For those stressful days

Are you one of those people who deals with a lot of stress in your life? Are you frequently tense? Overwhelmed? Mildly freaking out and yet you have no real idea why?

These are extremely common feelings for a lot of people, and while there are many things that medical professionals may recommend (deep breathing, taking a nap, changing your scenery, various medications…), sometimes these recommendations just do not work as well as we hope they will, leaving us feeling even more stressed out and even more tense.

CONFESSION ALERT! I know exactly how that feels because this is something that I deal with personally all the time. Beneath my bubbly, optimistic personality, there is a big part of me that is uncertain, hesitant, and just plain old afraid. What if I do or say the wrong thing? What if I hurt someone? What if people think less of me? These are all things that I think and feel WAY too frequently. Doctors have assigned me with various labels over the years to explain these feelings, but none of them fit quite right, leaving me grasping for answers like a drowning person.

That is exactly why I started looking for solutions to help change that. I hated that feeling! But I figured that, if I can alter my body’s response to stress and make it a little less destructive, hopefully I will have a little more control and be able to make better decisions surrounding how I deal with this stress.

As always, I turned to the herbal realm of things to look for answers… and found something that actually REALLY helps! This blend of calming and relaxing herbs has anti-anxiety and anti-stress effects. It helps me sleep and calms my mind. Lavender and chamomile are commonly known for their relaxing properties, but surprisingly not many people know that the same applies of lemon balm and catnip! (If you have never tried catnip tea, seriously get on that… it is one of my favourite relaxing teas!).

For an extra-awesome summery treat, try freezing this tea into popsicle molds.

Anti-Anxie-Tea:

· 10 grams dried lemon balm leaves

· 5 grams dried chamomile flowers

· 5 grams dried lavender buds

· 5 grams dried catnip

1) Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and lightly muddle

2) Store in a glass jar away from heat and light

3) To brew the infusion, place 1 to 2 teaspoons of the blend in a tea infuser and pour 1 cup of freshly boiled water over the blend. Cover the mug or tea cup and allow to steep while covered for 10 to 15 minutes

4) When the tea has reached your desires strength, remove the infuser, sweeten with a bit of raw honey if desired and enjoy! You can also serve this over ice for a stress-soothing cold drink