The Perfect Mix

Houma Health and Wellness – What’s Up, Doc 2023
June 2, 2023
Point of Vue June 2023 – The Health Issue
June 2, 2023
Houma Health and Wellness – What’s Up, Doc 2023
June 2, 2023
Point of Vue June 2023 – The Health Issue
June 2, 2023

Nicholls State University student Rodney Woods is turning his passion into a lifestyle and career. The 23-year-old Thibodaux native is a vegan, herbalist, and entrepreneur who sells his own homemade recipe for speciality teas on his Etsy shop “Duke’s Apothecary,” all while running a successful photography business, “Visuals By Duke.”

Rodney is a major in Studio Arts at Nicholls State University with a concentration in photography, and remembers his passion for art beginning at a young age. “I used to watch my mom use her camera and take photos, and I got interested by playing with the camera she had. I knew from then I wanted to take pictures,” explained Rodney. “I used to walk from school or walk downtown and just take pictures of anything and everything. I would even ask strangers if I could take their pictures,” he chucked. “I got my own equipment and things really started to pick up from there. I would take pictures of my siblings, myself, and all the sudden, people were asking me if I could take pictures for them.” Rodney explained that he began studying art through courses online and eventually decided to study photography in college and turn it into a business. “My photography company, Visuals By Duke, started in 2018 and has been flourishing ever since then,” he explained. Visuals By Duke explores portraiture, street photography, studio fine art, senior portraits, and more. His photography has been featured in Vogue Italia, has won countless awards at Nicholls State University, and has been featured in four solo exhibitions. “I would say the most rewarding part of my career as a photographer so far has been a recent exhibition I did called ‘This Land,’ ” said Rodney. “It really pushed me to talk about injustices and the African American experience throughout history. I created a body of work that took a lot out of me emotionally but I was extremely proud of it.” ‘This Land’ was on display recently at Nicholls State University.


However, photography is not the only entrepreneurial pursuit Rodney is currently working on—the local student is a practicing herbalist and even sells some of his creations on his Etsy shop, Duke’s Apothecary. “My interest in herbalism began at an early age, same as photography,” he said. “I was never the type of person who liked traditional medicine. Even when I was sick or had a headache, I never wanted to take medicine for it—there were even times I would go to the doctor and get prescribed medicine and nothing would work for me. It got to the point where it was concerning,” he continued. “It really opened my eyes to the fact that I, personally, shouldn’t be taking pills, which initially inspired me to look into herbalism.” Rodney explained that he found a book on herbalism and began to research online the best ways to make homemade medicine. “I am also an artist, so I suffer from insomnia. That’s when I had my turning point,” Rodney said. “I really began to experiment with one insomnia tea for years until I got it right.” His homemade insomnia tea, Sweet Dreams, is currently his best selling product on Etsy.

“I feel really good about putting my product out there, because I feel like I am able to help people all across the world who may be suffering from insomnia and feel medicine doesn’t help,” Rodney said. His insomnia tea is also stocked in Anela’s Yoga and Wellness Center in Houma, and will soon be in several stores across the Lafayette area. “This journey has taught me that people are more likely to turn to herbalism because it is so natural and healthy. Even though it may not be an alternative to modern medicine, it is a really great way to help heal yourself.” His interest in herbalism now stretches beyond his creation of Sweet Dreams tea for insomnia, and into other aspects of his own physical wellbeing such as memory, brain function, and more. “I study and study and study until I know what different ingredients to put together to help my body,” said Rodney. “And everyone’s body is different, which makes herbalism so interesting. Whenever I am helping people, I try to learn as much about them as I can and what they need so I can make the best blend for them.”

In conjunction with his interest in health and herbalism, Rodney decided to undertake the challenge of becoming vegan to benefit his personal health and wellbeing in 2018. “It is one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life,” he chucked. “It is mentally challenging. I’ve thought about going vegan so many times, and the back and forth was a real battle.” He explained that what finally pushed him to journey into veganism was that in March of 2018, he had multiple members of his family pass away—all due to preventable health issues such as high blood pressure and diabetes. “I saw that as a sign to eat cleaner so I wouldn’t develop these same avoidable issues,” he said. “Ever since I went vegan, my health has been wonderful. My inflammation is gone, I have more energy, I am more focused, and I rarely get sick or have chronic pain. That, combined with the herbalism, has helped me a lot.” Rodney  is still learning more veganism alongside herbalism, and even grows his own fresh food in a garden.


This interest in clean, fresh vegetables and herbs began to mesh with his’ passion for photography as he began photographing his harvests and the meals he makes. “For me, photography, cooking, and herbalism go hand in hand—because food is truly art,” said Rodney. “Being able to use color theory, lighting, and thinking of my plate as a canvas really brings out my creativity. Plating food is like painting and is a really beautiful art form.” Rodney also uses his photography and artist eye to help photograph pictures of his herbalist tea and herb mixtures for his Etsy shop. Although Visuals by Duke does not often feature his garden-to-table meals, his Facebook page is overflowing with pictures of his healthy lifestyle and the continuation of his pursuit of a healthier lifestyle.

Rodney is currently planning to go to grad school following his graduation in December 2023 for herbalism, and then potentially attending another graduate program to pursue a masters in Fine Arts. “As I continue with my studies, I am just going to keep researching and practicing herbalism, veganism, and photography as much as I can and growing both my businesses,” he said. “And, hopefully help people along the way learn how to lead healthy, natural, and artistic lifestyles!”