Our nourishing herbal soup mix

What does everyone reach for when they're feeling low?  Soup!  Well, maybe you answered mashed potatoes or grilled cheese or chocolate cake, so let's ask another question.  What should everyone reach for when they're feeling low?  SOUP!  I really try not to "should" anyone, but when your immune system is challenged or you've had an exceptionally draining week there really is no comparison between grilled cheese and soup.  By all means, have grilled cheese with your soup, but have the soup.  Specifically, have this soup, or something like it.  The only downside of this soup is that it is full of things you might not recognize, but will grow to love.  Here's the ingredient list:  Astragalus, Reishi, Tumeric, Job's Tears barley, Goji Berries, Black sesame seeds, Lily bulb, Longan fruit, Lotus Seed and Tremella fungus.  So here's the test--if you recognized all of those ingredients, you should be very comfortable with making and eating this.  If you recognized more than half, you'll be just fine getting to know the rest.  If you recognized less than a third, its time to put on your adventure hat and explore herbal medicine through soup, and maybe have a grilled cheese on hand just in case it's too-ahem-different for you.  Most of the ingredients are pretty bland, so you'll want to spice it up with veggies you know and love anyway and a great broth.  How about potatoes, carrots, celery and your protein of choice?  So, maybe you're asking why you should bother with this mix to begin with, seeing as how you'll be adding normal soup ingredients anyway.  Good question!  Here goes:

Astragalus:  Huang Qi in pinyin (anglicized Chinese), astragalus has demonstrated numerous times in controlled studies its ability to increase the number of white blood cells and other immune modulating chemicals (like interleukins) in the body.  Take a look at this study's abstract studying the effects of TaiJi alone or TaiJi plus astragalus soup in elderly women!  So there's no more perfect herb to add to your soup than this one to increase the number of immune boosting cells in your body when you think you're susceptible to a cold or flu. Unfortunately, even though this is great to boil in your soup mix, it's a bit too woody to chew, so we recommend taking it out before eating. 

Reishi:  So you've heard how good mushrooms are for you, right?  Reishi, or Ling Zhi in pinyin is like the king of all immune modulating mushrooms, and has been used in Chinese medicine for centuries.  Take a look at this in depth review of this amazing herb!

Tumeric:  aka Jiang Huang--The only thing you need to convince you to eat Tumeric, the spice often found in Indian curries is that it is also known as Curcumin:  "Curcumin has been shown to exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, anti fungal, and anticancer activities and thus has a potential against various malignant diseases, diabetes, allergies, arthritis, Alzheimer's disease, and other chronic illnesses."  Quoted from here.  Enough said!

So, these three herbs are our powerhouses of our soup mix.  I mean, these things alone will probably convince you that you need to eat this soup immediately, no matter how it tastes.  These three things are also difficult to chew, so please take them out of your soup before you eat it.  The rest of these herbs are completely edible once they are cooked, so let's go on!

Goji Berries and Longan fruit:These two super fruits, also known as Gou Qi Zi and Long Yan Rou help balance out the often bitter undertones of medicinal herbs with their sweetness, and also lend their blood building properties to the soup.  Blood building, in Chinese medicine means both adding vitamins and minerals to your body as well as increasing your digestive capabilities so that you get more from all the food you eat. Goji berries are also known to increase eye health and Longan fruit is also used to relax the nerves.

Black Sesame seeds:  Just like regular sesame seeds but a different color, these little guys, call them Hei Zhi Ma in Chinese,  are packed with magnesium, calcium and vitamin B1 (thiamin).  They are used in herbal formulas to darken and strengthen hair and to reinforce your kidney qi.  They are also delicious. 

Lotus Seed:  Lian Zi benefits the spleen and kidneys, astringing loose stools and providing protein as well as protein-repairing agents called L-isoaspartyl methyltransferase.  Here is a lovely article expounding on their benefits from the Institute of Traditional Medicine here in Portland.

Lily Bulb: So, sometime in the summer, depending on how the weather goes, you might have in your garden or see in your neighbors those giant lilys with the big bright petals and the very fragrant pollen.  This bulb of that big beautiful flower, called Bai He, is used for nourishing your lungs.  In small amounts it can treat or prevent colds and flus from damaging your lung tissue, and in larger amounts it is used for chronic asthma and bronchitis. 

Job's tears:  A form of barley, Yi Yi Ren or Job's tears are used to leach dampness out of your body (think phlegm and mucous).  They are also a mind digestive stimulant.  It is very similar to pearl barley, though a little larger. 

Tremella fungus:  Ok, many people probably look at the word "fungus" and cringe a little.  So, let's call it by its lovelier name Silver Ear mushroom or Bai Mu Er. But, really, it's one of the nicest, mildest herbs in this soup.  In other recipes it is sweetened and made into a custard like dessert.  It is used as a qi and immune tonic, and is especially useful for repairing lungs damaged by an upper respiratory infection, or preventing one. It contains a fair amount of Vitamin D, more than most foods (Vitamin D is the one your body synthesizes when you get enough sun).  It is often also touted as an "ancient beauty secret" for your skin.  Oh my gosh, will the benefits of this soup never end?!


