bath
cure insomnia and relieve stress
lavender essential oil
lavender sleep pillow
lavender tea
relax
Suffering from Insomnia, Stress or Depression? Then, Read On...
By Darkwing
@Darkwing (21583)
May 4, 2007 2:59pm CST
If you are finding it impossible to sleep, Lavender is the herb for you.
Firstly, as your last drink of the evening, take a cup of lavender tea. Lavender flowers make a relaxing and refreshing tea. A weak infusion sweetened with honey was a traditional treatment for insomnia, irritability and nervous headache.
Put a rounded desertspoon of lavender flowers into a muslin bag or a tea infuser and drop into a cup... then pour on boiling water and allow it to infuse, until you have a weak solution in the cup. Take out the bag or infuser, add honey to taste and enjoy the drink whilst relaxing in your favourite armchair. :-)
If you're going to have a bath before bed, add a few drops of lavender oil to the bathwater. This will relax you and take away the stress of the day.
Then... to bed, with your Lavender Sleep Pillow, which you will have made beforehand. :-) Here are instructions to make your pillow.
LAVENDER SLEEP PILLOW
3 parts Lavender Flowers
Hop Flowers or Lemon Verbena Leaves
Rosemary Leaves
Marjoram Leaves
Sweet Cicely Leaves
2-3 drops Lavender Oil
Sew the mixture into a bag made of thin material which will allow the fragrance to escape, for example, organza or muslin, silk is ideal. Make a pillow slip to contain the sleep pillow.
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You should then sleep well, with all of the day's stresses lifted from you. :-)
3 people like this
9 responses
@kathy77 (7485)
• Australia
4 May 07
Hi Hon, yes you are right of course as I have used the Lavender flower to help me sleep in the past. I prefer to drink a natural drink in the night time so I either drink a cup of lavender tea or lemon as these two are in my backyard. My niece when she came here last month she did not know that I did this and she asked me if she could put it on her pillow case I was surprised and happy to know that she also was doing this. Oh yes I do have a wonderful sleep due to using the lavender flower. xx
1 person likes this
@Darkwing (21583)
•
4 May 07
And sweet dreams? lol. I'm on the green tea at the moment. It's good stuff. I've only been taking it a fortnight, two cups a day, but it's doing me good, so I'm going to get some more.
Do you make oils from your herbs and lavender? I grow some but I don't have room for a lot and the rosemary seems to have gone mad... it's huge now! lol.
Thank you for your response Kathy... that was a lovely story about your niece. She's earned you a + rating. :-)
Brightest Blessings. x
1 person likes this
@Darkwing (21583)
•
5 May 07
You can buy or cultivate and harvest your own lavender flowers. The three parts just means, 3/4 of the mix has to be lavender flowers, so if you use say 1oz each of the other ingredients, they amount to 4oz total, therefore, that being 1/4 of the mix, you multiply by 3 to get the weight of lavender flowers required, which would be 12oz.
Thank you for your response, Gabs, and Brightest Blessings.
2 people like this
@wolfie34 (26770)
• United Kingdom
5 May 07
Thank you for sharing, I suffer a lot with depression and my nerves and was diagnosed with depression back in 2003 I found that anti-depressants DIDN'T work in actual fact they made things worse by giving me nightmares. I have a lot of worries with not being able to get a job and as a result suffer with insomnia. Can any product containing lavender help?
@Darkwing (21583)
•
5 May 07
Yes, certainly any product containing lavender can help.
I sometimes just put water with a few drops of lavender in my burner for instance. Plus, my dear friend Gabs, if you look back on her response, says she uses plug in air fresheners with a lavender aroma, and they help her to calm and sleep. As long as another additive to the lavender doesn't overpower the scent of the lavender itself, you should be ok.
Don't take the essential lavender oil internally... that could cause problems... lavender tea would be a perfect replacement for coffee, but don't make it too strong. Use the flowers as you would tea leaves and place them in an infuser or tie them in a piece of muslin. It's a good idea to drink only lavender tea after about eight at night, so as to relax you some before you try to sleep, kind of wind down from the daytime stresses.
If the insomnia or depression gives you headaches, you can put a little lavender oil on your fingers and massage it into your temples for relief.
If there's anything else you would like to know then please don't hesitate to ask. Also, looking back at the responses to see what other people do, might help.
If you are in a flat and can put a window box outside your bedroom and living room windows with lavender plants in, this might also help if you can leave your windows open.
I don't want to confuse you too much at any one time. You have problem enough but just work into it step by step and I'm sure you'll find that lavender is a natural and effective remedy for most of your problems. Feel welcome to PM me at any time if you need any more information.
I hope I've helped here. Get well soon.
1 person likes this
@mummymo (23706)
•
5 May 07
Hey honey - I had noticed you mentioning lavender tea - now I understand! I think this will have to wait until my recovery is further along as I don't see my other half making this for me! lol My mother in law must have been thinking along the same lines as you though cos when she came to visit yesterday, along with half a shop full of things she also brought me lavender pot pourri and a beautiful lavender scented candle - I will try these until I am well enough to try making the tea for myself! xxxx
@Darkwing (21583)
•
5 May 07
A clued-up Mum, huh? I'm certain that all the bits she brought you are going to help you to relax and get better very soon my dear friend.
It's great to see you back here, but take it easy until you're fully fit again, Mummymo, so that you can spend more time with us again. You've been missed. xxx
@Sherry12 (2472)
• United States
26 May 07
This does sound like just what I need. Does it matter what kind of lavender oil you get? I've seen it for use in potpourri and for candles. But, is this kind okay to put in your bath water? I have about a hundred/million questions for you. Are products you buy in the stores when lavender scent as good as the ones you make yourself? I'd love to learn to make my own, but I've never done it before.
@Darkwing (21583)
•
27 May 07
Yes, that oil's fine to put in your bath ... just three or four drops will do the trick. Don't overdo it or you'll fall asleep in the bath! lol.
I'd say the ones you make yourself are always better than shop products, and a whole lot cheaper. Sending you friends request so we can exchange stuff in PM, if that's ok with you! :-)
@Darkwing (21583)
•
4 May 07
I'll help all I can here but I'm in England and I use an online shop for my supplies, or go to the local garden centre. Do you have something similar to a garden centre in Canada, preferably near you, because they sell dried herbs and often you can buy the plants and harvest your own?
If this doesn't help, then you could surf online for a herb outlet.
If you have any problems, please come back to me and I will try to suggest something further.
Thank you for your response and Brightest Blessings.
