From Drug Development to Natural Remedies: My Unexpected Journey

If you'd met me a few years ago, you absolutely would not have predicted this life for me.

Honestly, neither would I.

Before Herd & Hive, before the bees, before the goats, before living off-grid in a caravan and enthusiastically telling strangers about the benefits of goat's milk soap, I worked in drug development.

A proper grown-up science job.

I worked for a company that tested medicines to make sure they were safe before they went onto the market. It was all laboratories, procedures, data, regulations and very clever people doing very important work. And I loved it. I've always been a science person. I still am. I like evidence. I like understanding why things work. I don't blindly believe everything I read on the internet. If anything, working in drug development made me more sceptical.

Which is why I find it quite funny that these days I start my mornings drinking a cacao and mushroom blend because I genuinely think it helps me focus. Old me would be horrified. She'd probably be asking for peer-reviewed studies while judging me from across the lab.

The thing is, I'm not some all-natural, anti-medicine, "have you tried rubbing lavender oil on it?" kind of person. Modern medicine is amazing.

Antibiotics? Incredible.

Vaccines? Life-changing.

The fact that we can develop medicines that save and improve millions of lives is genuinely mind-blowing, but somewhere between starting Herd & Hive, spending all my time with bees, caring for goats, and living off-grid, I've realised that nature can be pretty impressive too. Not magical. Not a replacement for actual medical care.

Just... impressive.

Take honey. As beekeepers, we have a ridiculous amount of honey in the house. Yet every time I get a cold, what do I reach for first? Honey. Honey and lemon in hot water. Honey straight off the spoon. Honey in tea.

Does it cure the cold? No.

Does it make me feel better? Absolutely.

And unlike some of the questionable remedies floating around online, honey is one of those traditional remedies that actually has evidence behind it when it comes to soothing coughs and sore throats.

Then there's the mushroom cacao. I can already imagine my former colleagues reading this and wondering who I've become. But honestly, I love it. It helps me feel focused and clear-headed, especially when my brain is trying to juggle approximately 47 different things at once – running a business, moving bees, sorting goats, filming content, remembering to eat lunch.

Is it magic? No.

Would I recommend replacing actual medical advice with mushrooms? Obviously not.

Do I enjoy it and think it helps me? Yes.

The biggest thing for us, though, has been goat's milk. Ollie has dermatitis, and over the years we've tried all sorts to help manage it. One thing we've consistently found helpful is using goat's milk soap. And I know how that sounds. Trust me, if someone had told me ten years ago that I'd be milking goats and talking about the benefits of goat's milk for skin, I'd have laughed.

But then life has a funny way of changing your perspective.

When you actually experience something helping someone you love, you pay attention. Not because you suddenly stop believing in science. But because you realise that maybe it isn't an either-or situation. Maybe modern medicine and natural products don't have to be enemies. Maybe antibiotics and honey can both have a place. Maybe steroid creams and goat's milk soap can coexist. Maybe drinking mushroom hot chocolate doesn't automatically mean you've lost your mind.

Living off-grid has probably reinforced this for me too.

When you live a bit differently, collecting rainwater, heating your home with a log burner, spending your days outside with animals, you naturally start questioning whether convenience is always best. You slow down a bit. You notice things. You become more interested in prevention rather than waiting until everything has gone wrong.

And you start appreciating that humans managed to look after themselves long before pharmacies existed on every high street. That doesn't mean I think natural is always better.

Plenty of natural things are terrible. Poison ivy is natural. Wasps are natural. The fact I still find rogue spiders in the caravan is natural, and I don't particularly appreciate any of those.

But I do think there's room for both.

I think it's okay to trust modern medicine while also appreciating traditional remedies. I think it's okay to love science while also recognising that some natural products genuinely help people. I think it's okay to be a former drug development scientist who now spends most of her time covered in propolis and goat hair.

I never expected this to be my life.

But honestly? I wouldn't change it. Even if my former self is still slightly confused by the mushroom hot chocolate.