Can’t seem to get going with your garden, your taxes, your evening walk or starting a healthy habit – yep, that’s a block! They can be big or small. Some are not interfering that much in our lives or so we tell ourselves.

Other types of blocks are so intertwined and linked deeply within our body-mind-spirit, that all aspects of our relationships, family, work and life are bogged down in that ‘what shall not be named’. 

Feeling stuck in life can play out in so many different ways – sometimes we don’t even realise we are blocked. We often refer to ourselves, and others, as ‘set in our ways’. You all know at least one person like this and we all have at least one area of our own lives exactly the same.

Couldn’t be clearer than that!

Over this past year, we, at the very least, have had a lot of time to reflect on our lives and hopefully a new sense of what was working and what wasn’t doing so well. Actually, those areas might have been glaringly obvious and needed addressing or some sort of new approach. 

We need to mix it up a little, because breaking out of these habits and thought patterns are not only liberating; they most often are transformative. 

The real change comes about because for the most part, these blocks are functioning in a direct feedback loop into our deepest fears, worries and huge amounts of often unnecessary stress. 

So, let’s get down to business here shall we? 

The exact method I use for releasing or removing or dissolving or even just getting at the process of breaking apart an internal block isn’t complicated – let me tell you what I teach in my clinic and do for myself.

Most weeks, unless it is Christmas, I do a wee fast day or two – usually this goes fairly well and is easy enough. I drink juices, smoothies, herbal teas and water. Or any liquid broth would be great too especially on cold days.

My one item that I always add in to my warm (not hot!) herbal tea or water or juice is apple cider vinegar and one supplement such as vitamin C. I plan out my day – often with a flask full of liquid and top it up with around one tablespoon of vinegar per half litre or pint of water and my selected vitamin. 

I sip on this throughout the day.

Then I carry on as usual – I walk a little more, or any type of exercise you are or are not doing. Push yourself a tiny bit. Not much – but these blocks do need a push.

I write down things daily, so this often helps me sort out the process of exactly what it is I am trying to dismantle in my life. You can get really creative here – make a list, break it into parts, write down a goal or ten and then narrow these down into targets for the day or week or month.

Another thing that I found myself doing, certainly in times past when we could travel a little further – was to go some place new and different. Like an unusual walk in the woods, a trip to a beach you have never seen, or even a long drive around a mountain. 

These days, I get really adventurous and go shop at a store I don’t often visit or walk down a street or laneway that I’ve never been (go wild!). In other words, get completely out of your comfort zone.

What we are doing is changing life up a bit… Encouraging our minds to create new neurons and pathways, while we delve deeply into what and why we are doing things and seeking a better or easier or often healthier approach.

Although these are just a few ways to tackle change – breaking through a block that is holding you back can set you on a path to reaching your potential. 

I actually begin my day ‘planning the day’ the night before. Late in the evening before I go to bed, I put the kettle on and get my herbal teapot filled so it can steep overnight and be ready for me the next morning.

 You don’t have to do this – however if you are like me, the mornings can often be too busy and my own needs get lost in the melee of tasks to be done with children, animals and household stuff before I get down to work on anything that pertains to me.

 When my little teapot is filled to the brim with cooled, well-steeped herbal tea, it is ready for me to add it to nearly anything! And I don’t have to think about it as it is one less thing on my to-do list. 

 Usually most every morning the first thing I do is pour a cup of this cool room temperature herbal tea and top it up with apple cider vinegar, a squeeze of lemon and sometimes a spoon of one of my smoothie powders.  This week I am using Beetroot and Ginger for it’s warming properties, as well as the blood cleansing beetroot. It really is such an underrated vegetable and there are so many ways to get this into us. 

 But we can do a beetroot session another time! 

 I drink about a cup of this herbal concoction to start off my day, however, as a regular sized teapot holds about three to four cups of herbal tea, I have lots left over for the rest of the day. What I find easy enough if I am going out on delivery or to the market or need a drink to take with me on the go, is to pour all of the herbal tea into a flask, top it up with apple cider vinegar, lemon juice and so on, and sip it as my very refreshing drink.

 You can also drink it cup by cup or re-heat it if you prefer hot tea. It really does taste quite good. And if you try it, you will find that your body craves it – something that hydrates you down to your cellular structure.

 I can hear the wheels turning in your head. What kind of tea should I make?

If you want to feel good with energy (peppermint/chamomile/ginger); lose weight (dandelion/nettle/cleavers); keep warm (ginger/ginseng/rooibos/cinnamon); detox and cleanse (rose/dandelion/red clover/burdock); de-stress (ginseng/chamomile/milk thistle/fenugreek).

 This is by no means a full list – use what you have on hand or can pull out of the hedgerows. Use anything you currently have in the press; we all have packets of herbal tea hanging around, find something that appeals to you (it might have fruit, spices and other herbs added, it’s all good!) and boil the kettle – your body, mind and spirit will thank you. 

Of course many of us just want to be curled up by the fire in the evenings and keeping warm during the day with hot drinks, toasty socks and plenty of movement to keep the circulation flowing. In fact anything that can keep us warm inside and out is of benefit.

That’s where a good digestion comes in handy. Not only does the breaking down of your food into nutrients consume about 70 per cent of your energy, it can also help to keep you warm on these unusually cold days and nights.

Anything that we can do – the little habits and the good routines that we create within our daily self-care – will make a life-long difference, often within a very short period of time. And there are so many things that we can add into our days to give us that little bit of an edge over the elements.

