The Magic and Medicine of Motherwort: Healer of Wombs, Hearts, and Heads

The lion-hearted herb that is 'good for women'

Motherwort’s scientific name is Leonurus cardiaca. I usually don’t find binomial nomenclature (the two name system used in scientific names) very interesting, but Motherwort is an exception because the name contains the words lion and heart. It is known as the “lion-hearted herb” and gives us the courage and strength of the lion. Her other names, like motherwort and the Chinese name Yi Mu Cao, which means “good for women”, show that this plant has been known to have special benefits for women, and especially mothers for a long time. Motherwort is a plant that screamed at me in the spring of 2022. I was walking through the woods, in fact, I was there to perform a ritual in support of my grandmother after my grandfather passed away. Motherwort was nearly the only plant that had sprouted. She basically told me, I’m someone you need to know, I can help you a lot. I’m glad she did. She is a wonderful teacher of the fierceness that is required for healthy motherhood. She’s great at healing the heart physically and emotionally. She is also useful for many hormonal and uterine issues. 

Identification 

Motherwort grows about 3-5 feet tall. It has a square stem, as do all plants in the mint family. The leaves have a surprising variation in shape as they grow, but they all have deep, prominent veins. Where I live, in Zone 4, small, pale pink flowers bloom in late June, with a thorny little bite around the flowers. It grows well in disturbed soils, stony soils, and other harsh conditions, and generally will not grow where the land has not been farmed. 

Here’s a short video about how to identify motherwort as its appearance changes through the seasons:

Motherwort as it looks in the spring

August appearance of motherwort

How to Harvest

If you are using motherwort medicinally, like to make tincture, harvest the top third of the plant when it is flowering. I recommend asking permission first and leaving an offering. If you are eating motherwort or using it as tea, I would recommend harvesting the young greens so they are less bitter. The spring greens are most nutritious and least medicinal. Steven Martyn from the Sacred Gardener, recommends harvesting just before flowering for heart-related and digestive uses. When the plant has flowered and has become prickly, the medicine for hormonal and emotional uses is highest. Other sources simply recommend harvesting after it has flowered for all applications. 

Is Motherwort Edible? 

Motherwort is safe to eat, but so bitter that even drinking it as a tea is unpalatable unless you harvest the leaves very young. Martyn recommends using motherwort as a great strengthening tonic for all ages or mix a small amount of leaves into a wild spring salad.

If you are interested in cooking with motherwort, or have a new mom in your circle, you may want to try the recipe at the end of this article on motherwort, which was traditionally served to women in the first 40 days after giving birth (I haven’t tried it, but I’m super curious about it, so I may need to make it the next time a friend is pregnant). 

How to Prepare as Medicine

Motherwort is most commonly used as a tincture. You can learn to make tinctures from this video. If you need to avoid consuming alcohol internally you can make tinctures with food grade glycerin or apple cider vinegar. Alternatively, experiment with applying tincture to your inner wrist. 

Medicinal Uses 

Unless otherwise noted, my source for these medicinal uses is either my herbalism teacher, Heather Mashuga or Steven Martyn from The Sacred Gardener. Heather and Steven are both herbalists, so rely on information from that tradition rather than the biomedical system. There are not necessarily randomized controlled trials to prove all of these uses, but biomedical research backs up nearly all of them. 

General

• Induces sweating to help a fever move through (as do all mints)

• Relieves inflammation

• Pulls energy down from head to womb for women or head to heart for men, restoring the flow of blood and reproductive energy

Ear, Nose, and Throat

• Helps sinus issues

Cardiovascular

• Calms heart palpitations

• Lowers blood pressure

• “Great for anything related to the heart” 

Endocrine

• Regulates women’s hormones including during menopause, PMS, postpartum 

• Calms menopausal hot flashes 

• Increases breast milk production

• Helps with breastfeeding if mother is anxious

• In combination with lemon balm, can be helpful for both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism

