Medicine Stories

Medicine Stories explores the healing intersections of herbalism, ancestral lifeways, and holistic wellness. Host Amber Magnolia Hill shares heartfelt conversations and personal stories that delve into women’s metabolic health, our deep-rooted connection to plants, and the power of storytelling. With compassion for the often frantic search for healing—and a critical eye on the modern wellness industry—this podcast is a grounded space for remembering what it means to be human upon the Earth.

117. Cannabis-Induced Psychosis: A Mother’s Story of Love and Loss - Tara Couture of Slowdown Farmstead 04/09/2025

116. Women Making Medicine for Healing & Connection - Kami McBride 03/01/2025

115. Nourishment Lost: in Culty Spaces, Self Induced, & Culturewide - Dr. Suuzi Hazen 02/17/2025

114. German New Medicine: A Lot of Magical Thinking & A Little Bit Culty Too - Demetra Gray 02/05/2025

114. German New Medicine: A Lot of Magical Thinking & A Little Bit Culty Too - Demetra Gray GNM is an alt health trend that has grown in popularity in recent years. It is attractive to so many (including me and my guest, once) because it acknowledges the role that emotions and trauma play in physical health and symptom manifestation, something that mainstream medicine still somehow refuses to do. But just because some aspects of an ideology are true and helpful does not mean that the entire framework is valid. Critical thinking and humility are essential tools for navigating information overload and complex frameworks, especially when it comes to health. The allure of certainty and specialized knowledge can lead people to adopt rigid belief systems that don’t hold up to critical thinking, and the the zealotry of believing that your group’s belief system will save the world only further strengthens unconscious confirmation bias (along with other logical fallacies common in GNM- loading the language, heads you lose tails I win, us v them thinking, bizarre antisemitic conspiracies, etc). But what might be most worrisome about this growing movement is the purity mindset demanded of its more extreme adherents- the belief that nothing outside of us can affect us if only we believe strongly enough in our own omnipotence and prove our righteousness and purity by attaining a total lack of symptoms. What is viewed as radical sovereignty and empowerment is really just outright magical thinking reinforced by an absence of humility, mystery, and the reality that ultimately we are not in control of what happens to us. The body is not a closed system; we are deeply embedded in overlapping ecologies. This episode has been years in the making, and I have been asked time and time again for my take on GNM. When I was sent Demetra’s essay on the subject I knew that I had finally found the right person to have this conversation with. Her past cult experience, and my years of deep dives into culty thinking and behavior, provide a lens through which to view this phenomenon. Though we do not claim that GNM is a cult in the traditional sense, cultishness is a spectrum and GNM is definitely on that spectrum. Also its tenets are demonstrably false, and have led to death in some cases. NBD. In our conversation Demetra shares her cult story- joining what she thought was a good thing, slowly realizing it wasn’t, leaving, being attacked by the leader and other members, and the long “deprogramming” and stabilization process that all cult survivors undergo Demetra’s essay Dr. Moss’s report Demetra’s podcast Impolite Company on and Amber’s Substack Amber’s website Take our fun quiz Mythic Medicine on Medicine Stories Music by (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) Mentioned in this episode: (the best!) Cult documentaries (by no means an extensive list)- The Vow (NXIVM), Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence, Breath of Fire (Kundalini yoga), The Way Down: God, Greed, and the Cult of Gwen Shamblin Steven Hassan’s Cult expert /episode/index/show/medicinestories/id/35155290

113. Elemental Inheritance: Minerals & Metals in Modern Life - Niecia Nelson 01/13/2025

112. Fertility is a State of Being: Metabolic Wellness Through a Woman's Lifespan - Niecia Nelson 12/05/2024

111. Nourishing Motherlines 05/23/2024

110. Women's Bodies are Metabolically Expensive (Why Things Break So Easily) - Dr. Suuzi Hazen 03/18/2024

109. Loving Ourselves Home: Finding Sanctuary in Herbal Medicine - Kami McBride 03/03/2024

108. The Mythic Hive & How Bees Heal Us - Ariella Daly 01/01/2024

107. Death is the Great Healing: Reclaiming Ancestral Relationship w/ the Dead - Perdita Finn 12/11/2023

106. Chronic Illness: Telling Honest Stories, Navigating the Underworld, and Tending the Roots - Sarah Ramey 11/20/2023

105. Synchronicity Reveals Our Ecological Niche - Sophie Strand 07/28/2023

104. Your Body is Not a Closed System: The Sun, Cell Signaling, & Metabolic Wellness - Sarah Kleiner 05/30/2023

103. Midlife Burnout for Women & Why Healing Work Can Make Us Worse - Dr. Suuzi Hazen 04/07/2023

102. The Living Matrix of Fascia & the Resonance of the Heart - Lindsay Courcelle 03/20/2023

101. Rooting With the Ancient Mothers: Healing Wounded Lineages by Reclaiming Physiologic Birth & Radical Togetherness - Aimee Aroha 02/13/2023

