Sleep Improvement with Tea

Sleep Improvement with Tea

Is getting a good night’s sleep something you haven’t experienced very often lately? If so, don’t freak out. This problem is widespread. People all over the world have trouble sleeping. You should realize that help is available in many forms. No one has to live in a state of perpetual sleep deprivation. There are lots of things you can do to help yourself relax and fall asleep (and stay that way) each night. So let’s begin our discussion of these helpful tactics.

Get regular exercise during the day (not right before bed!) In addition to being necessary to keep your body healthy, getting regular exercise each day helps you sleep better at night. Since your muscles are tired from your workout, they’ll be more relaxed when you go to bed at night. It is important, however, not to try to do a full workout too close to your bedtime. Exercise pumps you up, gives you energy and enthusiasm and all of those things contradict your needing to relax and decompress to fall asleep. You can ask your doctor or a trainer at your gym for specific guidelines on the best type of exercises to do for sleeping better and your overall health.

Rest Easy Tea Leaves

Herbal tea can be very relaxing. You may be familiar with chamomile tea, which is great for helping you to relax and sleep. Valerian is an herb that’s often used to help people sleep, and this can be made into a tea, however it has a strong flavor not everyone can enjoy.  The Backyard Patch makes two blends specially formulated for sleep enhancement.  One I call Dreamtime which includes soothing combination of lavender and chamomile. The other is called Rest Easy.  This gently minty tea can settle the mind and the body for sleep.  Teas with Tulsi, Holy Basil, can be used to quiet the mind from dreams and worries.  A warm, non-caffeinated beverage at night, especially one made from selected herbs, can be great for helping you sleep.

Don’t be tempted by over-the-counter products to help you sleep. If you feel you have to get some kind of medication to get relief from your insomnia, it’s time to see a doctor. Many of the sleep aids you see advertised on TV and sold at the pharmacy are potent enough to make you dependent on them. In other words, you could soon be in a situation where you can’t sleep at all without taking this medication. Taking such a substance regularly can alter your brain chemistry. If you want to take something to help you sleep, you’re better off sticking to natural and herbal products, though you should research these as well for things like side effects.

There are a lot of things that you can do to help yourself get a better night’s sleep. If your insomnia is severe or there’s a medical reason for it, you have to consult with a physician. The strategies and remedies we’ve covered here can be effective most of the time, though. So make sure you include these suggestions in your efforts to sleep more soundly. In your efforts to overcome insomnia, it may be necessary to test out various remedies and practices, but eventually you’ll be able to figure out what it takes to get the sleep your body and mind requires.

Bathing with Herbs - Gel Soap

This recipe is a great way to use your harvest of fresh herbs this time of year.  Check out the alternatives for others herbs to try.

Chamomile Gel Soap

6 cups water

1 ½ cups ground chamomile

2 cups grated castile soap

½ cup borax

Heat water and chamomile until boiling.  Simmer for ½ hour and steep until cool.  Strain out the chamomile.  Meanwhile, shred with a fine grater, castile or other pure mild soap.  Reheat 3 cups of cooled chamomile tea to a boil.  Add soap and ½ cup borax.  Stir and boil for 2 minutes, then cool.  Pour into pretty container and keep covered.

Alternatives:  Use whole leaves of the following herbs and strain out once steeped and cooled instead of chamomile.  Lemon grass for oily skin, peppermint for astringent soap, lavender for washing lingerie.  If you like scent, you can add about ¼ ounce of essential oil, but avoid bergamot or pennyroyal as they irritate sensitive skin.

Check out the many Bath items of the Backyard Patch. 

Comforting Herbal Teas

I got caught out in a monsoon about a week ago.  My clothing was soaked to the skin and the wind whipped my wet clothing giving me a chill.  And this was before the train and bus ride that drops me a mile from my house.  I knew I was going to need to be proactive or the weather was going to take me down, so when I arrived home I brewed a batch of herbal tea and took a warm shower.  I can gladly say now that the immunity boost I got from the vitamin C in the rose hips of my tea, along with the anti bacterial properties of the thyme and sage have kept me from getting even a sniffle since that incident.

As a result I thought it might be good to share with you a few ideas for using a comforting cup of tea to help you recover, or even avoid, a few of winters sniffles.

Colds and Flu symptoms can often be held back with a combination of lemon and ginger.  This unique tea mixture I have made with just a touch of brandy or whiskey too to aid in sleeping.

Ginger and Lemon Tea

1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup lemon juice (fresh squeezed if you can)
2 to 4 slices of ginger root (about 1/4 inch thick) or 1 tsp grated ginger
1 Tbls. Honey

Bring water to boil, bruise the ginger root and drop it into the boiling water.  Reduce heat and simmer for 5 min.  Remove from heat ans strain into a heat resistant cup.  Add lemon juice and honey.  If you want to clear your sinuses add a 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper and if you want to aid relaxation add a snifter of brandy or whiskey.  Stir and sip while covered with a warm blanket.

