About Kelly Pietro, The Mindful Herbalist
Intuitive Herbalist & Energy Worker
My initiation to the plant path began in childhood where my father fostered a deep connection with the natural world. We would fish, hike, and forage for wild berries. He was an avid sportsman so living off what nature provided and what we could grow in our garden was a regular part of life. With my first pregnancy in 2005 my husband and I planted our own organic garden. It was then I met my first teacher, Guy Beardsley, an organic farmer, former host of WPKN's "The Organic Farm Stand" radio show and founder of the Shelton Farmer's Market. Gardening was a gateway hobby to herbalism, which I began exploring through self-study in 2010. As I began crafting homemade everyday solutions for my family (bug spray, sunscreen, soap, lotions, etc.) my friends began requesting to try my products. I quickly came into local demand via word of mouth and found myself making larger and larger batches, and even filling orders for party favors and gift items. My self-study continued to deepen and in 2017 I decided to seek out a formal education in herbalism. I began classes at a local herb school in Connecticut where I received trainings in Foundations of Aromatherapy, Flower Essence Practitioner Training, Earth Spirit: Native American Herbalism & Spirituality, Introduction to Astrology, Introduction to Ayurvedic Herbology, Shamanic Journeying, Foundations of Herbalism, and Introduction to Spagyric Preparations. My studies expanded with the Art & Science of Herbalism through Rosemary Gladstar's Sage Mountain Botanical School. My path later led me to study clinical and holistic herbalism with Sajah Popham through The School of Evolutionary Herbalism where my studies covered Integrative Global Herbalism, Alchemical Herbalism, Elemental Herbalism, Patterns in Western Herbalism, the Intelligence of Nature, Eastern Alchemy & Ayurveda, Astro-Herbalism, Medical Astrology, Principles in Vitalism, and Western Alchemy & Spagyrics. I continue to attend courses and conferences annually to further my studying with some of the top herbalists of our time (Pam Montgomery, Christopher Hobbs, Tammi Sweet, Matthew Wood, David Winston, Kat Maier, and Rocio Alarcón, to name a few). I've logged over 2,000 hours of study with several teachers in varying healing traditions, but any herbalist will tell you that the more you learn about herbalism, the more you realize the learning never ends. In this way, I am, and forever will be, a student of the plants and the light of nature.
My intuitive explorations also began when I was a small child, despite my own realization. Every weekend my grandfather would take me and my sister to my uncle's place of business, a salvage yard full of home accessories and findings. While Pop and Uncle Ralph chatted and smoked cigars, my sister and I would wander off in separate ways to explore the various items for sale. As I examined items big and small, stories would come into my mind's eye. I saw time periods and places I never had awareness of at my young age (five to ten year old). I now understand this ability to be the clairvoyant experience of psychometry. But these abilities had downsides as well. A vivid dreamer, I would often awake in the night to dreams of falling, only to awake in a dark room where a strong threatening presence hovered over me. Having no language or understanding of energy, these haunting experiences left me fearful and disempowered in the presence of the unknown. My fears reactivated with the birth of my first child in 2006, where my deep empathy, clairecognizance and clairsentience would often hinder my ability to navigate several areas of life. Years later, a friend and local shamanic practitioner suggested I learn to use these skills in a more empowering way, and invited me to join his mediumship and intuitive development circle. This proved to be a natural place to put these skills to appropriate use. I soon realized my niche was tapping into a person's energy at the soul level, rather than the more popularized practice of evidential mediumship. And my readings often lead to healing experiences for the sitter. After several years of sitting in circle I found myself leading those circles and teaching in them. Wanting to cultivate the healing side of this work, I sought out formal training. But at the time it was difficult to find teachers of intuitive energy work. So I sought out renowned mediumship teachers such as John Holland, Lauren Rainbow and Jamie Butler, where I further strengthened my intuitive muscles. I later became Reiki 1 & 2 attuned in the Usui tradition. This helped lay the foundations for understanding energy healing work.
My formal energy trainings and entry to herb school began simultaneously, and I began to have very vivid psychic experiences as I sat with the plants. It was as if the plants were speaking to me through my extrasensory abilities. I would walk through the woods, simply wondering what a plant was named, only to hear the answer in my mind clear as day. And while my mediumship group leader had introduced me to shamanic practices, it wasn't until studying with Mohegan Tribal Elder and Ceremonial Pipe Carrier Chris Painted Turtle Harris that my plant spirit connections began. I continue to learn from elders in the plant spirit and shamanic spaces, such as Pam Montgomery, Rocio Alarcón, and Celtic Shamanism teacher Jane Burns.
Over the years I've learned to trust my intuitive guidance, and have curated a toolbox that has helped me to help others on their journey. The lack of coursework in intuitive development for the sake of energy work lead me to create my own curriculum and I now teach others seeking to become intuitive energy work practitioners. I continue to sit in intuitive development and healing circles, and now teach alongside another treasured teacher and dear friend Ginny Brown via our YouTube series, The Self Connection. Guiding others to listen to their own intuitive guidance, and to become their own best healer is the most rewarding part of my work.
Herbalism continues to be an integral focus of my work. I have developed an 8-class self-study series for emerging herbalists. Herb schools can be a very costly investment, and I wanted to offer affordable foundational teachings that could carry budding herbalists into deeper relationship with the plants. In this way, students get a deep introductory experience before diving into more costly coursework offered through larger programs. With these classes behind them, students can more easily choose which path of herbal study is right for them.
As students eventually discover, these two bodies of study (herbalism and energy work) are not regulated nor have any governing body, therefore there is no “certification” to do this work (even though many predatorial or ill-informed organizations will promise a “certified herbalist” or “master herbalist” program, which is unfortunately meaningless in the US). Government oversight is a controversial topic, but I do see “plant medicine” and “energy medicine” as the “people’s medicine” and should be accessible to all humans. We all have the innate ability to connect deeply with plants and with energy in order to access healing. It’s just a matter of remembering how. My goal is to guide you into that place of deep connection.
My private practice is located in my home office in CT, USA, and has been open since 2019. (I am a one-woman show, besides my bookkeeper.) I see clients weekly in person and remotely, and I combine the two modalities (herbalism & energy work) in my work. I would say my sweet spot is listening deeply and being able to gain a deeper awareness of a client's energetic root to the physical complaints that brought them to me. In this way I help them to see their own energy, guide them to a place of shifting that energy, and this helps them to heal themselves on the energetic level. From there we look at what plants can help them as they integrate that shift. Flower Essences are my deepest ally in this way, but herb recommendations come in many forms.
Thank you for considering my work. I invite you to browse my website, but please don't hesitate to reach out if you'd like more information or have any questions. It is my deepest honor to walk with you on your healing journey!
