Podcast
Medicine Stories
Hosted by Amber Magnolia Hill · EN
Together, we are remembering what it is to be human upon the Earth- through connection to the natural world, ancestral wisdom, nourishment, story, and community. Blending thoughtful research with deeply personal conversations, the show explores herbalism, women's metabolic health, burnout recovery, motherhood, lineage, and the practices that help us feel more resilient and alive in modern life. Hosted by Amber- a mother and herbalist who has healed from devastating midlife fatigue- Medicine Stories invites listeners into a slower, more relational way of caring for themselves, their families, and the living world around us.
23episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Retaining Our Original Faces in an Age of Distortion - Rachel Brathen
3d ago01:14:19Tap to summarizeWhat happens when a daughter watches her mother alter her face? What happens to our sense of rootedness and belonging when we've rejected the face our ancestors gave us? What happens to collective womanhood when we watch our elders cling to the appearance of youth at all costs? In an age of Choice Feminism (whatever a woman wants to do is inherently empowering!), what do we owe one another and the generations rising after us? This is a nuanced and non-shaming conversation. While Rachel and I feel securely grounded in our decisions to retain our original faces, we also acknowledge that there is a lot of room for discussion around these topics and that every woman's participatory threshold is going to fall at its own place along the spectrum of beauty treatments. We spoke in order to make our way through this confusing morass together- as mothers, as women with an audience, as crones in the making who know that there is actually no such thing as anti-aging. LINKS: Medicine Stories Patreon- bonus conversation w/ Rachel Amber's Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 Rachel's post that inspired this episode My post on this topic The Mythic Medicine herb shop Rachel's website Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
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Healing Is Older Than the Internet: Our Collective Wellness Burnout
1w ago00:29:59Tap to summarizeIn the years since the pandemic, many of us have found ourselves deeply fatigued- not only physically and emotionally, but spiritually. The wellness world that once felt hopeful has become crowded with endless advice, conflicting opinions, and relentless marketing, leaving many people questioning who and what they can trust. As wellness has become increasingly commodified, it has also become harder to distinguish between what is truly nourishing and what simply captures our attention. Many are stepping back from the noise, longing for a slower, more grounded relationship with health. And yet, the desire to feel well has not disappeared. If anything, it has become more sincere. If you've ever felt disillusioned by wellness culture but still deeply long to be well, this one's for you. An off-the-cuff solo episode, I share musings on our collective loss of trust in the wellness industry, where that leaves me as the host of this podcast, and what has remained steady and true for me in the midst of ever-collapsing paradigms. Tell me your thoughts on Substack Girls trip this November Mythic Medicine herb shop
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Generational Depletion & Healing the Motherline Through Nourishment - Ashley Wulkan
Jul 801:21:27Tap to summarizeYour body's story is bigger than you. The nutrient status of the woman who birthed you is stitched into your cellular fabric, and that line of mothers stretches far back in time with each woman's story affecting the next. A more expansive and feminine framework for healthcare is quietly being built by women and mothers delving into minerals, mitochondria, and the metabolic imprint of the motherline. Let's share our stories and help one another bring healing and clarity to this tender, sometimes overwhelming, and very personal topic. While many of us are raising children whose bodies carry the cumulative effects of compounding generational nutrient depletion, it is never too late to begin building a legacy of nourishment that can ripple forward through future generations. LINKS: Ashley's post on The Intergenerational Impact of Undernourished Mothers Medicine Stories Patreon bonus conversations Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 The Mythic Medicine herb shop The paper Ashley mentioned Minerals in Pregnancy and Their Impact on Child Growth and Development Perdita Finn's book Take Back the Magic: Conversations with the Unseen World Amber on Instagram Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
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Lost Hearthkeepers: Women, Empire, & Food - Kaleigh Mason
Jun 301:07:31Tap to summarizeOften unseen amidst the tales of triumph, defeat, tragedy, and heroism of the 20th century's World Wars is the dramatic reshaping of food culture, family life, and women's work that these astronomically disruptive events wrought upon millions of people. Join nutritionist Kaleigh Mason and I as we explore the rise of industrialized and processed foods during wartime, the marketing that reframed convenience foods as symbols of progress, and the deeper cultural and generational health consequences of the loss of traditional foodways rooted in ancestry, land, and true nourishment. LINKS: Kaleigh's post that inspired this conversation Medicine Stories Patreon- bonus conversation w/ Kaleigh on Zeolite and detox protocols for children St. John's Wort Buy One Get One Half Off sale 6/3-10 w/ code SJWBOGO at Mythic Medicine Nutrition Elements Patreon Kaleigh on Instagram Amber on Instagram Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Amber's Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) Kaleigh's Instagram posts on the Highest Rated Supplements & Worst Rated Supplements based on her 20+ years in the natural health industry
