Heart & Hands Health Collective
We are a Community Acupuncture & Holistic Health Collective in Lekwungen Territories (Quadra Village) sharing our nest with our sister business, Green Muse Herbs.
Opportunities for Holistic Practitioners
Heart & Hands Health Collective, partnered with our sister business, Green Muse Herbs are looking for individuals who are social justice oriented, and interested in working with populations that may not have extended health benefits and/or those who are typically under-served by many holistic health services in Victoria.
Serving the community since 2010, Heart & Hands provides hundreds of streamlined acupuncture sessions each month, in a supportive group setting, all at an accessible sliding scale (currently $30-60/session). Community Acupuncture’s affordability, accessibility and inclusiveness makes it a profound tool for positive social change. Community Acupuncture reaches the segment of our community that is often priced-out of accessing higher-cost private practice acupuncture.
We look forward to co-creating a welcoming, inclusive, accessible and culturally grounded wellness hub in the heart of Quadra Village!
What is Queer Keratin?
On the whole, this practice I have dubbed “Queer Keratin” is a grand experiment. It is the culmination of years of interest, intersecting with the “right” timing. I have been exposed to the way community is inherently Human for many years, subconsciously knowing this and taking it for granted. When I left my home city, I left behind my network of connections and at the time I was grateful for this fresh start. However, building connections as an adult is far more difficult than I ever realized, and far more necessary than I understood.
I have been ruminating about what to write to you for a long time now, the snapshots of concepts surprise then escape me until I have finally sat myself down here in our Collective space. I started to research a documentary film I recently watched and was transported back to 2013 when I traveled the length of South Africa. Bear with me, it’s all connected in the end.
One of the main ways they administer care is by educating healthy members of the community to attend to the less healthy ones, generating an empathetic and social care that defines whether or not the patients recover. Hiring local folks instead of parachuting in white care providers not only increases community resiliency but builds trust in treatment practices between community members. Without the community they would not have had the same health outcomes as a clinic visit alone. It is the steady and reliable communal care that sustains these bodies through rigorous rounds of treatment.
Managing Seasonal Allergies: Lifestyle, Classical Chinese Medicine, & Western Herbal Approaches!
Happy Spring! Or to the long-suffering seasonal allergy-havers of ‘Victoria’: our condolences! In Chinese metaphysics the astrological start of the yearly calendar begins with Spring, which starts in early February every year according to the luni-solar calendar followed by practitioners of classical Chinese medicine.
Seasonal allergies – or allergic rhinitis – involves the inflammation of the mucous membranes in response to an elevated immune reaction to non-hazardous stimulus such as pollen, dust, mold spores, animal dander, and some commercial- or industrial chemical particles. As most sufferers know, anti-histamines are the treatment of choice for most medical doctors, which can cause a variety of side effects including drowsiness, dry mouth & eyes, nosebleeds, etc.
Our intention is to provide some accessible practical traditional strategies to reduce, manage, and more importantly PREVENT these unpleasant symptoms before the onset of allergy season!
Attuning to the Spring Season: Perspectives from Traditional Chinese Medicine, Western Herbalism & Shiatsu!
The season of spring is a time of renewal, growth and new beginnings. With the days gradually getting longer, nature responds with bright green shoots and tree buds starting to crack open and just like the natural world, our bodies mirrors this experience with the urge for expansion and upward movement.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and the Five Elements, spring corresponds to the “Wood” element, which is associated with the Liver and Gallbladder energies. The Liver system is responsible for the smooth flowing of Qi (energy, life force) throughout the body. When the Liver Qi flows smoothly, physical and emotional functions happen with greater ease. If the Liver energy is out of balance it can manifest as anger, frustration and resistance to change.
We hope to provide some accessible practical traditional strategies to manage spring transition as well as introducing some clinical supports from members of the H&H practitioner team!