If you suffer from coughs or a dry scratchy throat, a bit of peppermint will help with this and add to is some germ fighting sage and thyme and you will have perfect treatment for a fever or a cough.

Peppermint Anti-Cold Tea

1 tsp.dried thyme
1 tsp. dried sage
1 tsp. dried peppermint
1 cup bolling water

Boil the water and pour over herbs.  You can place them in a tea ball or the corner of a coffee filter so you don;t have to strain them.  Cover and let step for 8 to 10 minutes.  You can sweeten with honey (not sugar).  Drink up to 2 cups for 3 to 4 days to relieve symptoms.

With the lowering of the barometric pressure as storm fronts move through many people experience headaches. I developed my Headache Tea which I sell at the Backyard Patch for just such headaches which I tend to have regularly in the fall and winter. Here is a link if you want to try some yourself.  Those headaches will effect my sleep as well and although I have developed a Dreamtime and a Rest Easy mint Tea which I sell.  You might try this remedy if you want to make your own:

Snoozing Enhancer Tea

1 tsp. dried chamomile
1 tsp. dried lemon balm
1 tsp. dried lavender flowers

Boil the water and pour over herbs.  You can place them in a tea ball or the corner of a coffee filter so you don't have to strain them.  Cover and let steep for 6 to 8 minutes. Best when sipped before bed time.

Hope you enjoy these teas and if you want to see our entire line of teas, both herbal and those with herbs we've combined with green tea or black tea, just click into our website here.

Benefits of Herbal Tea

Whether you want to shed some few pounds or simply desire to have good heath, herbal tea is definitely good for you. Herbal tea is a great substitute if you find drinking mineral water plain. My husband has taken to drinking tea every night and as a result says he feels so much better.  I’ll give you a progress report after another month or so of this.  The important thing to remember with herb tea is you need to drink five glasses every day to relish all the benefits. Here are top reasons why you should drink herbal tea.

1. Great for weight loss

Herbal tea has been known to help in losing weight. This is a popular topic, reason being that teas can actually help in weight loss as they increase the body’s metabolism thus improving your blood circulation, cholesterol level and ultimately enhances cardiovascular health. Green tea has an antioxidant referred to as catechins, recent studies show that they significantly help to reduce fat.  Remember Green Tea, like black tea has caffeine.

2. Prevents Cancer

People who drink herbal tea are less susceptible to lung cancer and other common diseases. Believe it or not, research indicates that herbal tea helps to treat stroke, heart ailments and even certain cancers.  Lemon Grass is a good herb for canser as are any that help with nausea.

3. Cures stomach ailments

If you suffer from frequent stomach ailments, try drinking at least a cup of tea every day after your meals. Herbal tea reduces the acids in the stomach and therefore digestion takes place ably. There are specific herbs that are especially good for stomach disorders, like catnip, ginger, peppermint, thyme. 

4. Enhances the immune system
According to recent scientific studies, herbal teal strengthens the body’s immune system to ensure you are not prone to flu and other lung diseases. With a strong immune system, your body now has the ability to repair and regenerate the damage cells rapidly.  A number of herbs work with your body to improve immunity in a number of different ways.  You can increase Vitamin C with rose hips, add anti-viral properties with thyme, and use violets to gently stimulate the immune system.

5. Reduces stress

When your work and lifestyle seems stressful, drink one cup of tea. It is relaxing and therefore very effective at minimizing stress levels.  Certain herbs with also enhance this stress reduction ability, including lavender and chamomile.

On the other hand, herbal tea has been known to interfere with medication. For instance, it prevents proper absorption of iron in the gut.  Rosemary can if overused raist the blood pressure. Herbal tea can also become habit forming.  However, the Backyard Patch can help you with this habit!

Backyard Patch Tea

I began to blend teas back in the late 80s when all you could buy in stores was peppermint or chamomile tea.  I found both rather boring and realized that mixtures of herbs, like those I cooked with, would provide better flavors.  Unable to find all the herbs I wanted to use, like apple mint, pineapple sage and flavored thymes, I planted my first herb garden.  It was a desire for herbal tea that started it all.

Since then, I have designed more than 25 different herbal teas.  All are combined first with taste in mind and medicinal benefits second, because nothing that tastes awful can be taken long enough to cure anything.  All of my teas are available in our E-stores -- eBay Store or Etsy store. 

Check out all my teas at this link:   
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This year I designed two new teas: Holiday Comfort and Joy with several herbs including hibiscus and lemon balm.  It makes a beautiful red tea you can serve hot or iced and the raspberry leaf and lavender in it will give your immune system a boost to help ride out winter colds.  The other tea, Christmas Tidings, is a black loose-leaf tea blended with citrus and spices.  This unique recipe was adapted from one created during coffee shortages in World War II.   My seasonal tea blends are at this link.

There is no trouble so great or grave that cannot be much diminished by a nice cup of tea.  ~Bernard-Paul Heroux


* Disclaimer: Information within this site is for educational purposes only. Statements about the product efficacy have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. The products mentioned within are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. As always, please consult your Medical Doctor for any medical advice or treatment.