Whether it’s old mate Alfred hurting towards us, politics or cost-of-living, there’s a lot of reasons life can feel totally out of control atm.
I’ve chosen the 6 I think are best worked with for acute stress – like you’re in the cyclone and feeling really unsafe and these are the herbal allies you want to call on. There’s some other herbs I mention at the end of the article which can also be helpful during the waiting and post-disaster situations. I’ve also tried to think about what herbs you might already have on hand, in the garden or that might be available.
Here’s 6 widely available herbs to work with during acute distress.
🌿 Rescue remedy
This is a blend of 5 flower essences that help to relieve acute stress and anxiety. Really great for acute emotional stress and panic attacks. Use when needed. Pastilles or spray options. Great option to support kids as well.
🌿 Passionflower (Passiflora Incarnata) or skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora)
Passionflower and skullcap both soothe the mind when it gets stuck on a relentless worry loop. I personally think passionflower for more rumination when you literally get stuck and skullcap when it’s the sheer torrent of racing thoughts. like a rushing waterfall. But everyone experiences these a little differently. Often these are useful more at night to help you sleep but if you’re experiencing panic attack or high level of baseline anxiety during the day you might find them supportive. Just note they can make you drowsy and not be safe when operating heavy machinery or when you’re some medications. Use individually or pair well together. Can drop dose the tincture (5 – 15 drops taken every half hour as needed) or make as tea (2 teaspoons – 1 tablespoon herb/ cup boiling water, steeped covered for 10-15 minutes)
🌿 Catnip (Nepeta Cataria)
If you’ve got rising anxiety that feels like you wanna hurl your guts up – catnip can be a great support. Catnip can help with rising panic, especially when it’s accompanied (or caused by) sore tummy. Butterflies in your stomach-kinda feeling. It’s got a grounding energy. Pairs well with chamomile (extra nervous system support) and ginger (helps with nausea). Use 2 teaspoons/ cup boiling water, steeped covered for 10 minutes.
🌿 Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca)
Anxiety can show up in many ways in our bodies, some of us feel it more in our heads, some in our hearts and some in our guts or in musculoskeletal tension. Identify where it’s showing up for you and pick herbs that have an affinity for that area.
Motherwort in particular works well if you’ve got anxiety with heart palpitations or you’re really really feeling your anxiety or panic attach in your chest area. Drop dose tincture as needed (5 – 15 drops every half an hour as needed.
🌿 Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Yarrow is warrior medicine. That’s obvious as its one of our premier first aid herbs for healing wounds, but when we use it for the emotional body, yarrow also helps give us emotional armour. Yarrow is a protector. She helps with boundaries. She helps when you want someone to lean on. Work with yarrow as flower essence, drop dose or small part in a tea blend.
You could make a tea 1 teaspoon each lemon balm, passionflower and yarrow. Or 1 teaspoon each catnip, lemon balm and yarrow or 1 teaspoon each rose, tulsi and yarrow. (so many options that will obviously depend what you’ve got at home already). Steep tea covered for 10 minutes.
🌿 Lemon Balm (Melissa Officinalis)
Lemon balm help shift us into a parasympathetic nervous system state, as well as gently uplift out mood. It’s delicious, effective and makes a particularly nice herb for kids. Pairs well with chamomile, catnip and passionflower. Use 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon herb material/ cup boiling water.
Note. If you don’t have any of these, please don’t stress. You might already have other herbs on hand that are useful. Chamomile is easily available and a great option. Lavender essential oil is really grounding and calming if you take a whiff. I haven’t worked with it like this, but common thyme was traditionally given to soldiers going into battle for courage – so maybe chew, sniff or make a thyme tea and see if it gives you courage (Ps – report back if you try this, I’m curious about your experience).
Obviously remember to call on your physiological first aid toolkit
Some breathwork practices can really help us find safety in our bodies
In terms of breathwork, you could try box breath, alternate nostril breathing, 4-7-8 or physiological sigh. I’m not a breathwork teacher, just someone who finds these practices really helpful, so try them and if they don’t feel supportive in your body, discontinue or seek supportive from a breathwork teacher.
Grounding into your senses – listen to music you enjoy, pat your pet or soft blanket, hug and connect with family and friends, move your body in a way that feels good, use 5 -4-3-2-1 grounding practice (list 5 things you can see, 4 things you can hear, 3 things you can touch, 2 things you can smell, 1 thing you can taste).
Post-cyclone or for longer-term stressors – I’ve chosen these 6 herbs for dealing with acute distress. Whilst you certainly can work with them longer, when dealing with post-disaster recovery, you might like to work with other herbs, such as rose, hawthorn, hibiscus, tulsi, chamomile, milky oats, ashwagandha, reishi etc. These herbs help us deal with stress, build resilience and support our physical and emotional heart.
As always, please research safety info for herbs to make sure they’re appropriate in your particularly circumstance.
For advice during pregnancy, check out Dr Aviva Romm’s work – https://avivaromm.com/herbal-medicines-in-pregnancy-safety/
