph does not move, creating stagnation. (Ozdowski&Gupta, 2023; Formolo et.al., 2023; Shinkai et.al., 1997)
Why take herbs?
Unless we improve diet and lifestyle, even with taking herbal remedies, the healing process may end up being “two-steps forward, one-step back”. So why see a herbalist? Why not just change your diet and lifestyle?
Navigating the complex web of information
Delving into the internet of alternative health, many will find an overwhelming amount of information, with popular websites and influencers from celebrity naturopaths to billionaire biohackers promoting ever emerging new health fads. How do you know what works best? Some information on the web can be harmful; some health fads might be fine for some but not for others. This is where herbalists can help you. Trained in anatomy, physiology, research methods, clinical diagnostics and nutrition, herbalists have the know-how to help you navigate that maze to find the best route to health for you.
Optimising your healing
On top of that, herbalists know about…herbs! And plants are our allies. While dietary and lifestyle changes are important components, herbs work in synergy with any changes that you make to optimise your healing. And unlike single-component supplements, the ingredients are guaranteed naturally derived, and come with other synergistic constituents. For example, milk thistle helps the function of your liver by increasing the circulating glutathione, but it also ups anti-oxidant activities in your body (Vargas-Mendoza et.al., 2014). There are also other liver herbs that help support your liver in other ways. So what liver herb should you take? For trained herbalists, that is entirely dependent on your medical history and will help you navigate based on modern research, traditional knowledge and accredited training.
When should I consult a herbalist
The answer is, whenever the time feels right for you! If you ever find yourself with a chronic condition, and you want to explore an alternative way to achieving health with help from nature, try seeing a herbalist by booking in for herbal medicine consultation.
In this fast-moving world full of stressors, most of us could do with an MOT from time to time. If this sounds like you, perhaps an express consultation is what you need.
For ongoing comprehensive support for addressing a specific area of health, you could try one of Zen Maitri’s 7-week programmes.
And if you want to know more or have a specific question before committing, you can book in for a free discovery call.
Whichever option you choose, natural health is a journey which you lead and we guide the way.
Bibliography
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Bandyopadhyay, A., Shah, S., & Roviello, G. N. (2026). Forest Bathing (Shinrin-yoku) and Preventive Medicine: Immune Modulation, Stress Regulation, Neurocognitive Resilience, and Neurological Health. Medical sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 14(1), 95. https://doi.org/10.3390/medsci14010095
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