#60: Olivia Sabella Burr
"Personal healing is just a part of maintaining homeostasis in the grander web of life."
#60: Olivia Sabella Burr
Olivia (@olivia__burr) is an artist, herbalist, and the creator of Earth Archive, a holistic botanical beauty offering bridging “ancient wisdom and modern wellbeing.” You may remember her from a previous Health Gossip feature, where she interviewed her mother, Theresa.
Olivia’s healing arts practice weaves her lymphatic, somatic, and energetic bodywork with her studies in European and South American herbalism traditions.
She has also practiced as a postpartum doula and private chef specializing in Ayurvedic healing modalities for birth and nutrition (check out her cookbook here).
Health Gossip with Olivia Sabella Burr
📍 Big Island, Hawaii
Leo/Sagittarius/Leo
What does health, or being healthy, mean to you?
Health encompasses the very essence of being alive and the progressive continuance of life. I think of it as being that which is in alignment with creation, that which is life-giving, that which is true.
I spend a lot of time in locations where the life-death cycles of nature move very quickly, and as decomposition is happening, something new has already sprouted in its place. Regeneration is a sign of health. So is adaptation. I think the way our mind works is one of the biggest reflections of our health. Courage, desire, passion, and intuitive impulse are all feelings that are health markers, too. It’s very healthy to emote. I try to infuse all aspects of my life with health. And when those are balanced, I feel that I can most easily access creation.
How would you describe your current lifestyle?
Romantic, bohemian, lush.
How do you start and end your days?
I’ve been in Hawaii the past month and basically live outside. The windows are always open and some of the walls are just mosquito netting, but most of my time is spent outdoors anyway. My body has become acclimated to waking when I hear the daytime birds and insects and sounds instead of the nighttime ones.
The first thing I do every morning is think about my dreams. I’ve worked with dreams for years and they provide a significant experience of life. I lay in bed in the liminal for as long as possible to recall what was seen and felt and draw whatever conclusions want to be drawn. I then go outside. Warm water with shilajit. Maybe eat a mango. Coffee. I like to either drink very maximalist coffees with milk + honey + collagen + pearl or tiny Americanos. Write. Read. Go on a walk. Spacious mornings are very important to me so I let them be what they want to be.
To close the day, I take a shower, cover my body in oils, smoke tobacco, and just sit outside for a while before going back into the dreaming.
Do you have a spiritual practice?
The many ways to pray. And singing. We can bring spirit into form through song and it’s one of the ways that I can best hear God.
What’s your relationship to self-healing?
We could all benefit from a greater sense of Trust and Grace. The nature of healing is very interconnected, and while faith in the ability to self-heal is important, I think we’ve largely over-emphasized the self. Personal healing is just a part of maintaining homeostasis in the grander web of life.