100. Returning the Mother to Herself: Our Nourishment Shapes How We Receive Life - Niecia Nelson 01/16/2023

99. Holistic Health & Earth Connected Living in Technological Times - Carly Rose 01/01/2023

98. Parenting Sensitive/Spirited/Neurodivergent Children, Leaving Schools, and Proudly Engaging in Wrongthink - Teva Johnstone 12/20/2022

97. Five Years of Medicine Stories (& more) 11/22/2022

96. Apprentice Yourself to the Earth: Plant Wisdom & Embodied Knowing - Kami McBride 10/03/2022

95. Exiting the Overculture: Herbalism, Homesteading, & Unschooling My Mind 09/16/2022

94. Our Trip to Britain: Ancestral Pilgrimage to Sacred Sites 08/25/2022

93. Mirrors in the Earth: Self Remembrance & the Non-Stop Nurturance of the Natural World - Asia Suler 07/26/2022

91. The Mineral Matrix & the Motherline That Made You - Hamid Jabbar 06/13/2022

91. The Mineral Matrix & the Motherline That Made You - Hamid Jabbar We were made from our mothers, who were made from the earth, which is made of stardust, which is made of minerals. A well mineralized body heals itself by providing our cellular metabolism what it needs to create energy and clear exhaust. Our ancestors didn’t give their mineral status a second thought, but modern humans are almost all imbalanced (with the ill health to prove it), and minerals are wildly misunderstood. Let us remember the elemental interbeing that gives us life, understand the complex tapestry that is our individual mineral balance, and give our mitochondria what it needs to help us thrive. TOPICS: You can’t microdose (or heroic dose) your way out of a mineral deficiency- how years of working with entheogenic plant medicines negatively affected Hamid’s health The interplay of trauma symptoms, depression, anxiety, physical health issues, and mineral status The many reasons we’re all mineral deficient Iron toxicity and why anemia is dangerously misunderstood We inherit our mitochondria from our mothers, and what your maternal grandmother ate while pregnant with your mom programmed epigenetic changes into the egg that became you, so your biology- on a metabolic level- is looking for the foods your grandmother consumed Much of what we attribute to good (or bad) genes is actually the result of the mineral status of our mothers early in our lives For childbearing women, there are consequences to trying to maintain a figure instead of trying to nourish ourselves Human beings are deeply resilient- even when our genetic and epigenetic inheritance is lacking, even when our minerals are depleted- we can heal and thrive The exquisitely choreographed transfer of minerals from mother to baby during pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding (and how modern childbearing practices disrupt these) Mother nature doesn’t make mistakes & the human mind will never outsmart the life force Healing from healing- much of what is recommended in the “alternative” health space makes people worse by depleting minerals (including many supplements) Hamid’s mineral mentor Morely Robbins and the Root Cause Protocol Addressing the underlying mineral deficiency v attacking the disease or diagnosis Iron carries the frequency of [fe]ar, and copper stimulates [cu]riosity- the correlation between mineral status & reactivity to the world Iron (which is magnetic) embodies archetypal masculine energy, and needs the feminine archetype of copper (which is electric) to balance it The whole system relaxes when toxic iron buildup starts to leave the body Considerations around blood donation Healing. Takes Time. The myth of copper toxicity (which rivals the myth of anemia) The dance between oxygen, iron, copper, magnesium, and ceruloplasmin Oxygen + iron = rust inside the body Flower pollen, copper, and fertility Why the adrenal cocktail is needed if you are supplementing magnesium Thirst is a cry for minerals, not water Our bodies were designed to make water and our ancestors did not drink 8 glasses a day If you’re drinking unmineralized water you’re irrigating, not hydrating Why hair grays and/or thins, and the possibility of reversal The interplay between light, sound, cells, and minerals Implications of cannabis overuse The dangers of hapé (tobacco snuff) (also spelled rapé) Mineral deficiency is involved in all stages of addiction Just because it’s a plant medicine doesn’t mean it’s good for you RESOURCES: Hamid’s brilliant Instagram account for deeper dives & to schedule a consultation (2 bonuses for this episode!) Take our fun quiz Hamid’s on Instagram Hamid’s essay on the Get the free A very helpful Wise Traditions podcast interview with Morley Robbins by Morley Robbins by Catherine Shanahan by Lily Nichols Episode 87 with Kymber Maulden Our herbal & mushroom medicines Mythic Medicine on Medicine Stories Music by (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) /episode/index/show/medicinestories/id/23413877