So by now I bet you're convinced you need this in your life!  It's a little more spendy than regular soup, so I bet you're asking when is the best time to take it.  Take it when you are feeling run down by stress, when you are recovering from a cold, flu, or chronic illness, or take it between seasons to prevent illness in the following season.  You can use the contents of the jar to make one to several batches, depending on how dense you like your soup and how severe your illness is.  Come by the shop to pick up a jar, or visit our online store and we'll send it out to you!

Getting to Know Us: Meet John!

In the second interview of our Getting to Know Us series, John shared with us the very deepest of all wise things anyone anywhere in the world would pay anything to hear. But no one was there to write it down, so we're left with the ramblings of an interview he gave himself just the other day...

John @ The Vital Compass: Testing. Testing. Is this thing on?

John Servilio: I don't know. Should you be talking to yourself?

J@TVC: Well, you are, so...

JS: Oh, right. So what would you like to know?

J@TVC: I'm the one asking the questions, remember? Tell me about the time you were magically healed by Chinese medicine.

JS: That's not a question. But there was that time when I was diagnosed with appendicitis and avoided surgery.

J@TVC: Yeah, right. No one draws the "Get Out of Jail" card with appendicitis.

JS: That's what I thought! I had all the signs and symptoms—severe abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting—even had it confirmed with a CT scan. But I had given myself herbs and done some self-massage on my abdomen, and by the time the chief surgeon examined me, he said we should "wait and see." He did warn me that if the pain returned I should come back to the ER. So the first thing I did was go home and take herbs and my pain went away completely. But the surgeon was right and the pain returned every six months or so for the next two years, and each time the herbs took care of it. No need to return to the ER and I haven’t had any recurrences since!

J@TVC: That does sound magical!

JS: Dude, this isn't magic. It's medicine, and it has a very real logic to it.

J@TVC: Oooo, logic. Way to take the sparkle out of things.

JS: Oh, it's still got the sparkly bits. We have these super-thin needles that we put into the body and we make our patients drink weird teas with odd-sounding names. And people may not quite understand what’s happening to their bodies or what we’re doing to them during treatment, so the mystery is pretty cool. 

J@TVC: Mystery? Is this medicine or isn't it?

JS: Well, this medicine is kind of foreign to most Americans. People are used to taking a pill to treat a symptom, not thinking of the symptom as being a sign of a larger problem in the whole system. Our lives, our bodies, our spirits, we get out of balance and illness is only the manifestation. And viewing this illness as a message we should listen to, that's what needs to happen before we can put our bodies back into balance.

J@TVC: Easy peasy.

JS: Sure, in a way, but more like common sense. Nobody knows exactly how the body works, including your MD. 

The body is a complex organism that exists within this larger complex organism known as Planet Earth, and in turn is host to billions of tiny organisms that live inside us and help us to function. 

Every day Western science learns something new about the body and every day Western science finds out that they were wrong about something that was considered the gospel truth the day before. I guess I would just be cautious of anyone who claims to have all the answers.

J@TVC: Sounds like you have a beef with Western Medicine?

JS: Not at all. But I have problems with arrogance, and many docs out there don't understand the limitations of their own medicine, or how potent or dangerous the medications they prescribe may be. The stronger the medicine, the more care you have to take with it.

J@TVC: So I should be cautious about going to see a doctor? That sounds really counter intuitive.

JS: Look at it this way: Every time you put yourself on a prescription medication—sometimes for the rest of your life—you deny your body the opportunity to see if it can get better with minimal intervention, if it can heal itself with diet, exercise, meditation, stress management, or acupuncture and herbs. Every time you have surgery, you are creating scar tissue and adhesions where the incision is, when other treatment avenues may have taken care of the problem. Of course there are extreme situations that require extreme interventions, and that is what Western Medicine provides for. But our worship of Western Medicine has created resistant strains of bacteria and an epidemic addiction to narcotic pain medications, not to mention sky-high costs of health care in this country.

Every time you put yourself on a prescription medication—sometimes for the rest of your life—you deny your body the opportunity to see if it can get better with minimal intervention.

J@TVC: You're bumming me out.

JS: Here. Look at this cat hanging upside down.

J@TVC: Aww. That's so cute!— Wait, are you making fun of me?

JS: No! Well, yeah. But go to the doctor if you need to. 

When I see a patient, I'm looking not only at the symptom they’re coming to us with, but the whole body, what else is affected by this condition, and what else might be affecting this condition. It takes a lot of concentration to see a whole being, to look at the constellation of symptoms and signs, and come up with a treatment plan that brings everything together in a way that makes sense. And because this medicine provides a completely different system for looking at the body and its diseases, it can help with almost anything. And your Western doc will always be there in case you need them.

J@TVC: I guess I still don't know when it's appropriate to see you.

