We were lucky to catch up with Dori Edwards recently and have shared our conversation below.

Dori, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s kick things off with a hypothetical question – if it were up to you, what would you change about the school or education system to better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career?

I am a certified Waldorf Education Teacher. We look at the whole human being and our relationship to the earth. We also stress the importance of imagination. First off I would make sure children knew basic survival skills like growing food; the food soil web, vermiculture, electro-culture, composting, food as medicine, herbs as medicine, natural living and also how to care for our internal landscape; how to sit in stillness and silence, how to meditate, how to change our frequency so our physical bodies stay healthy, and how to co-create our reality. If this were children’s foundation, they would have an understanding of what true health is, mentally, spiritually and physically. This only serves their being in the highest when taking on any life goal or career path. They’d have a clear knowing of exactly who they are, deeper insight into what brings them joy and more likely to do something that serves both themselves and others.

Dori, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

While attending Michigan State University studying Psychology in 1991, my mind was opened to how things really worked. My friends who were studying medicine were learning how to prescribe, not heal. Their curriculum was created and paid for by the Big Pharma. They weren’t taught anything about nutrition and natural medicine was taboo. Then I was introduced to a book called The Emperor Wears No Clothes by Jack Herer which outlined the 3000+ uses of hemp and the political moves against it which blew my mind. After that I became interested in ingredients in our food and how companies used bought and paid for studies in marketing to tell us things like margarine is better than butter. When looking up ingredients I became enraged at what was in most products. While everyone was counting calories I was screaming, “but look what you are eating! Focus on the ingredients!” Back then no one was listening so I just focused on making sure I only ate organic food, drank clean water and put only natural products on my body. Fast forward to the year 2000, I was the creative director and choreographer for my Drum & Dance Troupe, was dancing almost every day and needed fast muscle recovery. I set out to make an herbal balm, asked God for guidance and was given the formula for Dori Balm. Not only did it help my inflammation and muscle recovery, it was healing my then husband’s hands from bruising and cuts after he’d apply it on my back. In 2009, I learned we had an Endocannabinoid System that was discovered in the early 90’s but never taught to us. Why?? It regulated every other system in the body and we aren’t taught about it? Why was it left out? Did it have anything to do with why Cannabis was illegal? Could it truly help people and heal? Because Michigan just legalized medical cannabis, I lawyered up and opened my first of 3 dispensaries and brought my balm to market. Through patients’ feedback I quickly learned of many other beneficial uses for the balm from skin conditions to neuropathy. Ever since I was a child I wanted to soothe people’s pain somehow and this balm made me feel so good each time someone would come to me thanking me for easing their pain. This lit a fire under me and in 2019, I sold my dispensaries and focused on the balm full time. I want to get this into as many hands as possible. My favorite feedback is that people are able to get off of their opiates that were easing their pain prior. To know that I could make a positive difference in the opiate crisis meant alot to me. My balm aligns my philosophy of natural medicine that truly heals with a belief that we can feel better naturally. I am 50 years old and people can’t believe I take zero pharmaceuticals. I even healed myself from Lyme and Epstein Barr naturally. In 2006 I started Women’s Retreats both locally and in Jamaica and have been leading them ever since. I teach Co-Creative Meditation, Inner Alchemy, Dance and Trauma Release Breathwork as well. My passion is helping people Feel Better Naturally.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Once again when asking God, how do I serve? What is my work and the answer was “Open a Dispensary” I was in shock and disbelief. I was very scared and had no clue how to run a business. But I listened and immediately took action. It had to align with my core values and it did. I took a stand for patients to be able to choose natural medicine when I decided to open a dispensary. I wanted to change the image of a cannabis user. I wanted to bring normalcy and professionalism to the industry. But each day my heart raced as a siren drove by. Each day I was nervous that the federal government would raid me and take me to prison and worse yet take away my children. I started an organization called The Medical Cannabis Guild of Ann Arbor to gather some strength in numbers. We pooled our money and wrote amicus briefs for cases being tried in different counties. I had all of a sudden become an activist. I persevered because I knew I was making a major difference in people’s lives where pharmaceuticals had failed them. As far as running a business without a degree or experience, I simply worked each position, created a job description doc and an SOP for each position and then hired myself out of it. This helped me truly understand what I was asking my employees to do and to set healthy expectation for both of us. At first I was generous when they’d ask me for raises etc. I wanted everyone to have a great quality of life and to be able to put their families first. I quickly learned that giving too much too fast resulted in less quality work from my employees and more disgruntled attitudes. I continued to read great books like Traction, the Entrepreneurs Operating System that guided me to be a better and better boss. I thrived off of creating a work place that was built on accountability, both my own and others, approachability and an attitude of gratitude.

Have you ever had to pivot?

In 2008 when the arts funding crashed, our drum and dance company lost funding for all our contracts. We decided to sell our business. Along with the sale I had to sign a non compete to not take any dance contracts for 3 years. I was lost and devastated. This was my identity or so I thought. It was everything I knew. I had already given up teaching to dance full time and now I had to give this up as well? I was afraid at what was next for me. I had to reinvent myself. This is when I was guided to open a dispensary. In 2013 I walked away from the cannabis industry for good, or so I thought. The stress had really gotten to me. I started working for a natural skincare company but found myself still talking about cannabis to most of my customers. I was determined to not go back into cannabis but found myself opening another dispensary in late 2014 that ended up being my best one yet.
In 2019 I launched Artemis Brands and had an incredible first year then 2020 hit like a load of bricks. My business partner and I decided to split ways and I lost my momentum and inspiration. Nothing is worse than loosing that in business. It took my until December 2021 to get it back. I rebranded once again to All About Alchemy and am once again building from scratch. This time I’m doing it alone and so excited about that.
What I learned is that, companies are not your identity, be fluid with what life throws at you because even though it may seem devastating there is usually something way better coming along, do not take on a partner if they don’t align with your personal core values and that yes, you can do this.     

Contact Info:

• Website: www.allaboutalchemy.com
• Instagram: @doribalm
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/doridance
• Linkedin: Dori Michelle
• Twitter: dorianna_michelle
• Youtube: dorianna_michelle

Image Credits
Yana Galanin Photography