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Earth Becoming Body: Tracking Dis/connection Through Lineage - Lindsay & Scott Courcelle
May 2101:15:20Tap to summarizeHow did you observe your ancestors relating to their bodies, to the natural world, to nourishment, to rest? What memories do you carry of connection- or disconnection- in your lineage? So many of us today experience connection to the earth and to our own bodies as something fractured or difficult to access, but for most humans throughout history these relationships were simply woven into daily life. Today I am sharing my interview on the Homestead & Heal podcast- Lindsay & Scott Courcelle and I discuss how foodways, embodiment, and intimacy with the natural world have been disrupted over time, and how we are personally seeking to relearn our innate human capacity to relate to the Earth and to ourselves within our own lives and families. LINKS: Lindsay & Scott's new podcast Homestead & Heal Medicine Stories Patreon Mythic Medicine herbal remedies Lindsay's website Scott's website Lindsay on Instagram Scott on Instagram Amber on Instagram Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Amber's Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) My and Lindsay's previous podcast convo- The Living Matrix of Fascia & The Resonance of the Heart, on Apple or Spotify The earthy grandma AI avatar selling an Amazon herbal product on Instagram
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Understanding & Recovering From Life-Changing Burnout - Clara Belize Wisner
May 601:20:39Tap to summarizeEnergy loss happens gradually and then suddenly, creating confusion and the fear that you might never recover. My guest and I have both spent time in the depths of overwhelming fatigue, and we have both found our way back to ourselves again. Today we share our stories- the lifetime of inputs that set us up for collapse, the precipitating event that pushed Clara over the edge, what we learned while in the abyss, and how we've recovered our vitality. Clara is a certified nutritionist, mineral balancing practitioner, and mother living in Montana. Not only has she nourished herself back to health, but she has helped many other women to do the same. LINKS: Medicine Stories Patreon- bonus conversation w/ Clara The Mythic Medicine herb shop Clara's Deep Nourishment Course Clara's ReMothering Substack Clara on Instagram Amber on Instagram Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Amber's Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) PDF of the Energy book from 1985 The Energy Balance Podcast episode GLP-1 Drugs For Weight Loss
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What Real Life Nourishment Looks Like - Ashley Wulkan
Apr 2101:13:51Tap to summarizeAfter our recent episode together- The Epidemic of Women Undernourishing- Ashley and I received a flood of questions, so we decided to speak again and talk about what nourishment really means and what it can look like in a woman's busy daily life. We explore the delicate balance between avoiding food fear and maintaining thoughtful discernment about what we put into our bodies. We talk through macros, how to estimate your daily calorie needs, and how to recognize when you're truly nourished- including the question, "what if you gain weight when you start eating enough?" We also touch on the often-debated topic of fasting and whether it's supportive for women. Over on Patreon, we continue with listener questions: what it looks like to eat enough carbohydrates at each meal, what counts as a nourishing carb, how much you might need in a day, and whether soaking or sprouting matters. We also discuss carbs and adrenal health, eating in sync (or not) with your menstrual cycle, whether sensitive or neurodivergent women need different nutritional approaches, how nourishment can affect hormones and libido, and how to think about organic choices across produce, grains, meat, and dairy. Some of these answers may surprise you- my own perspective has shifted quite a bit in recent years! LINKS: Medicine Stories Patreon- bonus conversation answering listener questions Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 (use code TROVAVERS200 for $200 off April 21st-23rd only) The Mythic Medicine herb shop Ashley's Free Guide Fundamental Nourishment for the Mother Body Ashley on Instagram Amber on Instagram Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes) Jay Feldman's post on autophagy
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The Energy To Heal: Why Metabolism Matters Most - Kaya of Fundamental Nourishment
