YARROW
Many moons ago, I dreamt you before I ever saw you. Delicate, fragrant feathers falling from the sky like goose wings with the quietness of snow. I stood with palms outstretched and watched with childlike wonder.
We first met along the sub-alpine meadows, wrapped in a cloud. I collapsed into the earth and marveled at Wy'easts majesty through your ferned leaves. You became a home to return to, a sanctuary of silence (spare the occasional dry humor here and there).
That September, I came to you crawling; battle scarred and raw. I climbed through draping lichens and moss, scaled cliff sides, and waded tide pools until I saw your petaled heads dancing in the sea breeze. I awoke the next morning to a cloak of mist surrounding us. The Hemlocks under which I'd slept had disappeared into the sky, and the beach had become an island. For seven days I plucked your green tendrils and the last of summers petals, drinking nothing but Yarrow tea and breathing nothing but salty air. Wearing every piece of wool I owned, I foraged for seaweed along the shore and watched the full moon tide wax and wane until the sky bled to black. It was here, I stood at the knot. The wetness was inescapable, permeating and bit into your bones. All that was left was to breathe deeper, and let Her consume you.
Yarrow, ancient one. Mother of boundaries, healer of wounds. She clears the blood and clears the mind, cradling all in her white cloak. She is a North Wind. Keeper of the Fey, for she can make you hidden, can show you what is hidden, all while keeping you unseen. She is cool, yet stimulating. She cannot be pinned down, for her gifts are myriad. She is a queen of polarity, a bringer of harmony, and will restore balance across many systems.
How long have you been walking beside us two-legged creatures? A grave was found dating back 60,000 years in what we now call Iraq; upon it a man lay on a bed of medicinal flowers. We tested the pollen and identified you, Yarrow, as protector of his spirit even long after he left this earth. Yarrow is a magician and a crone, and at some point or another, all students of the green path encounter her on their journey. Usually this happens corresponding with an increased awareness of perception and a widening of the senses. For some of us born with the gates of perception blown wide open, Yarrow is the shield we never knew we needed to navigate a world in extreme hypersensitivity.
My neurodivergence means my sensory gating channels open wider than most. Experiencing “more” has led me to feel at best, super human, and at worst, like I'm losing my mind in a culture numb and blind to the animate world we exist within.
Yarrow protects our psyche and helps maintain clear energetic boundaries with the world around us. In the process of opening sensory channels, if not done with care, an individual can become overwhelmed with chaos and confusion as other people’s energies easily penetrate into their field. Yarrow restores our sense of safety and control while allowing us to remain perceptive and connected.
It was wrapped in her veil, in sacred solitude, that my boundaries were restored. Yarrow can teach you to protect yourself. When you become weary and burdened, punctured by life, let her resilient spirit drink you in. Listen to her song and pick up her shield. In her presence, I feel brave and resilient. I pick up the pieces of myself and fold them into one another carefully, cleaning out the wounds methodically and slow. The stitches are neat and tidy. The shield feels sturdy and strong. Soon, my lungs have expanded and my mind is still.
I do not know a better ally for the activists and empaths, the healers and warriors with open and tender hearts.
The name “Yarrow” comes from old English garwe meaning “spear-well”- as in the healer of wounds caused by spears. Across every continent yarrow has been used to heal battle wounds and they have the power to stanch bleeding and heal even the deepest cuts. We see this in the doctrine of signatures through their deeply clefted leaves.
The latin name, achillea millefoilium, can be broken down to “millefoilum” -meaning a thousand leaves, and “achillea” - referencing the Greek hero Achilles. The great herb recounted in Homers Illiad which Achilles used to treat his soldiers was none other than Yarrow.
Achilles was the son of a mortal man and a sea nymph mother, and was known as the greatest warrior of the Trojan war. His mother, ever concerned with his mortality, was said to have held him by the heel and dipped him into a vat of yarrow tea to protect him from harm. Stories vary, and some say it was the river Styx, but either way, he eventually died of an arrow to his heel, the one area that was not touched.