JS: Well, it's always a good idea to have a general health evaluation. But for something specific, I guess it depends on what's looming over you. If your options are surgery or Chinese Medicine, and it’s not an urgent life-or-death situation, the choice is obvious and should be Chinese Medicine. Why? Because you can’t undo a surgery. And acupuncture is one of the safest procedures around. And the needles are so thin they part the skin, not cut into it. Herbs do everything acupuncture does, but with a different mechanism of action, which means they work great together!

J@TVC: I cook with herbs all the time! Are they good for me?

JS: That, actually, is a great question, and the answer is yes! 

J@TVC: Yay me!

JS: Sure. Kitchen spices have all kinds of benefits from aiding in digestion to alleviating pain and inflammation in the body. We often use more potent herbs in Chinese Medicine than what's in your kitchen cabinet, but some of them are still pretty amazing. Like cinnamon.

J@TVC: Like on Snickerdoodles!

JS: Ignoring you...I have to say, though, that cinnamon may be my favorite herb. You know, some herbs are used more often than others, and I think it’s not because they’re the most potent, but because the body loves them. Give the body the kind of energy it needs to draw from, and then add to that the other medicinals to provide the finishing touches to the healing process. Well, cinnamon is the first kind of medicine, one of the essentials. 

J@TVC: What if I...like...just took, say, one gram of each of all your herbs on the shelf?

JS: These aren’t multivitamins.

J@TVC: But—

JS: No.

J@TVC: If everything—

JS: Don't. 

J@TVC: —in the supplements section is good for you, why not take everything?

JS: Because not everything is good for you! You take what you need at a particular time because those herbs have very specific properties to help with what’s going on in that moment of your life. Otherwise, you're pushing yourself in the wrong direction. That's what my job is: to provide the right kind of medicine.

J@TVC: Do you like treating people?

JS: Of course! Why?

J@TVC: Well, you're kinda mean to me...

JS: Oh, shut up. You're fine.

J@TVC. OK. So what do you enjoy most about your role in patient care?

JS: People can tell me about any symptom and I’ll do my darndest to understand how and why it’s manifesting based on my understanding of Chinese medicine. 

J@TVC: Oh, cool! Because I have this growth—

JS: And people feel listened to, they feel like there is a logical reason they have these symptoms, and they feel as though I have a plan to address them. Because, again, we look at the symptom in the context of the person in this moment of their life.

J@TVC: So you wouldn't treat my insomnia or anxiety the way you would another person's?

JS: No! That's why it's so powerful! Acupuncture works with the individual's own capacities for healing, so the treatment is never the same for everyone. I'm here to find out what the body needs to heal itself and provide that. 

J@TVC: A unique treatment plan for each patient?

JS: It's the only way to get to the root of a problem, but I love a good challenge! I love the challenge of working with chronic difficult-to-treat conditions, things people have seen every other specialist for and they’re coming to me as a last resort. Now, I would much rather they come to me at the beginning before the condition has gotten chronic, but I like providing some glimmer of hope to people who think they’ve tried all avenues.

J@TVC: Do you have any advice you give to your patients that you don't follow yourself?

JS: "Don't talk to yourself. Ever." 

J@TVC: Too late. What else?

JS:  I should probably get myself treated when I need it instead of waiting, and I have three amazing people I work with who can take care of me!

J@TVC: You get treated? What about: "Healer, heal thyself?"

JS: I hate that saying! Sure, we could all do more to care for ourselves, but we're still going to get out of balance, or experience stressors outside of our control. And so we all need the support of those around us, whether it's friends, family, or people in the healing professions.

J@TVC: What do you do for self care?

JS: Number one is to live a right livelihood as much as I can. That means spending time with my family and making time for those things that feed me spiritually and physically. I exercise, write almost daily, and spend time with my husband Rick and our dog Harley. I think I’m one of the few people in this world who can say they don’t have regrets about where they are in life. I’m extraordinarily grateful for the people in my life and the vocations that are incredibly meaningful to me. And, you know, you're OK, too.

J@TVC: Aw, shucks! How about your dreams for the future?

JS: Aside from making The Vital Compass even more awesome than it already is?  Well, I’m a playwright and I have dreams that theatres around the country will find value in my plays. My writing exists in the intersecting realms of the worldly and the earthy. Big messages in very down-to-earth ways. It’s a way to bring yin and yang into my art, and find other ways to share myself.

J@TVC: What do you dream about when you're asleep? 

JS:  I often don’t remember my dreams, but some of them involve awakening into a cult situation and realizing I don’t belong. I think I struggle with finding ways to connect with people in my world, especially when so much about technology can pull us apart rather than draw us together. And I don't think I'm alone in feeling this way. 

J@TVC: Sounds like integrating everything and view everything as a whole is what you've been talking about with Chinese Medicine. 

JS: Yes! And it's also why my healing practice is so healing for me; because I connect with real people in real time and make real connections that so many others don’t have the opportunity for in their lives. This is one job you can't do remotely!