Mood Boosting Herbs
Mood Boosting Herbs 😍🌿
Just as I started writing this post the sky turned grey and the rain started pouring down 🌧 and I thought what better time to write about mood boosting herbs!
I’ve even just heard a dramatic thunderclap ⚡️!
So here are my favourite herbs to cheer us up on a miserable day 🙂!
Whether you are feeling a bit sorry for yourself or it is just a rainy day, here are my go-to herbal allies.
Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata)
This is the most beautiful flower and is named after the Passion of the Christ! It is often used as to calm the nervous system and aid with sleep 💤. It is very soothing! I’m taking passionflower to stop my circulating thoughts (I am a typical Vata) and have found it to be highly therapeutic. I’ve even become more productive 👩💻 as it seems to be helping with procrastination which is a great side effect! It is also an anti-spasmodic and relaxes the muscles which can be helpful f or those with asthma or even something like Parkinsons. A very lovely remedy that can help a lot of people even procrastinators like me!
St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)
I always talk about St John’s Wort because it is the ultimate flower to bring in the sunshine ☀️. It can really help someone get through a dark winter with seasonal affective disorder. However, the best and most effective way to take this is as a fresh flowering tincture. The way to tell if it is made with the fresh flower is that the tincture will be a bright red colour! If you have previously just tried St John’s wort in capsules and not found success, then this might be why. One of those quirks of herbal medicine! Quick FYI St John's Wort it does speed up liver detoxification which is good unless you are on medication so so not one to take if you are! Something like the contraceptive pill might get eliminated too quickly and then you definitely won't feel cheered up 😳!
Oat straw (Avena sativa)
This is another herb I also recommend this to everyone. The tincture made with the milky oat seed restores strength to t
he nervous system and is wonderful to use if people are just feeling completely exhausted. However, my favourite way is to make a nourishing herbal infusion with the dried oat straw. It is so nourishing, so sweet and delicious. Drinking it hot with a little biscuit brings me so much comfort and warmth!☕️
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)
This is such a beautiful mint and so easy to grow that everyone can access its power! The intoxicating lemon 🍋 scent lifts the spirit and I have a little pot on my windowsill just so I can rub the leaves and pop it fresh into teas! The great Arabic herbalist Avicenna said lemo
n balm caused ‘the mind and the heart to be merry’. It can also promote concentration, calm the nerves and relieve anxiety. It has even been used to give to children before bed to prevent nightmares!
Vervain (Verbena officinalis)
Many herbs that lift our mood also support the liver which was traditionally associated with melancholy. By getting the liver going we can often work through our dark moods too! Vervain is a greatexample of this as it is a w
onder for the liver and for lifting the moods. It has always been held sacred in many traditions. The Ancient Egyptians held that it represented the tears shed by Isis at the loss of Osiris, to druids would crown their High Priestesses in Vervain and Christians would use it to sprinkle holy water. Vervain brings 💕 love and prosperity and I think we all need a bit of that right now!
So next time you feel like you need a mood pep then hope you find some herbal allies that might work for you.