You absolutely know what I am going to say next!

Yes – apple cider vinegar is a miracle of life inside a bottle. A fermented elixir that might help sort out and tweak tiny digestive issues, aid your body in breaking down nutrients and positively affect your absorption.

Most of the benefits of apple cider vinegar are historic and anecdotal in nature, however it has been in continuous use for millennia and nearly always used for the soothing digestive properties it is known for.

However, there are so many other things that when done daily or often enough, add up to great health benefits;

•  Daily walking (must be brisk) for at least 20 minutes.

•  Stretches in the morning, or evening, or afternoon!

•  Three minutes barefoot in the grass, even when it is cold.

•  Dance, sing and party for one in your kitchen to a favourite tune.

•  An apple or handful of nuts for a snack.

• A daily chat with a positive friend.

• Eat your main meal a little earlier in the day

• Turn off the TV and listen to an audio book to switch things up

• An extra helping of broccoli 

•  A glass of water upon rising, with lemon and apple cider vinegar.

 Pick a place to start and begin. Even if you can’t manage all of them every single day, aim for a couple of things that you do just for the health of it and don’t look back. I like to have a mini checklist in my mind and pat myself on the back when I get a few of them done for the day.

Well-being and a healthy digestion are far more than what you eat; they are also how you feel about your life and surroundings. So, let’s add some good vibes to each day whenever we can. 

Incorporating herbs into your diet and routine can be as simple as each day making a pot of herbal tea, adding in a handful of mixed herbs to your soup or cutting fresh herbs from the garden for a salad or stir fry. 

The last thing I do each evening is boil the kettle to make a pot of herbal tea for next morning.

You can drink herbal teas throughout the day at any time with food or on it’s own. Personally, I usually drink my herbal tea cold, as it’s cool by the time I get to it. However, I’ve found that many bitter herbs are simply better this way, besides the fact that I love to let the herbs steep for a long time in the teapot to get the best use of them. 

Top tip! Drink any bitter herbs cold and they are easier to take, so good for your digestion and liver function too. 

Your herbs will change throughout the year as well. In the spring, adding nettle to your soups is an easy thing to do, because it is young and full of needed minerals and more palatable then. Dandelion can be used all year and all parts of the plant are edible, but this also tastes nicest in the early spring. 

Some other herbs are only available during the autumn season such as meadowsweet or elderberries. And it’s always nice to preserve herbs in syrups or in the freezer for use when you need them. I make rosehip syrup and elderberry or elderflower cordials that can be used all year long. 

There are many herbs more suitable and palatable for young children – if you start when they are young, they will be used to the earthy tastes and smells. My young children would request chamomile tea, anything with elderflower or nibble on green baby spinach leaves from the growing tunnels. 

I also love to give them rose petal or rosehip teas, dandelion, nettle and rooibos or hibiscus – each of them offer additional minerals and vitamins, antioxidants, and are uplifting to the spirit. 

Throughout your life your needs and body requirements will change – herbs can and should be a part of all of that. For instance, sage is a women’s herb for all seasons and cycles, it supports hormone balance and creates harmony in the endocrine system. 

My favourite herbs to use when I am feeling out of sorts depend on what I am battling. If it is a cold or tummy bug, I might be using antiviral herbs such as goldenseal, lemon balm, elderflower and garlic. 

For a kidney or bladder complaint I would choose to use uva ursi, dandelion, clivers, goldenrod, juniper berries, hydrangea for kidney stones or marshmallow to soothe the area. 

Another area of herbs I have found to be quite significant in their healing power are the trees. Personally, I have an affinity to trees of all kinds and try to incorporate at least some aspect of tree medicine into my healing protocol. 

We can find and use elder, both the flower and berries especially for children and the winter months. It’s a gentle yet powerful immune booster and can be easily dried to use all year. In fact all parts of the elder tree are medicinal. 

See you in the hedgerows! 

If nature could talk what would she tell us?

Especially now of all times to be here on this planet while our lives are turned around and certainly altered for the better and worse.

I wonder if nature would give us some sage advice for the coming long cold winter nights we are sure to face as the days close in.

Perhaps she would tell us to savour these times as part of our yearly quietening before the rush of Christmas.

Maybe there would be a gentle reminder to pay attention to the trees, plants and flowers of winter. You know the ones that struggle to bloom in spite of the fresh breezes and the heavy rain.

Or perhaps they blossom because of it?

She might even mention that we are part of her, an extension or even a reflection of the wonderful ways that all things seem to be part of a much bigger pattern, a flow and those endless cycles of seasonal change.

Her advice might be to take our herbal tea to settle a tummy, include something wild and foraged with a meal, or enjoy a walk in the forest to steady ourselves.

When we delve more deeply into listening to nature and all she has to say there is one thing standing out for us to ponder; no matter the wreckage and turbulence of a few hours storm or the flood of rain that frequent our shores….

We will always arrive at a new day, refreshed, cleansed and uplifted.

There is something flourishing in the hedgerows for everybody, every season and we have the gift of nature to guide us onwards.

April Danann has developed her own wild fermentation SCOBYs, mothers and starters…she produces some of the cleanest, barrel fermented Apple Cider Vinegar, Herbal Kombucha, herbal teas and coffees available and manages to forage, grow and seek out the natural everywhere she goes. 

www.aprildanann.com.