Stress busters

Today we women do it all! We work, cook, parent, clean, shop and most of all get stressed? Most modern women know that we are supposed to find the time to take care of ourselves, but that doesn’t always happen. We know we need to sleep, drink water and exercise but most find it difficult to squeeze in our busy schedules to ‘take care of ourselves.’

Many countries have ‘tea-time’ in the middle of their work days. Imagine if we had the custom to stop our busy days and sit down with a relaxing cup of tea. Imagine if that cup of tea was filled with calming medicinal herbal teas? What would happen? Would we all be calmer? Would we even feel less stressed?

When I first studied herbal medicine ‘tea-time’ is what my teacher believed all women should do at least once a day. She taught us that certain herbal teas could help counter the terrible side-effects of chronic stress such as high blood pressure, headaches and digestive disorders. She spent a lot of time teaching us how to make wonderfully relaxing herbal blends. The first few months of practice I believed I could convince women of this ‘tea-time’ ritual but since most of my clients are busy running from one activity to the next ‘tea-time’ was not going to happen. My clients didn’t even have time to wait for the water to boil, let alone have time to ‘steep’ the tea. So I re-evaluated what I learned and began offering a ‘quicker’ solution for my clients. I taught them ‘tinctured herbs.’ Tinctured herbs are herbs that have been steeped in grain alcohol and taking them is easy. Just put 25-35 drops a small cup of water or juice and drink it. You could take your herbs driving the carpool, as you run out of the house, or as you are preparing dinner. You could also keep the herbal mix in your purse and take the herbs anytime you are feeling stressed, and good news is that the entire process would only take you about 30 seconds.

There are many soothing and calming ‘anti-stress’ herbs and each woman will requires a different herb depending on what is making her stressed. Some women need only a single herbs to help ease the negative effects of stress, while others find combining all of the below herbs together makes them feel their best. Here are a few herbs you can begin with.

Skullcap-Best used for nervous tension with anxiety. It is considered ‘food for the nerves.’ Women, who feel stressed before they take on new projects, or woman who ‘take it all on’ and appear to be able to handle everything but have a nervous feeling in their stomachs.

Fresh milky Oats– This herb is indicated for nervous exhaustion. One of the best remedies for chronic stress with impaired sleep patterns. Oats help relieve the feeling of being ‘burned out.’ This herb naturally contains magnesium and calcium which is needed to repair the nervous system.

Eleuthero-This works on the adrenal glands to help normalize stress hormones. Regular use of this herb helps smooth out the peaks and valleys that help lead to chronic stress. It also helps normalize blood pressure, realizes stress and helps dispel depression.