After graduating from Chinese Medical School where I received a masters degree in herbology and acupuncture, I took a full-time herbal coure at Blue Otter School. I found their class to fill in a lot of the gaps that I felt were missing from my education. I loved their emphasis on honoring the physical and spiritual aspects of the plants. Amazing experience~

We are excited to announce our new selection of classes in 2019! Times are changing and here at Blue Otter we are envisioning our next phase. Save the dates now and more details will follow. Also, read on to see what we will be teaching the rest of 2018.

 

 New England Women’s Herbal Conference

August 24-26, 2018

Newfound Lake, NH

Karyn Sanders and Sarah Holmes will both be teaching at this conference. Karyn will also be teaching an intensive on healing from trauma. For further information and to register, click here. 

 

Energetic Herbalism Intensive

September 7-9, 2018

Montpelier, VT

Spend a weekend with Karyn and Sarah immersed in the energy of the plants. In this class we will explore energetic herbalism from a Native American perspective.  We will look at working with the energies of plants for yourself and in your work with other people.  Class time will be a combination of lecture, discussion, meditations and energy exercises.

Topics of the weekend will include:

• Energetics
• animal medicine
• connecting with self to be better able to connect with plants
• meditations

For further information and to register, contact the White Dove Herbal Sanctuary. 

 

Portland Plant Medicine Gathering

November 9-11, 2018

Portland, OR

Karyn will be giving the keynote address this year as well as teaching. Sarah will be teaching Connecting with Nature and an intensive on Sexual Health. For further information and registration go to the conference website.

 

 

 

Sarah will be teaching in the Bay Area early October. She will be at Five Flavors in Oakland, Alembique Apothecary in Berkeley and Gathering Thyme in San Rafael. Keep watching this space as details are firmed up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2019

Herbs for Everyone

Four weekends covering herbs for basic health concerns for you, your family and community. Class will include lecture, discussion and hand on medicine making. By the end of class, each student will have a sample of herbal medicine to take home including: tinctures, vinegar , cordial and salve.

Dates: March 15-17; April 12-14; May 10-12; June 7-9; 2019

Hours: Fri 7-9pm, Sat 9-3, Sun 9-3

Instructor: Sarah Holmes

Cost: TBA

 

 

Karyn will be teaching consecutive weekends at the White Dove Herbal Sanctuary in Montpelier, VT. May 3-5 and May 10-12. Topic and cost to follow.

 

 

 

Energetic Herbalism Intensive

 Spend a weekend immersed in the energy of the plants. In this class we will explore energetic herbalism from a Native American perspective.  We will look at working with the energies of plants for yourself and in your work with other people.  Class time will be a combination of lecture, discussion, meditations and energy exercises.

This class will not include materia medica; prior herb knowledge expected.

Topics of the week will include: energetics, animal medicine, connecting with self to be better able to connect with plants, meditations, formulating.

Dates: June 17-21, 2019

Hours: 9-4 (with a one hour lunch break)

Instructors: Karyn Sanders and Sarah Holmes

Cost: TBA

 

 

Karyn will be teaching a weekend intensive at Sacred Plant Traditions in Charlottesville, VA July 5-7, 2019. Topic and cost to follow.

 

 

 

 

Menopause

Explore and learn about this phase of life called menopause. We will look at the social context of menopause as well as herbs that are helpful to address the physical, emotional and spiritual challenges that can arise during this time. All female identified people welcome.

Dates: July 13-14, 2019

Hours: Sat 9-3, Sun 9-3 (with a one hour lunch break)

Instructor: Sarah Holmes

Cost: TBA

 

Backpacking Trip

Spend a weekend backpacking in the mountains learning about herbs. In addition to backpacking in the beautiful mountain of Northern California we will be identifying plants and learning about their uses, discussing a minimal impact on our environment and spending time in meditation with the plants and connection to nature. Limited to 6 people.

Dates: July 19-21, 2019

Hours: depart Friday morning and return Sunday afternoon

Instructor: Sarah Holmes

Cost: TBA

 

Plant Meditation Weekend

Spend a weekend immersed in the energy of the plants. Enjoy this time in the mountains of Northern California. We will be meditating with the plants in various forms as well as working with guided meditation to explore energy, the plants, our world and ourselves.

Dates: October 4-5, 2019

Hours:  Fri 7-9pm, Sat 9-3, Sun 9-3 (with a one hour lunch break on Saturday and Sunday)

Instructors: Karyn Sanders and Sarah Holmes

Cost: TBA

 

 

 

“Studying with Karyn and Sarah was hands-down one of the most special, most energizing, and most challenging experiences of my life. I completed the full-time program in 2015 and I constantly draw on the wealth of knowledge I gained during that time. Offerings such as materia medica, medicine-making, and gardening are invaluable and unique to this program. Karyn and Sarah are accessible, generous, and energetic instructors who are deeply committed to their students and to the practice of truly holistic energetic herbalism.”               Gina Badger, Graduate of the full-time program, 2015

 

 

 

“Blue Otter is a dream come true- it’s incredible to have the opportunity to be completely immersed in plant medicine through this full time program. The teachers are exceptional, supporting you to learn an extensive understanding of plant medicine and physiology, and a deep understanding of how to work with clients. The herb garden is an incredible resource where you can actually spend time with the plants you learn about, getting an opportunity to learn how to care for them as well. As a student, this class is a safe container to also do work on yourself, so you can become a strong practitioner. I can’t thank these two wonderful folks enough for the incredible support and encouragement they have provided through this program- Karyn and Sarah truly hold this medicine as sacred, and I recommend their school to anyone who is ready to do this work in a deep way. ” 

      Elokin Orton-Cheung, founder of Shooting Star Botanicals