90. Cervix is Self: Reconnecting to Your Inner Oracle & Record Keeper - Denell Barbara Randall (Cervical Wellness) 05/23/2022

89. The Magic of Mugwort: Unwritten Ways of Healing & Chambers of Ancient Memory (w/ special guest Kami McBride!) 04/25/2022

89. The Magic of Mugwort: Unwritten Ways of Healing & Chambers of Ancient Memory (w/ special guest Kami McBride!) Sacred to the goddesses of old, known to all ancestors who occupied the Northern Hemisphere, and beloved by wise folk and herbal healers from the Ice Age until today, mugwort is one of the most magical and practical medicinal plants in the world. May we come into relationship with this potent ally in order to widen sensory gating channels, ground into our center, and remember who we are. With special guest appearance by Kami McBride! from Kami Check out Kami’s course TOPICS: A knowing beyond knowing, ancient and ineffable Mugwort is a door opener, a wayfinder, a welcoming bridge to the realms of consciousness needed to cultivate a deeper relationship with the natural world How mugwort initiated me onto the plant path The medicine of bitters & the necessity of assimilation Mugwort’s affinity with the womb and pelvis, and how it healed me after a terrifying injury Mugwort oil accesses the deepest tissues of the body and enhances the action of other plants The vibration of enchantment Mugwort’s place in kitchen herbalism Menstruation is truth serum time and mugwort heps you love your blood Solar and lunar herbs Kami’s favorite plants to blend with mugwort Herbs that help you to be alert and relaxed at the same time The power of mugwort smoke Beer, the moon, and the ancient goddess The dreamspace and the opening of portals Ritual, ceremony, and ancestral communion As the witches teach- ancient plant healers and the suppression of knowledge A little known effect of bringing mugwort into your life RESOURCES (if listening on an app that doesn’t support embedded links, find these at ): from Kami Check out Kami’s course My This episode’s Patreon bonus- Take our fun quiz Mythic Medicine on Judith Berger’s Episode 57 with Judith Berger- Rupam’s Herbal by Wolf-Dieter Storl 700-1100 by Max Dashu by Kami McBride Our website Medicine Stories Music by (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) /episode/index/show/medicinestories/id/22819118

87. Elemental Interbeing, Food Information Overwhelm, and Cell Deep Nourishment for Women - Kymber Maulden (prometabolic, bioenergetic nutrition) 03/15/2022

