More About A Herbal Consultation at Fiveways in Sheffield

During a consultation, most of the time is taken up with talking, and usually ends with prescribing and dispensing a herbal medication. With consultations lasting up to an hour there is an emphasis on listening to the patient, and there is space both for hearing the whole of a complex medical history and for patients to unload any emotional burdens that might be associated with this. Herbalists try to balance their insights into the physical and emotional aspects of a patient's condition. Whilst not all consultations will require any physical examination, herbalists will often listen to heart or breath sounds, palpate an abdomen or examine a joint. Recording of a patient's blood pressure is often routine. 

Herbalists are trained in orthodox medical science and use the same technical language as the medical professions. A herbalist's aim is to support normal physiology and aid the ways in which the body heals itself rather than to treat a named disease. Sometimes a patient is encouraged to see symptoms such as tiredness or fever as being part of their healing rather than just an aspect of their problem. 

While a person may often want a medicine as a quick fix for an illness, their encounter with a herbalist may actually encourage them to place their symptoms and their recovery into a wider context. Patients are encouraged to observe patterns in their illness, and to note how current habits and diet affect their health. A relatively minor condition will be seen as a chance to avert more serious illness in the future by attention to diet, exercise and emotional needs in the present. 

To formulate an effective remedy it is important to both correctly diagnose the patient's condition and make enough of a connection with the patient to ascertain which will be the most effective combination of herbs for that person. 

Herbalists, as professionals, are more involved with, and more familiar with the sources of their medication than are homeopaths or orthodox doctors. Many herbalists grow their own supplies and are responsible for caring for plants as well as people.