Lara Jonasdottir

Through the years, I have developed deeper and deeper passion for education and the many facets of it. There are many reaons for this interest. My path through the educational system wasn't always easy. This lead to many a times of frustration, feelings of being misunderstood, lowered self-esteem, and at times, a sense of complete defeat and avoidance from even trying. This struggle persisted until I decided to explore a new direction by attending a day workshop in floristry. It was during this workshop that I discovered my love for learning, and I haven’t looked back since. This pivotal experience inspired me to enroll in a floristry program at the Horticultural College in Iceland in 2002, where hands-on teaching methods aligned perfectly with my learning style. It was also here that I developed an interest in herbal medicine.

Upon completing this course, I gained newfound confidence in my learning abilities and took the leap to move to the UK to study Herbal Medicine in 2004. Admittedly, the beginning was tough, as English was not my first language, meaning I was essentially pursuing two degrees simultaneously: academic English and Herbal Medicine. However, my situation improved year by year, and I went on to participate in numerous workshops and courses. After graduation I set up my own practice in Dublin before teaming up Dr Dílis Clare and the clinical team in Dr. Clare´s Apothecary and Clinic in Galway, Ireland in 2014. I have learned a lot from working alongside Dr. Clare and the team and will forever be greatful for the experience and opportunities it has given me. I am also greatful to many of my other mentor including Aviva Romm MD and Medical Herbalist, David Winston Medical Herbalist, Christopher Hedley Medical Herbalist, Gillian Leddy Medical Herbalist, and so many more (too many to list) who have influence me, challenged my viewpoints, broadened my knowledge base and encouraged me along the way. Thank you all, I am forever grateful!

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Through my educational years as well as my professional life as a medical herbalist, I have increasingly gained interest about various learning methods, group dynamics, teaching strategies, and content deliveries. This fascination eventually led me to pursue a Postgraduate Diploma and a MSc in Clinical Education in 2016 under the supervision of Prof. Peter Cantillon GP and Clinical Educator and Caroline Hills Occupational Therapy, which was an enlightening experience that reinforced my previous observations whilst also introducing new concepts, methods and approaches. This was another influential experience for which I am longterm grateful for.

I have carried all of the above experienced with me into my clinical practice and education work. Clinic work in essential very intertwined with education, not only do we as practitioner need to engage in continous professional but it also sits at the core of every patient/client interaction, throughout and following every consultation and clinic day in general. In addition, it is also very important for when we support those embarking on their own professional journeys such as through the clinical education work I do in our clinic in Galway as well as the clinical education work I have been doing with Heartwood Professional Herbal Medicine Course since 2017.

I have carried all of the above experienced with me into my clinical practice and education work. Clinic work is essentially very intertwined with education, not only do we as practitioner need to engage in continous professional but it also sits at the core of every patient/client interaction, throughout and following every consultation and clinic day in general.

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​I carry all these experiences into my clinical practice and educational endeavors. Clinical work is deeply intertwined with education; as practitioners, we must engage in continuous professional development and at the heart of every patient/client interaction sits two-directional education. Essentially education could be described as sitting at the core of all aspects of clinical practice. It also continues as we share our experience and knowledge with those embarking on their own professional journeys and those longing to expand their current knowledge and/or explore other health care disciplines such as through the clinical education work I do in our clinic in Galway as well as the clinical education work I do with Heartwood Professional Herbal Medicine Course.

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The reason for setting up Pods Academy links to my hopes and passion for sharing what I have experienced and learned during my clinical education studies and work and my nearly 20yrs as a herbal medicine practitioner. I hope it will be helpful, informative and assist you along your journey of discovery.

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Wishing you joy and exciting learning opportunities!