Texas Herb Company News Page

Introduction to Aromatherapy New

Essential oils, the pure essence of a plant, have been found to provide both psychological and physical benefits when used correctly and safely. Class will explore the basic chemistry, quality and safe use of essential oils, including different absorption methods. Students will also learn about the history of aromatherapy how essential oils impact different body systems. Petra Richards is the owner of an herb company and has over 20 years of experience in holistic healing methods and holds certifications in natural healing. (1 meeting)

November 10 TUE 6:30-8:30 pm Cost/$13

Herbal Basics New

Get an overview of growing and using herbs for health and wellbeing. Class will focus on identifying, gathering, drying and storing herbs. Other topics include how to grow herbs organically, cooking with herbs and more. Petra Richards (see Introduction to Aromatherapy). (1 meeting)

October 15 THU 6:30-8:30 pm Cost/$13

Herbal Remedies for the Home Herbalist New

This course is designed to build on the Herbal Basics course and is the next step in wellness training. It is strongly recommended to complete the Herbal Basics Class before taking this class but is not a pre-requisite. Discuss the history of herbal remedies, how they work and current research. Additional subjects include herbal first aid, when not to use home remedies and making herbal blends and products. Petra Richards (see Introduction to Aromatherapy). (1 meeting)

October 24 SAT 9 am-noon Cost/18

Texas Herb Company promotes Posted on: Wednesday, July 30, 2008, 5:12 PM

By Joshua Winata
The Cove Herald

In a small upstairs shop along the bustling U.S. Highway 190, Petra Richards has created a colorful and fragrant haven of healing in Texas Herb Company and Massage.

The cozy little store, which somehow evokes a warm Texas welcome despite its exotic offerings, is a deceptively simple package for the passion that Richards pours into her job. She describes the purpose of the store as “wellness coaching,” educating people on how to be proactive in managing of their lifestyle and promoting holistic health. Such an approach considers the entire person — mind, body and spirit — and the person’s interaction with the environment.

“Our motto in this store is ‘Take charge of your health, take charge of your life,’” Richards said. “We truly believe it is an individual’s commitment to take care of their wellness.”

A visit to her store begins with a free health evaluation, also available online at her Web site, to determine the current status, followed by a personal appointment to set goals and make recommendations.

In the land of small-town Texas, where big trucks and greasy food is the norm, the holistic lifestyle isn’t the easiest commitment to sell, but it’s one Richards said is a responsible and healthy commitment to make.

“It probably doesn’t catch on as quickly, and it’s quite challenging to try to teach people at this level,” she said. “But if you have a focus, and you have a goal of helping a person, it does not matter how much money you bring home because if I help this one person, it’s worth my time.”

Richards said she practices business “on a compassionate level.” In addition to being a certified herbologist, her business card also lists her position as “humanitarian.”

In line with her philosophy of giving back, many products sold in the store, including vibrantly dyed clothing, beautiful crafted stationary and journals, jewelry and incense burners, are purchased directly from women’s cooperatives in Asia, many of whom have no husbands and live in poverty. A percentage of all her profits also go to orphanages overseas or sponsor environmental organizations.

In April, Richards made her first visit to Nepal, a country she has long studied both as a herbologist and a humanitarian. During the three-week medical mission trip, she worked in the government-funded Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital and taught English at the Save Lives Foundation orphanage.

The trip, she said, enriched her both professionally as she learned about herbal medicinal remedies and personally through the generosity of the people she met.

“It makes it more worthwhile when you actually see these doctors and their natural healing ways, and they give you so much knowledge, and they’re so kind and so giving,” Richards said. “There’s just no words to describe the kindness of these people.”

From that experience, she brought back a renewed empathy and appreciation for the individual.

“I think I look at the person now as a whole and where they are and put myself in their shoes,” she said.

While the store itself is a delightful experience, offering herbs from around the world to soaps, teas and oils mixed right here in Copperas Cove, the true heart of the business lies in the interaction. Massage therapy is offered as a treatment tool to ease the body, while free meditation classes, held 10 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, help to calm the mind.

As a result of her compassionate attentiveness to her customers, Richards had developed a fiercely loyal client base. Cove resident Kimela McKinney said she visits two or three times a week and has become more self-aware and healthy as a result of her visits. She’s developed knowledge on herbal remedies, which she has found often works better than over the counter medications.

“It’s a different type of store, a different type of atmosphere that you can’t find at any place you walk into,” McKinney said. “Its opened a whole world of things I didn’t really know about prior to going in there.”