Orthopedic

• Traditionally used for rheumatoid arthritis

Gynecology

• Relieves menstrual cramps

• High doses can be used to prevent pregnancy or induce abortion

Psychiatric

• Calms anxiety

• Calms tension and anxiety that is felt in the chest

• Supportive when grieving 

• Brings the frazzled energy of the head down to the womb (or heart for men)

• Helps when you feel like you need some mothering

• May shift relationship dynamics between mothers and children when there is lost or wounded connection

Motherwort can be especially helpful when taken in combination with lemon balm. Steven Martyn says, “while she can strengthen men’s hearts, she is truly a woman’s plant, offering to fortify body and soul. She is the original ‘mother’s little helper’ Not by sedating, like valerian or its popular synthetic form valium, but by grounding, strengthening, and balancing the whole body.” He also notes that “Motherwort doesn’t ground in a masculine way, with a single deep focus like burdock [huge taproot], she does it in a feminine way through plurality and empathic consciousness. Her roots, not searching deep and wide for other levels of nutrient, but rather drawing fully from where she is in the moment.” I love this concept. It feels so countercultural to me. 

Medical Literature

The chemical components of motherwort have been well-studied and contain hundreds of chemicals that are active in our bodies. 

General 

• Reduces inflammation by acting on the COX-2 system (like medication like Celebrex do)

• Has many antioxidant properties

Infection

• Speeds recovery from mastitis (breast infection usually associated with breastfeeding) by decreasing the action of pro-inflammatory chemicals and increasing the action of anti-inflammatory chemicals in the body. 

• Has antibiotic effect on Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

• Antiviral activity against hepatitis C virus, herpes simplex virus, RSV, HIV, human papilloma virus (virus that causes genital warts and increases risk of cervical cancer), 

Cardiology

• Lowers blood pressure

• Prevents spasm of blood vessels (which can be involved in heart attacks)

• Inhibits calcium and sodium channels, which slows the heart rate (these changes can be seen as longer intervals on EKG), which may be helpful in conditions like atrial fibrillation, supraventricular tachycardia, or heart palpitations due to anxiety, but has not been well studied, yet

• Leonurine, a chemical in motherwort, improves the activity of heart muscle cells that are injured when they don’t get enough oxygen (like in heart attack)

• With aging, our body loses the ability to form new blood vessels, leonurine prevents this, which can also decrease the risk of heart attack because there are alternative pathways for blood to flow

• Prevents platelets coming together to form blood clots in early heart attack

• Slows the development of plaque in arteries of the heart, yet another way it reduces the risk of heart attack

• Stachydrine, a different chemical in motherwort, prevents the overgrowth of the heart muscle cells that can lead to congestive heart failure (CHF)

Neurology

• Research conducted in Bulgaria in the 1950s demonstrated effectiveness in treating epilepsy

• Leonurine reduces the amount of the brain that is affected by a stroke 

• Improves spatial learning and memory, particularly after damage from stroke

Endocrinology (Hormones)

• Motherwort contains terpene compounds, which act like estrogen

• Reduces hot flashes

• May have a role in preventing or slowing the progression of type 2 diabetes

Kidney

• Increases urination/removal of excess fluid (diuretic)

• Prevents kidney stones

Orthopedic

• Decreases risk of arthritis

• Decreases risk of gout

Gynecology

• Motherwort extract acts directly on the muscle of the uterus, to cause contraction of the uterus which reduces the risk of bleeding after giving birth. 

• Motherwort (in these studies Leonurus japonica) was as effective as oxytocin in preventing postpartum bleeding immediately after birth. However, the studies included in this analysis had moderate to high levels of bias, so it is unclear how reliable this data is. 

• Analysis of the data from multiple studies suggests that there were fewer adverse events with motherwort than with oxytocin. 

• Motherwort plus oxytocin is more effective (decreasing risk of bleeding by 70%) and safer (decreasing adverse events by 50%)than oxytocin alone. 

