I remember fondly the moment I finished my herbalism degree program. Even though that was almost 20 years ago, the sense of accomplishment I felt is still palpable. However, what I wasn’t prepared for in that moment all those years ago was the mountain that stood between my successes as a student and my goal of becoming a practicing clinician. At its base I stood, well-trained in the art and science of clinical herbalism, yet lacking the entrepreneurial tools I needed to forge into clinical practice…and this is how I almost lost the path altogether. I wasn’t prepared for the reality that clinical herbal practice is a business and a tricky one at that.
Whether you are just graduating from an herbalism program or are a long-term dedicated self-study student, there comes a time when the budding herbal practitioner arrives at the bottom of the mountain that is building a clinical herbal practice and a career as a practitioner. And this is where many of us get lost and fall off the map. The business, clinical, and administrative infrastructure needed to build and grow a clinical practice and a successful career can be overwhelming to navigate, or at the very least, illusive enough to not even know where to begin.
Over the past five years, I have been honored by the opportunity to mentor advanced students of clinical herbalism and graduates of clinical herbalism programs in landing the leap from student to practitioner. At the beginning of my journey as a clinical and business mentor, I sent out a survey to my email subscribers asking a poignant question to those who identified as ‘budding’ clinical practitioners. I asked, ‘What support do you need and what challenges are you facing in building and growing your clinical herbal practice?”
It was amazing to see the answers roll in with so many advanced herbalism students eager to land the leap— to climb the mountain I myself faced so many years ago. What amazed me the most is that every single response highlighted that herbalists at this stage of their path are laden with the same lack of support and challenges.
So before reading on about what I discovered as the structures of support budding herbalism practitioners need to launch their professional career, I encourage you to take a moment to pause and ask yourself the same questions: What support do I need and what challenges do I face in building and growing my clinical herbal practice? Write down your answers, see how they compare, and know that you already belong to a special group of people who are hiking up the same mountain.
The #1 need highlighted in the survey was a greater sense of community. Many people shared feelings of isolation and reported a lack of access to a professional community of like-minded peers who are journeying on the same path into clinical herbal practice. These responses also reflected the sentiments of feeling lost, overwhelmed, and a dedsire to have colleagues to work though all the various and sundry aspects of clinical herbal practice with.
If this sounds familiar, one of the first things you must endeavor to find as you are collecting your mountain-climbing gear is a group of individuals to climb with. Whether this means finding your people in person at awesome herbalism conferences, through becoming a member to organizations such as the American Herbalists Guild, or by participating in online community forums such as those found on many social media channels.
As online community spaces are often the most easily accessed, it is important to share there are various and sundry herbalism groups on social media channels administrated by herbalism schools and organizations that can be a good starting place. That being said, in my personal experience, some of these social media groups can be a bit heartless and hardcore for those of us navigating such a tender time in our careers. This was one of the main reasons I decided to build Herbal Practice Connexion (HPX), which has become an awesome gathering ground for seedling through seasoned practitioners who are seeking resources and support to build and grow their clinical herbal practice.
More than 85% of responses to my survey indicated that even advanced herbalism students genuinely believe they do not have enough education or clinical hours accumulated to start working with clients 1:1. This is where finding a clinical mentorship program where you are able to both observe as well as participate in supervised consultations is going to be critical to your building a safe, ethical, and accountable clinical philosophy and practice. There are many options available and one of the best resources for finding such clinical mentorships is through the American Herbalists Guild website. Pro tip: don’t be afraid or intimidated about reaching out to any of the mentors you find. We have listed ourselves specifically because we really want to hear from you. Don’t be shy! Another pro tip is that you don’t necessarily become a better clinical practitioner of herbalism by taking more classes in herbalism, but by actually practicing as a clinical herbalist.
I also want to take this opportunity to caution you that your feelings of ‘not being ready’ may also be rooted in a different, yet related, reality - and that is that clinical herbal practice is a business with infrastructure and systems that you may not be entirely aware of yet. Building a clinical herbal practice as a business requires support that may not be available through traditional small business support services as it is an incredibly unique business model that can be difficult to translate. In addition, when it comes to clinical herbal practice – especially as unlicensed practitioners - there are nuances regarding herbalism including the law on both state and federal levels; marketing language compliance; and insurance needs. These are aspects that a mentor who is in clinical herbal practice themselves should be able to guide you through.
Not having the business piece addressed in your mentorship goals will end up creating an enormous challenge down the road. And here lies the rub for those of you seeking Registered Herbalist membership with the American Herbalist Guild, which requires 100 hours of supervised and 300 hours of unsupervised clinical hours to be eligible to apply. If you don’t have the clinical and business infrastructure in place, it will be that much more difficult to get to this number of unsupervised hours.
In closing, out of the 300+ responses I received from my survey, 98% of the responses had ‘Confidence’ checked as one of their major challenges to building a successful career as a practicing herbalist. What is interesting to me about the challenge of lacking confidence in this work (beyond the voices of imposter syndrome and other such sources) is how easily this can be transformed. What I have found over the past 5 years of clinical and business mentorship, confidence in one’s capacity to practice safely, ethically, and with accountability, can be built upon when our needs for community and clinical and business mentorship are met. Once the path is clear – and you will have to clear it yourself – the climb up the mountain into clinical herbal practice becomes much, much easier…and you can do it! I know this because I have done it. And with that, I will look forward to seeing you at the top.
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How to Find a Qualified Naturopathic, Herbalist, or Doctor
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