Practice + Philosophy

the what + how of my practice

My clinical practice specializes in holistically supporting people experiencing unexplained chronic illness.


I work from a trauma-informed lens and the understanding that environmentally acquired illnesses involving mold, toxic heavy metals, industrial pollutants, tick borne diseases, and chronic viral infections are occurring at epidemic proportions in people with chronic illness. I primarily work with herbal medicine, nutritional therapeutics, supplements, and lifestyle recommendations. I fully embrace both the tradition and science of herbal medicine, and recognize the power of combining natural and conventional methods to healing. I offer guidance on supplemental holistic healthcare therapies and advise on integrative approaches with conventional medicine when collaboration is possible and desired.

As an herbalist, I work with people and not disease. This means that knowing specific diagnoses can be supportive of recommendations I offer, but is not necessary to establish care.



I look to the root of the “disharmony” (aka illness) causing the ailment and create a holistic approach to support the vitality of a person so that recovery can occur. In order to find the root of a disharmony, I use an eclectic approach of assessment and case analysis referencing the traditional systems of Tissue States (Western/Greco-Roman energetics), Ayurveda (Indian), and Traditional Chinese Medicine.

I completed training for clinical practice over the course of 4 years from ArborVitae School of Traditional Herbalism in NY and am a certified Trauma-Informed Practitioner by the American Herbalists Guild (AHG). Other training includes Advanced Clinical Skills with Ember Peters (HANS) and the Wild Current School of Botanical Medicine. I am currently studying Curanderismo (Central American traditional medicine) as part of my ancestral lineage and look forward to integrating this work into my practice in the future.

Common Symptoms + Conditions Supported

  • Fatigue

  • Muscle aches + pain

  • Brain fog

  • Tingling + numbness

  • Trouble breathing deeply

  • Sensitivity to bright light

Symptoms

  • Nightmares + trouble sleeping

  • Heart palpitations

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

  • Digestive issues

  • Skin issues


Conditions

  • Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)

  • Mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS)

  • Multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS)

  • Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)

  • PTSD + CPTSD

  • Hypothyroid

  • Fibromyalgia

  • Mold exposure + illness

  • Lead + heavy metals poisoning

  • Lyme disease + co-infections

  • Chronic Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV)

  • Long COVID

By practicing herbal medicine, we enact ancestral memory as resistance to a toxic modern paradigm that thrives on an overemphasis of the capitalist defined self. By exercising our respectful right to inherited traditional knowledge and the healing support of the natural world, we remember our vital connection to the Earth. Herbal medicine is so much more than an alternative to conventional drugs; it allows an experience that reminds us of our innate wholeness. 

On a biological level, we contain cell receptors in our bodies for specific plants (and fungi) to fulfill, as we have evolved with plants and them with us. When we see ourselves in what is outside of us, we disrupt the cycle of violence that division causes. In other words, through relationship with the natural world, we understand who we are — which is so much greater than us as individuals. Collective, interdependent identity gives us purpose and meaning. When this identity is paired with the healing exchange, a better world is possible. The plants are here to guide us if we listen (after all, they’ve been on this planet around a billion years longer than we have).

why I practice herbal medicine

I believe that you can heal yourself, and it is my work to collaboratively guide you through this process.

As my mentor and friend Richard Mandelbaum states, “The human body has the innate power to heal itself.  Without this power to self heal, even the most advanced medications and surgical procedures would ultimately fail.  The role of the herbalist in the healing process is to consider the client as a whole person, and to consult her/him/them concerning changes in lifestyle, diet, herbs, and supplementation in order to foster an increased state of balance and health — thus maximizing the body’s self healing capabilities.”

The practice herbal medicine is a radical act of remembrance, connecting people and planet in the healing exchange. When practiced mindfully and truthfully, we understand that what heals us is an extension of ourselves.

We live in a global society economically and intersectionally dominated by irresponsible power. This manifests in the world we know today as a division between people and planet. What was once a gift economy of reciprocity between humanity and the Earth has largely been replaced by capitalist consumption and greed. We see this effect in undrinkable water, climate change and displacement, widespread species extinction, the cancer epidemic…and the list goes on, unfortunately. 



Learn how consultations work.

Herbalism is part of a dawning awareness that Earth and its inhabitants do not exist solely for our use.

David Hoffman