one formula for uterine fibroids...

A few years ago I had a woman inquire about what she might use to address uterine fibroids she had. She had BIG fibroids (grapefruit size), getting bigger at each exam. The doc wanted a hysterectomy (to quote Henriette Kress, "if in such a situation you might inquire how readily he'd have his reproductive organs removed"), but she felt differently. She told him she was going to try to use herbs and he "sat her down" and told her that cases like this aren't going to shrink and aren't even going to stop growing, and that she shouldn't go looking for hope where there is none (nice, huh?).

After talking with her, I came up with the following formula:

2 parts Shepherd's Purse
1 part Trillium (whole plant in flower)
1/2 part Yarrow
1/2 part Stone root (Collinsonia)

The Shepherd's Purse and Trillium were used as astringents, both to address the heavy bleeding and tone the uterine tissues. The Yarrow and Stone root were used as decongestants to the blood vessels. I learned about using Stone Root this way from an article by Chanchal Cabrera in Paul Bergner's Medical Herbalism, who wrote" "More recently it has shown promise as a general pelvic decongestant and specifically to remove masses from the uterus, ovaries or other reproductive structures."

She used this formula 15 drops, 2-3 times a day. At the next appointment, the fibroids had stopped growing and even shrunk. The doc was dismissive and completely denied saying that wouldn't happen, and scoffed at the idea that the herbs could have been relevant in this change.

After he left the room the technician quizzed her at length about what she was using and said that she'd never seen a cases like hers show any improvement... cool.