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Class begins in the fall of 2026 and continues through the end of summer 2028.
Questions? Contact Eileen at office@dwherbal.com.
Learn MoreHave you ever wondered how people discovered and developed the safe and effective use of botanical remedies in the first place? Fascinating conversations almost always follow this question, but what if it’s the wrong question to be asking?
In reality, herbal medicine is far older than humanity, and not every herbalist is human. It is now well-documented both anecdotally and increasingly in the scientific literature that animals regularly and deliberately ingest medicinal and psychoactive plants and fungi. In addition, cultures around the world maintain animal-usage origin myths of sacred, ceremonial, and medicinal plants. In this class we’ll review the current published research in the growing field of Zoopharmacognosy – the study of how animals utilize natural remedies for the prevention and therapeutic treatment of disease. And perhaps most importantly, we’ll discuss what this all means for us as herbalists and people who use herbal remedies, and its profound impact on our relationship to our fellow animals, the plants, and the planet.
Learn MoreLearn A&P with our very own Wendy Warner, MD, ABIHM, IFMCP and Andrew Appello, DACM, MSN, L.Ac., APN, RH(AHG) available here! They are wonderful teachers and have a depth of knowledge on anatomy and physiology (as well as many other topics), especially as it pertains to clinical practice, that few others can offer. We believe you will find this class not only highly educational but deeply relevant to becoming a clinical herbalist.
From our students:
“This A&P course was extremely well-organized and proceeded on a lesson gradient with each body system connecting to the next. The herbal knowledge spread throughout the course helped to bridge the gap between how herbs and different parts of the body work together to achieve balance. It lays out a thorough foundation for any non-science degree individual looking to prepare for serious herbal studies.”-Kate McKinley
““I found this course to be exceptionally well-designed — an exciting and accessible entry-point into the study of anatomy and physiology. In particular, I appreciated the integrative approach which underlies this program, which is co-taught by a licensed acupuncturist, nurse practitioner and clinical herbalist and by a physician herbalist, each with years of experience in working between conventional clinical medicine, herbalism and other traditional healing modalities.” -Sarah Epstein
Learn MoreDavid spoke on Adaptogens: The great rejuvenators
Learn MoreIn our program we strive to teach the skills necessary so that each student can accomplish that goal. We focus on differential diagnosis skills, materia medica and therapeutics which are essential to individualize treatment and help patients to not only resolve symptoms, but create constitutional change needed for physical, emotional and spiritual wellness.
Our ProgramsFrom David Winston I learned an impeccable integrity of practice, demanding standards of looking at the whole person, and intimate knowledge of a 300-plant materia medica. Our class, whether on-site or on-line, has been a community, puzzling together over our triune formulas and case histories. This is an international web of students–from a dozen countries–present in the classroom over our two or three years together. In class we learned the heart and landscape of David’s lineage in traditional medicine, along with Western, Chinese, Ayurveda and Middle Eastern herbal traditions. We worked with a unique, large-scale Additional American materia medica.
David stands out as a synthesizer and innovator of healing traditions and disciplines, a master teacher in herbal practice, an historian of the Eclectic and Physiomedicalist movements that shaped American herbal practice. As a founding member of the American Herbalist Guild, he helped lay the foundation, standards of practice, and educational mission that supports the growth of herbal practice in the United States.
Remember–our class is product of a 40-year teaching career. At our best, we students carry the integrity of David’s clinical practice, his love of the plants, solid pragmatism, humility, blazing curiosity and the willingness to communicate to the patient whatever inner and outer change is necessary to be whole.