A groundbreaking and accessible exploration of ancestral and Indigenous medicinal uses of mushrooms and their cultivation.Fungi are the Alpha and Omega of this planet. Through their connections to the rock, soil, air, water, plants, animals, and humans, fungi hold our ecosystems together. They carry medicinal compounds that can be isolated and studied by scientists, and they carry something less available to scientific study—something ineffable known by many Indigenous peoples. Fungi carry a vibration of connection, a way of being in the world.This insightful and practical guide for the lay reader explores the deep, interwoven web of the mycelial network from the perspective of whole human health. In Chapter One, we discover what mushrooms tell us about how to be in right relationship with the natural world, with other people, and with the spiritual world. In the chapters that follow, we explore our direct relationship with these mushrooms, with detailed information on how to grow them in both outdoor and indoor settings. We also learn how to preserve and ingest mushrooms as food and medicine. In the book’s final chapter, we take a deeper dive into fourteen species of medicinal mushrooms to learn their stories, their way of living, and what they have revealed to science.Medicinal Mushroom Profiles include:Cordyceps • Amadou • Birch Polypore • Reishi • Maitake • Lion’s Mane • Chaga • Milky Cap • Shiitake • Medicinal Molds • Oyster • Psychoactive Mushrooms • Split Gill • Turkey TailThe Mycelial Healer is for readers who have been failed by the conventional healthcare system and are turning to medicinal mushrooms for answers, as well as herbalists and mushroom cultivators inspired to take their understanding of the medicinal benefits of mushrooms to the next level.