• Motherwort similarly reduced the risk of bleeding after induced abortion as well. 

Hematology/Oncology (Blood and Cancer)

• In lab studies, motherwort kills leukemia, lung cancer, colon cancer, and breast cancer cells

• Thins the blood, preventing blood clots

Psychiatry

• Acts on specific receptors to decrease anxiety and depression symptoms

Adverse Effects

Taking more than 3 g per day of powdered extract per day has been associated with diarrhea, vaginal bleeding, and stomach irritation. It may increase the risk of sunburn. Motherwort can stimulate uterine contractions. It is generally not recommended in pregnancy because of concern for miscarriage. Because of its blood-thinning effects, it can increase the risk of bleeding and increase the risk of excessive bleeding when taken with other blood-thinning medications like warfarin, Eliquis, or Xarelto. Motherwort amplifies the sedative effects of other medications, so taking motherwort along with sedative medications like Ativan, Valium, or Klonopin can even lead people to become so sedated they are comatose. 

Ecosystem Services

Motherwort attracts pollinators and thrives even in drought conditions. It’s one tough mother (ba-dum-tish!) Motherwort has deep roots, which prevent erosion. Above ground, it provides shelter for wildlife. Motherwort, like nettle, can grow in feces or garbage of many kinds and purify the land. 

History and Folklore

Japan and China: 

• Made motherwort wine and drank it for longevity

• In Japan, they would say, “Drink motherwort to the despair of your heirs” 

• The Japanese celebrated a motherwort festival on the 9th day of the 9th month. 

• In China motherwort has been used for thousands of years, including to prevent bleeding after childbirth. 

• Ancient Chinese medical texts show that motherwort was used for hives, headaches, mood disorders, postpartum bleeding, snake bites, mastitis, excess fluid (edema), threatened miscarriage, absent or irregular menstrual periods, heavy periods, decreased breast milk supply, constipation

Tibet: 

• Used for medicinal purposes 2000 years ago. 

• In the Middle Ages, motherwort was used for heart and lung diseases, as well as for sedative purposes. 

Russia: 

• The first recorded use of motherwort in Russia, occurred nearly 550 years ago, in 1485. 

Europe: 

• Motherwort has been used since about 300 BCE. 

• Paracelsus, Swiss physician and alchemist, recommended motherwort infusion for fast heart rate and seizures or broths for seizures or to pull excess water from the body (diuretic). 

• Motherwort are used widely to regulate the heart and the nervous system, including in Poland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and England. 

In herbalism, there is a school of thought called the Doctrine of Signatures. In it, they think that the appearance of traits of the plant can tell you how to use it. The science doesn’t that back up. You can’t use a plant’s appearance to identify how to use it. Many of the signatures I was taught require a lot of imagination to see them. However, the doctrine of signatures creates very useful stories about how and why you use a plant. Similar concepts were used across cultures to facilitate memory of how plants are used without written communication. For more on this idea, check out this article from WIRED. The doctrine of signatures for motherwort includes: 

• The thorny flower axil, then space, then thorny axil is syncopated like a heartbeat, suggesting its usefulness for heart disease. 

• This pattern of flowers and space also resembles the bones of the spine and it is also used for spinal complaints. 

• The hairy flowers suggest it is good for the nervous system

• The thousand stranded root ‘mop’ signifies her ability to nurture, balance, and ground 

See, you couldn’t just look at motherwort and make those connections, but as a memory device they can be helpful.  

Here are a couple of poems compiled by Gathering Ground NYC

Secret Love. Motherwort
by Frances Sargent Osgood

MOTHERWORT .
Yes! tell him — tell him I am well,
Say that this cheek doth deeper glow,
Than was its wont — but do not tell,
'Tis the heart's fever makes it so!
And tell him how my lip has curled,
And named his name with idle smile;
But do not tell him for the world,
That tears were in mine eyes the while!