87. Elemental Interbeing, Food Information Overwhelm, and Cell Deep Nourishment for Women - Kymber Maulden (prometabolic, bioenergetic nutrition) The cell is the foundation of life, and biological science is clear on what our cells need to most efficiently generate the energy that runs our bodies. Gut, autoimmune, and hormonal issues all have underlying metabolic causes. Let us cut through the noise and remember how to eat to enjoy, nourish, and repair, and not for ideology. Dive much deeper with Kymber’s online course . Check out the two info-packed bonuses that accompany this episode at the . TOPICS: Energy and structure are interdependent at every level Metabolism is not what most people think it is Removing major food groups limits your body’s ability to generate energy Metabolic safety for women- the body can’t heal if it’s in survival mode What disrupts a woman’s metabolism Restrictive diets are metabolic-lowering stressors to the female body Women’s “progress” in society has come with a metabolic price Being overwhelmed by constantly changing nutritional information & how prometabolic is different The problem with too much plant consumption Nutritional rigidity and a look at raw, vegan, keto, and paleo/carnivore diets through a metabolic lens The importance of carbs- when we don’t have enough glucose the body will start relying on stress hormones for energy production Kymber’s past with extreme food intolerances and how she healed them The few foods that should be avoided because of their metabolism-lowering, gut-destroying effects What fear of food, and black and white nutritional thinking, does to us PUFAs- what to know about polyunsaturated fatty acids The story behind the post-industrial vegetable oil toxic sludge we’ve all been consuming for decades The way our skin responds to the sun is largely contingent on the foods we’re eating When the body rusts from the inside out- iron, PUFAs, estrogen, and internal oxidation Everything you’ve learned about iron is wrong and you’re almost assuredly iron toxic (this is so important, especially if you or anyone you know has been diagnosed anemic) The trade-offs of trying to get our nutrients from synthetic sources Copper, magnesium, and remembering that minerals are elements that originated in stars Technology cannot make us healthier The nutrients in animal foods are vastly more abundant and bioavailable than those in plant foods Eating this one food everyday has dramatically improved both my and Kymber’s health RESOURCES (if listening on an app that doesn’t support embedded links, find these at ): Kymber’s online course (2 info-packed bonuses for this episode) Kymber’s Kymber’s ebooks & on Instagram on Instagram on Instagram by Sarah Hill on Instagram on Instagram An article on the debunked by Morley Robbins (iron/copper/magnesium balance bible) - Morley Robbins on the Wise Traditions podcast (amazingly helpful simplification of his book) of iron shavings in cereal (these are in all iron fortified processed food- you have consumed so much of this!) Strong Sistahs by Kate Deering My website Take our fun quiz Medicine Stories Mythic Medicine on Music by (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) /episode/index/show/medicinestories/id/22457177

86. Generations, Gene Codes, and Entheogenic Earth Medicine - Mikaela de la Myco 02/10/2022

86. Generations, Gene Codes, and Entheogenic Earth Medicine - Mikaela de la Myco Psychedelics are the most potent medicine we have for remembering what it is to be human upon the earth. Many ancestral communities integrated plant and fungal healing ceremony into every age and stage of embodiment (and disembodiment). At this turning point in history, let us call upon our entheogenic allies to unlock our truest, most deeply human, individual and collective genetic expression. Ancestor stewardship & the DNA codes through which plant medicines speak to us Death and the composting and regenerating of souls Psilocybin, the underworld, soil, decomposition, and the dark feminine Happiness above sanitation Mycelial networks of consciousness and generosity We have uteruses to thank for the discovery of LSD How motherhood and indigenous wisdom brought psychedelics deeper into Mikaela’s life Making entheogenic medicines as common as chamomile tea Hot new take on the Stoned Ape Theory The interplay of psilocybin and serotonin in conception and pregnancy In the overculture we are raised to lose our creativity We can’t understand the brilliance of our ancestors if we never get ourselves into their expanded mindset The mushrooms are the ancient ones The disruption that happens when we separate women from land and mothers from babies Heal ancestral trauma by returning to ancestral ways Practicing ancestral languages in the presence of psilocybin It is through language and vibration and sound that life keeps a record of itself Mending the broken bones of who our ancestors thought they had to be in order to survive Psilocybin as an aid to recode our relationship with language in order to draw our ancestors closer Percussion and rhythm vibrate the water within our bodies A matriarchal, grass roots, regional model of community medicine mushwomb healing circles The solo journey: from the alone into the alone Addressing tendencies toward abuse when uneven power dynamics are present in psychedelic healing communities Entheogenic healing for the whole family system SSRIs, psilocybin, and depression, eating disorders, addiction, and more My recent experience with Pelvic Inflammatory Disease and kambo Further explorations into descent medicine: excrement and other expressed bodily fluids as a vital sign Psychedelics and pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding Going out like a G- mushrooms teach us how to die Living people eat dead mushrooms, and living mushrooms eat dead people The Red Road and honoring indigenous communities’ ancestral relationships with sacred plant medicines Legality v humanity: the flow of life is stronger than the forces against it Beauty healing: the masks we wear and bringing our attention inward to the divinity of who we are RESOURCES: Mikaela’s website/offerings/services Mikaela’s ebook Mikaela’s wonderful and Teen Mental Health books on Kickstarter (podcast bonuses!) My website Take our fun Quiz Video of Mikaela and Ayana will be speaking at the 3/22 by Erin Yu-Juin McMorrow by Ivan Van Sertima Medicine Stories Mythic Medicine on Music by (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) /episode/index/show/medicinestories/id/22052414