witches midwives and nurses a history of female healers

Out of necessity and pragmatism, women, like those in Ballard’s family, used what they had on hand to cure ills, tend to the dying, and deliver babies in their communities.īy Ballard’s own definition, it’s medicine and midwifery, omen-reading and weather-working. The information presented here gives a whole new perspective to medical history and points to some of the causes underlying our current healthcare mess.Equal parts paganism, down-home Protestantism, and stubborn Southern practicality, Ballard’s is a specific manifestation of a long-standing Appalachian folk healing tradition that combines an intimate knowledge of the land beneath her feet, a few recited prayers and charms, and a couple of everyday items that she likely picked up at her local corner store: salt, twine, marshmallows, and mason jars.īallard’s pagan practices may have actualized later in life, but the roots of it are deep and familial, a passed-down gift from generations of Appalachian mountain women-her great-grandmother was a local healer, and her grandmother was a self- and community-identified witch that possessed a gift for precognitive dreams. Barbara Ehrenrich and Deirdre English show how, for reasons of class politics, women's suppression and naked greed, wealthy men discredited, persecuted and outright killed the wisewomen healers, leaving themselves to be the sole practitioners of their 'scientific' medicine.

The information presented here gives a whole new perspective to medical history and points to some of the causes underlying our current healthcare mess.' -WomanSource Catalog & Review, 'This booklet will open your eyes.

The information presented here gives a whole new perspective to medical history and points to some of the causes underlying our current healthcare mess.'-WomanSource Catalog & Review, 'This booklet will open your eyes.

Witches midwives and nurses a history of female healers