Medical Herbalist Edinburgh

Ally Hurcikova RH (AHG) MNIMH

About Ally

Grass Roots Remedies | Medical Herbalist | North Edinburgh

North Edinburgh Herbalist

Hi, I'm Ally, a Medical Herbalist based in North Edinburgh. I use she/her pronouns. My practice offers you a gentle and welcoming space to explore your lived experiences and the connections between your physical ailments, your emotions and the patterns and cycles of your life. I use plant medicines to support your physical & psycho-emotional health. I am a member of Grass Roots Remedies Co-operative, the American Herbalists' Guild & the National Institute of Medical Herbalists.

My Approach To Herbal Medicine

I always aim to bring myself fully to the space, and be as genuine, gentle and present as I can. I will sit alongside you and listen fully to your concerns and lived experiences without judgement. I offer guidance and advice about possible treatments, while supporting you to make your own choices.  My clinic is body positive, inclusive of all genders & identities and is trauma aware. 

Find out more about what herbal medicine is and what it can treat here

I welcome anyone into the clinic, regardless of what support you are seeking. My particular specialisms and experience are in the following areas:

Areas of Specialism: 

  • Psycho-emotional disturbance including -  Anxiety, Stress, Overwhelm, Trauma (PTSD & Complex Trauma), Grief, Addiction & Recovery, ADD/ADHD, Depression, Sensitivity, Suicidality, Abuse & Neglect, Repressed Emotions, Burn Out, Existential Grief - Climate Change, Global Injustices
  • Challenges with fertility, support through pregnancy, birth & postpartum 
  • Gentle approaches to babies & children’s health

Professional Herbalist Experience 

  • Since 2015 I set up and have run the weekly low income Wester Hailes Community Herbal Clinic in Edinburgh: one of only two settings in the UK where herbalism is offered alongside NHS treatments. 
  • In 2016 I was part of the collective who created the Herbal Unity Clinic in Glasgow: a free fortnightly clinic for people affected by the asylum system. 
  • During the summer months I have volunteered as part of teams of herbalists and first aiders who provide acute herbal first aid at Scottish festivals. 
  • In 2020 and 2022 I birthed my two children, and gained a huge passion for supporting women, mothers and birthing people in any stage of their fertility-pregnancy-birth-postpartum journeys. 
  • Through all of this I have gained hundreds of hours of clinical experience, and have routinely worked with people who have experienced traumatic events or upbringings, or who regularly undergo great stress which impacts their physical, mental & emotional health.

I recognise that all of our health depends on the health of the land, so I use an ecological & sensitive approach - prescribing low doses of native & Organically grown herbs as far as possible, and drawing on herbs from further afield if they feel most aligned and relevant. I grow many herbs at the Grass Roots Remedies plot on Lauriston Agroecology Farm in the North of Edinburgh. 

Throughout life I hold many interests and passions and have studied or been trained in many areas which I weave together to inform my herbal practices. These include permaculture, foraging, regenerative ecological approaches to the land, non hierarchical relating & working, decolonisation, queer politics, counselling & deep listening skills, emergency medicine, living by the Celtic wheel of the year and moon cycles, the fertility pregnancy birth & postpartum journey, and supporting our children’s health with nature & herbs. 

Student Training Clinic 

The clinic is also a training clinic to support students of herbal medicine who are particularly interested in a community-centred approach to healing. From time to time they may be in shadowing appointments. I will always check this out with you before your appointment, and you do not have to give your consent to having a student sitting in.