(presumably inspired by the Victorian language of flowers, where Motherwort signified concealed love)

The Chung Ku Yu T‘ui; allusive.
The sad case of a woman forced to separate from her husband by the pressure of famine.
(from The She King [or The Book of Ancient Poetry], translated from Chinese by James Legge)

1. The valleys show the motherwort,
Now scorched in each dry spot.
Behold a wife driven forth from home,
Beneath hard famine's lot!
She sadly sighs, she sadly sighs,
From husband torn and dearest ties.

2. The valleys show the motherwort,
Now scorched where tall it rose.
Behold a wife driven forth from home,
By stern misfortune's blows!
We hear her groans, we hear her groans,
As she her hapless fate bemoans.

3. The valleys show the motherwort,
Scorched in each dampest place.
Behold a wife driven forth from home—
Bewail in vain her ease!
Her tears aye flow, her tears aye flow;
How’er she grieve, ne’er ends her woe!

Magical Uses

In magic and ritual, motherwort is used to increase self-trust, confidence, vitality, optimism, and forgiveness. It is used to bless one’s family, particularly pregnant women and mothers, and to protect oneself from the magic of others. 

Plant Spirit Medicine

If you are curious about what plant spirit medicine or flower essences are, I explain that it more detail here. 

I think of the spiritual effect of motherwort as similar to the difference between wounded mother and healthy mother, that Sarah Durham Wilson describes in her book Maiden to Mother. Wounded mother is like the mother from the movie Carrie, saying, “They’re all going to laugh at you.” As Durham Wilson said this mother tells you, “Don’t even go outside. Don’t even try. You’re a failure…You can never do better or be happier or get further or shine brighter…I’m doing this for your own good. The world is cruel…Stay here. At least you’ll be safe. It’s not a life, but you’ll be safe.” As opposed to a healthy mother, who tells you, “You’re perfect exactly the way you are. Every breath you take is a gift to the world. There is nothing you could do to make me stop loving you. I will always be here. I will pick you up when you fall down. Go after every dream. I’m right here. I love you.”  

Herbalist Deb Soule describes motherwort as:

Leonurus cardiaca means lion hearted. I think motherwort is strong medicine for women to put in dream pillows, to have in dried flower arrangements near our beds, by the telephone, in our workplaces, and to have growing in our gardens. We need courage to heal the various ways we have been wounded and have not been allowed to be the powerful, intelligent, wise women that we are. Motherwort gives us courage to be our true selves and to develop a strong heart, like the lion's heart. Strong hearts filled with courage are able to do anything. It takes a lot of courage to mother ourselves and children in a world that does not yet entirely value mothering, women, and children. 

I loved this description of Motherwort from the Apothecary Tinctura website, “The Lioness is unique in being a social cat in a matrilineal empowered constellation. Hunting, loving, playing, resting, nourishing...living not free from threat but with an empowered strength that comes from knowing one’s gifts. Living not isolated and afraid, but letting vulnerability be met be a community of support.”

If you would like to join us for a guided meditation/visualization called a journey with Motherwort, you can use this Free Trial Membership to check out the School of Mythopoetics and join us for our Plant Spirit Session on August 27. Follow the link above and go to the registration section of the page. The free trial lasts two weeks, so wait until at least August 14th to ensure you can make it to our session.  

Flower Essences

Motherwort flower essences are used for nurturing oneself and soothing stress that comes from overconcern with another’s wellbeing. It helps those who have a strong urge to “fix” others. She helps us to have trust that Mother Earth will provide for us. It helps users hear the fierce truth of their heart and gives them the authentic sense of safety of having been well-mothered. 

Blessing

Blessed Motherwort
Thank you for your many gifts
to our heads, hearts, and wombs’
Thank you for your thorns which show us that healthy anger
Is needed to protect ourselves and others
Thank you for soothing our weary hearts
Show us how to nurture our creations
Heal our wounds so that we may
Give and receive unconditional mother love to all the earth’s children