The Anatomy of a Formula

I don't formulate by symptom.

If you look at a Morningstar formula, you might see a handful of herbs on the label and think: Okay. So this is a blend for sleep.

Or digestion. Or the respiratory system. Or the nervous system.

And technically, you wouldn't be wrong. But that's not actually how I formulate.

I don't start with a symptom and go hunting for a list of herbs that are traditionally associated with it. THAT is the aollpathic model of treating symptoms. We don't treat plants like pharmaceuticals over here. They are too intelligent for that. And bodies are more interesting than that. 

Two people can have the exact same complaint and need completely different formulas. Two people can both have “poor digestion,” for example, while one has a digestive system that is cold, sluggish, and underactive, and another has one that is hot, irritated, and overactive.

The symptom is the same. The tissue state isn't.

And that changes the formula.

This is where the anatomy of an herbal formula gets really interesting (and fun).

First: What Is the Tissue Doing?

Before I decide which herbs belong in a formula, I want to know what is happening in the tissue. In traditional herbalism, we can describe these patterns as tissue states.

Is the tissue:

• hot or cold?
• dry or damp?
• tense or relaxed?
• stagnant or moving?
• irritated or deficient?
• congested or depleted?

These aren't diagnoses. They're ways of describing the functional terrain we're working with, and they give me much more useful information than simply asking, “What symptom are we treating?” (Which is also illegal. I don't treat any conditions, because I am not a medical doctor and I do not practice medicine. I have zero medical credentials.)

Anyway. Ok. Let's take that digestive example.

Someone might tell me, “My digestion is terrible. I feel bloated after I eat.”

Okay. That's a starting point, but it isn't a formula yet.

I want to know what kind of "terrible" we're talking about. Is the digestion sluggish and cold? Is there excessive fermentation and dampness? Is there tension and spasm? Is there simply not enough digestive fire?

Those different states call for different kinds of plants.

The formula begins to emerge when I understand the state of the tissue.

Then: What Does This Herb Have an Affinity For?

Once I understand the tissue state, I start thinking about affinity. Affinity is one of my favorite concepts in herbalism. An herb doesn't simply have a list of actions. It has places it tends to go. It has tissues and systems with which it has a particular relationship.

For example, an herb might have a strong affinity for the digestive tract. Another might preferentially work with the nervous system. Another might have an affinity for the respiratory mucosa. Another might be particularly suited to the kidneys, urinary tract, lymphatics, skin, or connective tissues. And even within a broad system, the affinity can become much more specific.

This is where formulation starts to feel less like making tea and more like composing music. (>> Check out this blog post called The Art of Modulation, which compares formulating to music composition.)

I'm not simply asking: “What does this herb do?”

I'm asking: “Where does it go, what does it encounter when it gets there, and is that what I need it to do?”

And Then There Are the Energetics

This is the part that can sound a little mysterious until you start working with it.

Every plant has a particular energetic character.

Some are warming. Some are cooling. Some are drying. Some are moistening. Some are relaxing. Some are stimulating. Some are moving. Some are contracting. Some are opening. Some are building. And some are wonderfully complex and difficult to put into one little box. Each herb has a personality.

This matters because I don't want to throw a bunch of herbs into a formula simply because they all have an action I like. I have to consider what those herbs are going to do to the overall balance of the formula.

For example, let's say I want to support sluggish digestion.

I might want herbs that stimulate digestive function.

But if I build the entire formula out of aggressively warming, drying medicines, I've potentially created a different problem.

Likewise, if I'm working with a hot, irritated digestive tissue, I probably don't want to approach it with a formula designed to turn the furnace up even higher.

The herb has to balance the state. And the herbs have to balance each other.

This Is Where Formulation Becomes More Than a List

This is the part I wish more people understood about herbal formulas.

A good formula isn't simply: Herb A + Herb B + Herb C + Herb D

It's a relationship. Each plant has its own character. Each has its own affinities. Each has its own energetics. And when you put them together, they create something that is greater than a collection of individual actions.

Sometimes one herb is there because it directly addresses the primary tissue state. Another might help move the process along. Another might protect or nourish a tissue that needs support. Another might make the formula more appropriate for the person's particular constitution.

And sometimes an herb is there because it helps the other herbs behave better as a formula.

That's formulation.

The Formula Has a Center of Gravity

When I'm building a formula, I usually have a central idea.

I might think: This person needs movement.

Or: This tissue needs cooling and soothing.

Or: We need to restore moisture without creating more stagnation.

Or: We need to support function without pushing an already overactive system harder.

That becomes the center of gravity for the formula; then everything else has to earn its place. I don't want twelve herbs that all do approximately the same thing. I want each plant to have a reason for being there. Sometimes that reason is obvious. Sometimes it's subtle.

But there should be one.

Two People With the Same Problem May Get Different Formulas.

This is also why I don't believe in the idea that there is one perfect herbal formula for every symptom.

Let's go back to digestion.

Imagine two people who both experience bloating after meals.

Person A has: cold + sluggish + stagnant

Person B has: hot + irritated + tense

If I gave both people the exact same formula because they both said “bloating,” I'd be ignoring most of the information I actually have about them. The complaint is simply the doorway.

The tissue state tells me which room I'm actually walking into.

And once I'm in that room, affinity and energetics help me decide what belongs there.

This Is Also Why “Strongest Herb” Isn't Really a Concept I Use

Herbalism isn't a contest to see which plant can hit the hardest. I'm much more interested in appropriateness.

The right medicine in the right tissue, in the right state, in the right preparation, at the right time can be far more useful than simply reaching for the most aggressive plant available.

Sometimes the best formula is surprisingly gentle. Sometimes it needs to be more stimulating. Sometimes it needs to be nourishing. Sometimes it needs to move something that has become stuck.

The question isn't: “What's the strongest herb for this?”

It's: “What does this particular body need from this particular medicine right now?”

And That's the Art

There is certainly science in herbalism.

We can talk about constituents, pharmacology, extraction methods, dosage, metabolism, and all of the wonderful things modern research has taught us about plants.

I love that stuff.

But formulation also has an art to it.

You have to learn the plants well enough to recognize their personalities. You have to learn to observe the body. You have to understand patterns. And eventually, you start to develop an almost conversational relationship with your materia medica. 

You don't just know that an herb is “antispasmodic.” You know what kind of spasm it likes.

You don't just know that something is “bitter.” You understand what kind of digestive terrain that bitter is suited for.

You don't just know that a plant is “calming.” You understand whether it relaxes tension, settles agitation, nourishes depletion, or simply makes someone sleepy.

That's where herbal formulation gets really fun.

So What's Actually Inside a Morningstar Formula?

When you pick up one of my formulas, you're not just getting a handful of herbs that happen to have similar actions.

You're getting a little piece of this thought process.

Tissue state. Affinity. Energetics.

And then the practical considerations:

What preparation makes sense? How do these plants extract? How do they taste? How do they interact? What role does each plant play?

And perhaps most importantly:

Does the formula make sense as a whole?

That's the question I keep coming back to. A formula should be more than a list of ingredients, and an ingredient list should be "the whole kitchen sink."

It should have a reason for existing. And when all of those pieces line up just right, something really beautiful happens. The herbs start to make sense together.

That's the anatomy of a formula.

And that's the part of herbalism I never get tired of.

— Danni
Morningstar Medicinals 🌿