30/08/2026
If you’re feeling a bit low in energy, remember the power of one of our most common plants, nettles. And what’s brilliant right now is that they’re producing new leaves, so you can go out and gather them fresh to eat and use in healing teas and tinctures.
It’s easy to see why nettles are associated with the element of fire which it can certainly feel like if you get stung by one. That burning itching sensation that gets you when the leaves release the chemical concoction of amongst others, formic acid, histamine, and acetylcholine into your skin.
Interestingly, you can touch a nettle leaf and not get stung, it’s only when you brush past one. The sting is also removed with heat.
The fiery element moreover, is about vitality, giving you that injection of strength and energy when you need it, which is what nettles are known to have the ability to do.
We often think of nettles as being nutrient rich, and they are packed full of vitamins C, A, D, and also calcium, potassium, iron, magnesium, and zinc, and therefore good to add to warming dishes such as soups and stews, but smoothies too.
But they have this amazing ability to lift us, to re-energise, and are especially good if you’re suffering from chronic or adrenal fatigue. Taking nettle will help to tone the blood vessels, moving stagnation out the blood, and cleansing out the urinary system.
There is also the interesting process of urtification, derived from the Latin name for nettles, Urtica dioica, which involves taking a bunch of nettles and applying them to, or even hitting them against an area of the body where you might have inflammation in the joints or arthritis, to stimulate blood flow, and therefore assist the healing process.
Most of all, nettles are resilient, and they teach us resilience. We’re stronger when we’re carrying less toxicity and baggage, and whenever we cleanse out toxins in the physical systems, there’s a resulting positive impact on our mental and emotional health. Which surely can only ever be a good thing.
