In 1974 I bought a copy of the Barefoot Doctor’s Manual and it changed my life. After graduating I built an Investment Consulting Practice in Atlanta and the TCM diagnostic process became the foundation of my client intake. The concepts I learned from TCM helped me create a successful practice which I sold in 2000. I continued teaching the intake process, called the “Relationship Conversation,” as a keynote speaker and executive coach.
In 2003 I met my wife, Pamela, giving a workshop in Calgary. We share a love of travel and creative pursuits. We both went through the UCLA screenwriting program and I currently have a play and novel in draft. We spent the last three years touring around North America in a Prevost bus which we detailed in our travel blog http://prevost.wordpress.com and my creative interest website http://www.bylloyd.org. I sculpt, practice Aikido, Tai Chi, Chinese tea ceremony, djembe, and am slowly working on a personal translation of the Yijing.
We moved to Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, in 2004 and I became a Canadian resident. I love the people, the wind, the music, and the community that is now my home. After five years of eating a vegetarian diet, I realized I was showing signs of insulin resistance. I contacted a local herbalist and started to take my health seriously. She recommended I read Green Pharmacy by Barbara Griggs.
My mother passed away last year and I never believed the doctors ever understood her case. I decided then to help myself and others take ownership of our own well-being. I began the East West Professional Herbalist course in July of 2011 after comparing several different schools. I was attracted to East West because of their synthesis of TCM, Ayurvedic, and Western herbalism. By taking the best from each tradition I believed the diagnostic process would be more accurate, treatment would be shortened, and clients would recover balance in their lives faster. I wanted to work with the holistic practitioners in my community to give others the tools to break the bonds of chronic discomfort, find peace in a cup of tea, and enjoy each day to the fullest. Thank you fellow students and faculty for helping me encourage others. My practice website is http://www.VillageHerbalist.ca