Alternative wellness options can help make people feel better Posted on: Monday, July 07, 2008, 5:35 AM

Herald/DAVID MORRIS
Herbal supplements line shelves at the Texas Herb Company and Massage in Copperas Cove. The remedies can help people feel and stay healthy.

By Desiree Johnson
Killeen Daily Herald

When a person is sick, the first thing they might do is head to the doctor.

While a trip to the doctor is more than likely going to help, a doctor's visit is only the beginning when it comes to keeping a body healthy.

At Texas Herb Company and Massage in Copperas Cove, owner Petra Richards is working to provide Central Texans with the strength to cure themselves.

"You feel helpless when you're sick," Richards said. "It makes you feel empowered to take a proactive stand in your own wellness."

Originally a small shop called the Urban Goddess, Texas Herb Company and Massage offers a variety of alternative wellness options to not only help people feel better, but keep feeling that way. Richards says the reason we feel so sick is because we aggravate illness with lifestyle choices.

"Even if an illness is in your family history, it can be aggravated by your lifestyle choice and conditions like stress," said Richards. "You can put on a Band-Aid, but you must also be able to heal from the inside out. As we balance ourselves, we become whole again, and if we get proactive about our own wellness, we can heal ourselves."

The shop begins with a free health evaluation. From there, Richards and her employees work to custom create a health guideline for each individual.

"I have to know where you stand first, and then I need to know how much you can invest in your health, like how much time you have," Richards said. "From there, you have to take it one step at a time. For instance, first you may have to work to quit smoking before you can concentrate on changing your diet."

Once a guideline has been created, Texas Herb Company can provide plenty of options to help you stick to it, from herbal teas to educational books.

While many people may not have heard of this type of wellness, it has been practiced for years in Eastern cultures and Richards has spent plenty of time studying those who practice alternative medicine on a daily basis.

She recently returned from a trip to Nepal and is a certified master herbalist as well as certified in Tibetan and "Ayurvedic" medicine, a word meaning "the Science of Life" in Sanskrit. The term describes the process of trying to bring the body back into balance through herbs, education and other inner healing options.

"I consulted with doctors here to adjust practices to a Western lifestyle," Richards said. "We simply educate people on the different options they can use to get well and more and more people are getting into it here. It's a lifestyle to make the choice to be well and it all makes you feel a little more in control."

For Richards, the passion in sharing these wellness secrets with the community comes from the difference alternative medicine has made in her life already.

"I just had a big passion in finding alternative wellness options for myself," said Richards, who also keeps busy as a mother of three. "The difference has been tremendous."

The shop in no way guarantees alternative medicine can cure all illnesses.

Instead, Texas Herb Company provides an entirely organic way to boost wellness from the inside and make people feel better on the outside.

"If you need surgery, you need surgery. Some issues like mental illnesses and such need to be sent to a medical professional," Richards said. "After that though, we can help boost your wellness with organic products and custom-made herb mixtures. We can show you what to do and give you the tools, but it's up to you to give the commitment."

Make a commitment to wellness and Texas Herb Company can help take you the rest of the way. In addition to literature and organic products, the shop also offers massage therapy, sound therapy and breathing lessons (a huge stress reliever).

They even offer a stress meditation time on Saturday mornings, with advance sign-up. Customers can even take advantage of a little retail therapy by picking up handmade jewelry (which Richards usually brings back from her travels) or herbal candles and incense.

The shop also ships orders through their Web site for free, in packaging that is 100 percent recyclable and labeled in soy ink.

The shop is at 2210 East Hwy. 190 in Copperas Cove. For more information, go to www.texasherbcompany.com or call (254) 547-6045.

Herald/DAVID MORRIS
Petra Richards, owner of Texas Herb Company and Massage, says it’s important for people to make a commitment to wellness. Richards and her staff help tailor wellness plans to individuals who visit the store

I am Back Home!!!!

I am back!!!

I am back from my humanitarian trip to Kathmandu, Nepal. She worked for 3 weeks at the Teku Hospital for Tropical and Infectious Diseases and assisted at the " Save Lives Foundation " Orphanage which was a very humbling experience

If you like to donate for this incredible cause, please contact us at 254-547-6045 or come in and visit us. All donations will go to the Orphaned Children and the " Save Lives Foundation".

I hope that you will get a moment of your time to visit us, we added a bunch of new great items from Nepal that you will truly enjoy.

Have a great day and I hope that I see you soon.

Smiles

Petra