Yarrow is also connected to the mythological centaur and healer Chiron, who mentored young Achilles and introduced him to Yarrow’s healing properties. Chiron was an immortal being who lived a rather complicated life. Born of unwilling consummation between a mortal and immortal, he was abandoned as a baby by his mother and then raised by Apollo and his sister Artemis. They taught Chiron the skills of hunting, poetry, music, medicine and divination. Chiron poured his energy into studying medicine and teaching and healing others in need, becoming a renowned healer and teacher.
Chiron’s second wounding came when he was shot with an arrow coated with the poisonous blood of a Hydra. The wound was incurable, and being the immortal son of Chronos (Saturn), he was unable to die. Chiron is thusly called the wounded healer, and is both wounded and divine. Astrologically, Chiron shows us how our deepest wounds can become our greatest teachers and where we have capacity to transcend victimhood and allow our wounds to heal others.
Yarrow asks us of the same, Where lives your sacred wound?
An achilles heel is known colloquially as a weak spot, a place that strikes us to our core. There is a tendency to hide this wound, to resist confronting the shadows that dwell there. Yarrow tenderly shines a light in the darkness and offers perspective and transformation so that we might accept and alchemize our wound.
Yarrow is native across the northern hemisphere and America’s. They are highly adaptable and can be found on rocky alpine slopes or sandy coastal shores. Dry or wet, at various elevations, Yarrow is abundant across the many ecosystems of Cascadia. Yarrow grows 2-4” tall and will spread and cultivate the surrounding earth if given the chance. They thrive in hot, dry conditions and I’ve found that Yarrow growing in incredibly difficult conditions has a stronger medicinal quality than the Yarrow grown in my garden.
Parts Used: All aerial parts. The flowers have higher concentration of aromatic oils, while leaves have more medicinal tannins. The ideal time to harvest is just after the flowers have opened when they are full and bright and you can see golden pollen in the center. Yarrow flowers can last into September, although will look shabbier and/or grey and will not have any pollen. At this point they are past their medicinal prime and it’s best to just use the leaves.
Yarrow is bitter, pungent, and aromatic. They have a harmonizing and balancing effect on the body and spirit, and are useful in treating a number of conditions as they will pull the individual back to center.
“Thus, it is both cooling and warming, fluid generating and controlling. Remedies with contradictory but complementary properties are often of great utility since they are able to normalize opposing conditions. This is true for yarrow.” -Matthew Wood
Infection + Wound Care: Yarrow is antimicrobial and anti-fungal both topically and when used internally. This amplifies their use as a first aid plant for wounds as they will not only halt the bleeding but keep the wound clean and free of infection. Soaking a wound in yarrow tea would reduce inflammation, disinfect it and promote cell growth and healing. Fresh yarrow leaves or poultice will immediately stop bleeding, or if you have dried yarrow you can rehydrate with water. Yarrow can treat hemorrhoids, postpartum bleeding, or any internal bleeding.
Digestive System: Yarrow’s aromatic and bitter compounds act upon the hepatic portal vein and are strongly indicated for congestion in the spleen, stomach, and liver. They promote secretions and move stagnant fluids with their carminative compounds.
Urinary: When dealing with a UTI, Yarrow tonifies the tissues while treating the bacterial infection. Yarrow's astringency benefits the prostate and bladder conditions.
Circulation: Yarrow harmonizes blood circulation and aids in any stagnant blood condition like varicose veins, fibroids, or in the presence of excess such as hypertension. They tone and open blood vessels to receive more blood, nutrients and oxygen.
Menstruation: Yarrow can either initiate menses or halt excessive bleeding depending on constitution. From dysmenorrhea to heavy clotting, Yarrow acts on each person to balance and shift energy where needed. They can relax muscles in the gut and uterus to relieve cramping.
Colds, flus, fevers: Yarrow is a diaphoretic -meaning they help the body sweat, increase immunological response and allow the body to cool off when in the midst of fever. Yarrow, mint and elderflower is an old folk remedy for fevers that works wonderfully well and is safe for children.
Use caution when pregnant as Yarrow is an emmenagogue and can stimulate uterine contractions.
