6 magickal plants to fight "the autumn sads"

Time to get prepared!

Happy Mabon, darling!

I hope you have something beautiful and cosy planned for the festival today. I’ve been making my eighth apple crumble of the season. How many is too many? When will I ever stop?

As promised in my Mabon newsletter last week, I wanted to share with you 6 of the plants and herbs that have pretty much saved my life!

And I’m not kidding.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a very real affliction, with almost 30% of British adults experiencing a dip in mood as the sun hovers lower in the sky. This can sometimes last for up to - get this - 40% of the year. But there are ways we can treat it and uplift ourselves in dark times.

If you’ve read The Wheel or The Witch’s Survival Guide, you’ll know that in years gone by I’ve struggled (a heck of a lot) with seasonal depression and adrenal fatigue. At my lowest, I couldn’t get out of bed without intense nerve pain blaring through my hands and feet and occasional vision loss, so shot was my nervous system. I’ve been on quite a journey since! And have managed to restore my health through:

• deep rest

• yoga

• reconnecting with nature

• writing

• herb and plant medicine

All of these things soothed my nervous system, giving me a strong and centred base from which to raise up my head. Despite what society might tell us, the answer wasn’t to caffeinate and power through. Coffee and black tea can be overstimulating and can create more problems than they solve, making us anxious, frazzled and filled with adrenaline.

The herbs and plants below offer remedies that soothe and reset our nervous system, supporting us with a gentle green hand to get our adrenal glands out of fight or flight. Here are some of my absolute staples (and favourites!) for replenishing the soul in the face of “the autumn sads”.