Apr 101:21:45Tap to summarizeHow well is your body turning food into fuel? At its core, every function in the body depends on cellular energy- your ability to convert carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into usable fuel. When that process is working well, the body has what it needs to detoxify, to sleep deeply, to regulate hormones, and to maintain resilience. When it's not, we can find ourselves chasing symptoms- fatigue, inflammation, hormone imbalance, chronic illness-without realizing they may all trace back to impaired metabolism. In this episode, I'm joined by Kaya, an independent health researcher and the voice behind Fundamental Nourishment. Kaya has a rare gift for translating complex scientific research into clear, grounded insight, helping bridge the gap between dense primary literature and real-life healing. Together, we explore metabolism as a central lens for understanding health, why so many modern conditions may stem from low cellular energy, and how shifting our focus toward nourishment- rather than restriction- can create meaningful change. On Patreon, we take this conversation further with a bonus episode: What Prometabolic Influencers Get Wrong. We unpack how the "prometabolic" label has become diluted online, the original ideas behind it, and where things have gone off track- from misinterpretations of Ray Peat's work to the unintended consequences many experienced when trying to follow rigid versions of this approach. Kaya also shares practical guidance for getting started with nourishment in a way that's grounded, bioindividual, and sustainable-without falling into another set of confusing food rules. If you value content created for humans, not algorithms, please consider joining Patreon to support this work. LINKS: Medicine Stories Patreon extended conversation- What Prometabolic Influencers Get Wrong (& a Focus on Fundamental Nourishment) Kaya's Substack Fundamental Nourishment Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 The Mythic Medicine herb shop Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Kaya on Instagram Amber on Instagram Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
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Beyond "HRT or Not?": Supporting the Bodies of Future Wise & Well Grandmothers - Jane Hardwicke Collings
Mar 1801:05:45Tap to summarizePerimenopause & menopause are often framed as a problem to fix- and the conversation quickly collapses into a single question: HRT or not? But women's bodies are rarely that simple. In this episode, Jane Hardwicke Collings and I explore a more expansive and grounded approach to the menopause transition. Rather than asking whether hormones are the right answer for everyone, we look at a deeper question: how can we support the complex physiological process the body is already moving through? Our conversation examines the growing tendency to position hormone replacement therapy as a universal solution for perimenopause symptoms, and how that pattern echoes earlier chapters in women's healthcare, such as when the pill was prescribed for nearly every hormonal concern or when medical intervention became the default in birth. This isn't an anti-HRT conversation. It's an invitation to widen the lens. We talk about the many systems that influence the menopause transition and why supporting the body's foundations can be just as important as the hormonal conversation itself. For some women, HRT may become a meaningful part of their path. For others, it may not. But reducing the entire transition to a single intervention risks overlooking the complexity and intelligence of the female body. Just as we've begun shifting the conversation around menstruation and birth toward working with the body instead of overriding it, it's time to bring that same perspective to menopause. LINKS: Medicine Stories Patreon extended conversation- The Red Thread: Stories of Our Motherlines The Womancraft Way Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 The Mythic Medicine herb shop Jane on Instagram Amber on Instagram Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
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The Epidemic of Women Undernourishing - Ashley Wulkan
Mar 401:19:19Tap to summarizeMany (if not most) women today are- often unintentionally and without realizing it- undernourishing to the point that our basic biological needs are not being met. Exhausted, anxious, and chasing down symptom after symptom, we are spending time, energy, and money on hormone testing, microbiome analysis, genetic sequencing, supplement protocols, etc. all while unknowingly not taking in enough calories and/or micronutrients for our bodies to work properly in the first place. Our culture today is awash in contradictory health information, food fear, warped wellness idealogies, and impossible beauty standards, but confusion around food and bodies goes back to at least our grandmothers' generation. We inherit nourishment beliefs and practices just as we inherit our mineral and nutrient stores. Ashley Wulkan- mother, herbalist, nutritionist, and mineral balancing practitioner- and I wish to simplify nourishment for women, not add to the noise. We do this for not only ourselves but for our collective mothers who never overcame their own food issues, and for our collective daughters who we fervently pray will adequately nourish themselves and their descendents far into the future. Let's rewrite the story. LINKS: Medicine Stories Patreon- bonus conversation on The Imprint of Nourishment- what we inherit and what we pass down Healing Waters Nature Immersion Retreat in Costa Rica Nov 3-8 The Mythic Medicine herb shop Ashley's Free Guide Fundamental Nourishment for the Mother Body Ashley on Instagram Amber on Instagram Quiz: Find Your Wise Woman Archetype Medicine Stories Facebook group Music by Mariee Siou (from her beautiful song Wild Eyes)
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