r e - c o l l e c t i n g o u r s t o r i e s | a c r o s s h o m e l a n d & d i a s p o r a s
This page houses the herbal guides + healing resources we will have compiled in response and solidarity towards various emergencies in our region of origin. You can find access to all these resources for free below, including:
We hope that these efforts will provide support to people all throughout the Crossroads (SWANA) + it’s diaspora through times of collective crisis, war, and collapse, and that this can be a place where we collectively re-member how to heal and reclaim our sovereignty to persist and survive in the midst of these unfathomable moments, together.
Towards freedom and self-determination…
لفلسطين | دليل الأعشاب لأطباء غزة وشعب فلسطين
Li Falasteen | an herbal guide for the medical workers of Gaza and the People of Palestine
* سيتم تحديث الدليل باستمرار | updated regularly *
Please note: due to the urgency on the ground, this herbal book will be released in segments. We decided to release the first segment on infections before Arabic translation is complete, understanding that many of the doctors in Gaza were trained in or understand English. A translated Arabic version will be released ASAP, as well as more sections of the book.
This is a living document, built by the collaborative exchange of collective knowledge and ongoing practice. We welcome any feedback, questions, suggestions about the herbs you found useful, available or difficult to access, or alternative remedies that emerged on the ground as you put these protocols into practice. Please feel free to use the button above to share any such feedback or inquiries so we can be of more relevant support.
With our greatest respect and love, this guide was made to support the honorable medical workers of Gaza. We hope this resource of herbal protocols may support their healing efforts within unfathomable conditions.
As most of these remedies can be prepared at home, this guide may also be useful to individuals across Palestine. Please feel welcome to use and share it for the wellbeing of your families and neighbors.
This book is anchored in the knowledge of our ancestors and the life-giving kheir of our lands– and it is for all our people. We offer it humbly, with our deepest love and solidarity, towards freedom and restoration for the people of Gaza, Palestine, and beyond.
It is our hope to expand its herbal knowledge to include plants and conditions faced in the West Bank and the entirety of Palestine and Bilad il Sham, eventually. For now, you may also consider viewing the Li Beirut guide and the other resources below for relevant healing support.
With love,
Herbalists of the Diaspora
—
The creation of this guide is a collective effort. Gratitude to the generous creators, editors, reviewers, and translators who have made it possible:
Donia Salem Harhoor, Lama Al Khatieb, Layla K. Feghali, Mahdiah El Jed, Mariam Latif, Mayssa Sultan, Mohammed Abujayyab, Nico Acosta, sára abdullah, Shabina Lafleur-Ganji, Shereen Al Mulla, Vadi Erdal
A special thank you to Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta* and his wife for your support, and to Tarek Kishawi.
[* We sent this guide to Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta and his wife for review, but were not able to hear back from them before publishing. Regardless, we acknowledge him here with deep gratitude for all his work and for being an ongoing inspiration to us.]
لبیروت | دليل الأعشاب والشفاء
Li Beirut | an herbal + healing support guide
We made this guide as a contribution to the work of طريق النحل (Tariq el Nahl) | Way of the Bees - a regenerative project born on the ground with our HUB kin in Beirut after the August 4th explosion.
Our deepest gratitude to all the generous contributors that made this guide possible:
Editors + Contributors | Rania Abou Samra, Tania Tabar + Layla K. Feghali
Contributors | Sia Hanna, Vadi Erdal, Adrienne Fisher, Tamara Kalo, Jacquie Safieh
Translators | Sylvana Tarabay + Stella Arar + Lama Khateeb
Design | Tamara Kalo + Layla K. Feghali
Collaborators | Rena Sassi, Aziza Bisanz, Deemah Dabis, Agnes Artoonian, Asil Yassin, Saba Yahyavi, Maysan Marouf, Sarah Farahat, Lena Wood, Joselin Kehdy + Sacha Robehmed
Homeopathic Protocol for Trauma + Toxicity
Offered by Rena Sassi of Sukuun Holistics
Acute Homeopathic First Aid Medicine:
Homeopathy works energetically to shift acutes states of shock, trauma, grief and despair. The following detox protocol is indicated for the people of Lebanon in the homelands or & diaspora: (You can take the remedies all together or separately based on symptoms)
Aconite 1M or 10M: Emotional Trauma, Shock, terror, ailments from fright
Ignatia 1M or 10M: Acute Grief/Despair
Arnica 1M or 10M: Physical Trauma/Shock
Cocculus in 1M or 10M: Stunned as if from shock wave, numbness, suppressed anger & sadness.
Dose: One dose (2-3 pellets directly to the mouth or a drop from a dissolved solution in water or alcohol). Repeat only if symptoms return.
To expel shrapnel: Silica 200c or higher as needed
For burns: Cantharis 200c or higher as needed
https://www.sukuunholistics.com/post/natural-medicines-trauma-shock-terror
Somatic Tools for Nervous System Regulation + Healing
These videos were a collective effort between Aziza Bisanz and Deema Dabis, with the support of Layla K. Feghali. They were inspired by the people in Beirut after the Beirut Explosion this past August and are for anyone in the world experiencing anxiety, a sense of disconnection, deep sadness or who wants to practice presence and grounding. These videos are in English with subtitles in Arabic. We hope you find them to be supportive.
They could not have been made were it not for the support (that came in various ways) from the following: Susan Baghdadi, Raghda Butros, Rula Hiyari, Majd Manaa, Mahey Gheis, Tala Ascender, Sophie Jubeh, Doha Abu-Summaqah, Agnes Artoonian, Tara Tabassi, and Sia Hanna.
intro video…
This video offers an introduction to some basics about shock trauma and the somatic perspective on how to work with feelings and sensations in the body that may arise after a traumatic event. This is a basic and general overview that was created for people in Beirut after the Beirut explosion but will likely be useful for anyone who has experienced a high impact traumatic event (or on-going events like this), who is experiencing feeling disconnected or ungrounded or who just wants to practice more presence and grounding. This video by no means covers all of the experiences one might have after a traumatic event or on-going traumatic events nor all of the available approaches for supporting different individuals healing.
breathing + containment exercise:
This exercise may be useful if you're experiencing a sense of stuckness, stress, tension in your body, constriction in your breathing or a sense of disconnection from your own body or other people and invites connection and grounding in the body and breath. **Please note: Some people may find that closing their eyes during an exercise like this feels uncomfortable or even causes a bit of stress or panic and others may find closing their eyes feels calming and pleasurable. Please notice what feels best for you today and do open your eyes and find pleasant or neutral things to focus on in your space as you are doing the exercise.
orienting + grounding:
This video may be particularly supportive in helping folks re-orient to the ground, and reconnect with the map of the body after a traumatic event like an explosion and may also be supportive for anyone looking to find deeper connection with their body and the land.
partner exercise:
These exercises may be supportive if you are feeling a sense of disconnection from other people or your own body, stress, panic or are moving through sadness or grief. Finding social engagement, touch and connection with loved ones when possible during these times can be supportive in moving through big emotional states and tension in the body and finding a sense of connection and ease together.
tension exercise:
This exercise can be useful in working with tension in the body that may be accompanied by strong emotional states and may be supportive in gently moving with tension and finding places of ease in the body. We invite you to do this exercise anytime you feel emotional stress or physical tension.
**Please note: Some people may find that closing their eyes during an exercise like this feels uncomfortable or even causes a bit of stress or panic and others may find closing their eyes feels calming and pleasurable. Please notice what feels best for you today and do open your eyes and find pleasant or neutral things to focus on in your space as you are doing the exercise.