Herbal Medicine: An Adult Education Response to Mental Health

Adult education is concerned with the redistribution of resources and the recognition of rights held by citizens and to have these rights respected (Honneth, 1995). Mental health is an important domain of rights that are disrespected and unprotected by the state. This article reflects on herbal medicine as a practice in adult education in response to the mental health needs of citizens. It argues that adult educators need to pay more attention to the limitation of biomedicine in the defining and treatment of mental health. Herbal medicine has potential to offer adult educators a critically reflexive space, to critique issues of power, medicine and wellbeing.