Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) has so many gifts… it’s rich in antioxidants, a delicious culinary herb, and celebrated for enhancing memory. Rosemary is also often underrated for its ability to get things moving and reduce pain in cold or sore muscles.

That’s why I’m so excited to bring you this conversation about rosemary with Felicia Cocotzin Ruiz. She’ll share the many ways she works with this wonderful herb, including her recipe for a rosemary tonic you can rub on to give some relief to sore joints or muscles when it’s cold outside.

Felicia is an author, indigenous foods activist, natural foods chef, and curandera (Mexican traditional healer) educating and supporting others in reclaiming the kitchen healer approach to health with Indigenous wisdom and whole food cooking. Her holistic wellness background spans over 25 years in which she has had the opportunity to work with grassroots activists, tribal leaders, top wellness resorts, and professional athletes–helping people (re)connect to their ancestral foods, earth medicines, and health practices.

Felicia’s work has been featured in Spirituality & Health, Food & Wine, Bon Appétit, and many other media platforms including The Original Americans episode on Padma Lakshmi’s Taste The Nation (Hulu). Felicia presents frequently around the country on Native American healing practices, holistic wellness, and Native American food sustainability at community events, universities, and museums–including the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

Listen in for:

► How Felicia’s grandmother used herbs when she was a nurse in a tuberculosis ward (Timestamp: 09:04)

► Why you might want to bring herbs that your ancestors worked with into your day to day life (19:12)

► The role of ritual and gratitude (Timestamp: 28:20)

Here is one of my favorite takeaways from our conversation:

“Most of the grandmothers that I learned from… a lot of them said the same thing. You should know five herbs very well and know how to use them in all different ways.” (Timestamp: 32:50)

It was a delight to spend time with Felicia and I’m very happy to share our conversation with you!

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Get full show notes including a transcript of this episode at: herbswithrosaleepodcast.com.

For more behind-the-scenes of this podcast, follow @rosaleedelaforet on Instagram!

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On the podcast, we explore the many ways plants heal, as food, as medicine, and through nature connection. Each week, I focus on a single seasonal plant and share trusted herbal knowledge so that you can get the best results when using herbs for your health.

Learn more about Herbs with Rosalee at herbswithrosalee.com.

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Rosalee is an herbalist and author of the bestselling book Alchemy of Herbs: Transform Everyday Ingredients Into Foods & Remedies That Heal and co-author of the bestselling book Wild Remedies: How to Forage Healing Foods and Craft Your Own Herbal Medicine. She's a registered herbalist with the American Herbalist Guild and teaches many popular online courses. Read about how Rosalee went from having a terminal illness to being a bestselling author in her full story here.