St. John's Wort or Mother's little Happy Pill
St. John's Wort sounds like a medieval disease one might find on a knuckle or palm, but it is a dietary supplement touted to enhance mood. St. John .........sounds religious. Could it be that a monk named John got bored one day and decided to smash the tops of the flowers of the Hypericum Perforatum plant and cook it down making an extract? Well that's were it comes from, but why in the name of God would anyone originate such a tedious task and what did they have in mind to use it for originally?Many of our early medicines came from Friars and Monks as well as the ancient Chinese and Egyptians. Some were used as aphrodisiacs, others as herbal cures for what ales ya; from warts to the gripe (irritated bowel syndrome) and yellow eye (jaundice).
My own paternal grandmother was an herbologist and for many years was the nearest thing to a doctor there was in the backwoods of Ohio. She was born in the Allegany mountains and was taught by her family's own herbalist/midwife relative.
I can appreciate their dedication, because it takes up a lot of a person's time to go out and gather herbs, roots, moss, fungus, lizards, leeches, toads, snakes, berries, nuts and assorted weeds, cat tails, pods, seeds, flowers and you name it for all the concoctions. No wonder some were called witches and warlocks. To the novice it would be unseemly for someone to devote their lives to these endeavors. But as time has proven, these people were only doing their best to help people to be well and happy.
Researchers have studied many of these herbal medicines and found them to be extremely helpful in promoting the well being of the patient. As with St. John's Wort for example: used to supplement nutrition for helping alleviate aches and pains that have no physical origin such as menopausal symptoms; a mood enhancer (keeps one from being a shrew or in modern terms 'a bitch').
Hypericum Perforatum, is a perennial weed of European origin recognized as a major problem in pastures and grazing. Humm is that why they say contented cows? Could it be that now that they have been fighting the pesky weed so long that they have all but obliterated it in the fields, could that be why there is now a (pardon the pun) Mad Cow disease? "Oh! St. John, Where's your weed?"
All seriousness aside; I wouldn't be a normal person without it during our rainy season. I'm one of those poor souls that get melancholy when it rains for too long and the sun doesn't come out and shine gloriously for a break in the monotony. I get so low I cry. I cry over stupid stuff: Someone smiled at me. I lost my hairbrush. My bird won't talk to me. I don't know when I'm going to get to go shopping without an umbrella. I dropped my coat in the puddle and the damn dog walked on it. I called my kid and she didn't have time to talk to me. My pants shrunk in the dryer. My brand new pants got stains on them at the Laundromat; there's another $30.00 down the drain. I'm getting old.
Baaaaaaaaa Haaaaaaaaaaaaa snivel sniff.
No, that's the way I am without my happy pill. But when I start getting gloomy I have to be careful and only take one; because if I take 2 or even follow the directions on the package, I get down right stupid happy. Boy, talk about a cheep cartoon; that's me on 3 St. John's Wort 2 days in a row. Go ahead.... say hello.... I dare you... Ha! Ha! Ha!
Deep belly laughing till the tears flow, sides aching laughter. Yep, Mother's little happy pill probably kicked St. John's Wort in the dirt; so he had to have been making it to stay happy in a dreary monastery during medieval times. It was cold and dank and gloomy in England and the cows seemed happy eating those weeds so what the heck, what could it hurt to try it out himself. From then on he sold little bottles of the extract; carried a hip flask and laughed his sandals off on the way to vespers.
Ah, my man St. John, thanks everso for being one of those weirdo's tripping through the fields and woods; you've made my life so much happier. And.......... it only costs me about $7.00 a month at the local drug store.
St. John, Your the man!
posted by Jan myrz @ 7:00 PM
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