Herbs and Teas to Help Promote Sleep

Insomnia can plague any of us at certain times in life. Once in a while I struggle to fall asleep and wonder, "did I have too much caffeine earlier? Am I stressing out about something too much? Or any other number of things. So the idea of having some natural, herbal remedies on hand is a very positive one.

Over the years I have tried a couple of different teas that are out on the market, that claim to possibly help induce falling asleep. These are of course caffeine free teas, that are herbal blends. You will see recurring herbs in teas like these. I absolutely love them, because they often smell good and include mint or spearmint in them!

When I think back to long ago, at a time when medicines weren't so available, nor doctors so ready to prescribe, I read about how people used more herbs and things of the earth, to help them rest, among other things. This seems like a great idea, and so much more healthy for our bodies.

If we get more sleep overall, we will feel better, be more productive, and live more of the life we were meant to live! So I thought I would share these simple suggestions, and my experience with them, in case it might help others out there. Please keep in mind that it is important to ask your doctor, and read all warnings and labels before ingesting anything like herbs of any kind. It is better to be safe than sorry.

Tilia flowers have been known in the past to be medicinal flowers. They can be found in some teas that are made to help with insomnia, or to promote sleep. Some even say they have a tranquilizing effect. They are yellow flowers, or yellowish flowers, and grow in Linden trees. In particular, the Tilia Platyphyllos. These trees can grow to be very large and beautiful. This diagram shows the different parts of the tree, from the leaves to the flowers, buds, etc. Do research before consuming tilia flowers, if you are concerned about any possible side effects.

One of my favorite herbal teas I have used over the years, from Celestial Seasonings, has tilia flowers in them. Sleepy Time tea It is a great go to tea. The designs on their boxes are too cute, as well. So you will want to check out the art work on their products.

Many people love lemongrass and lemongrass tea in particular. It is said to help cure insomnia. So one can see why it is included in some teas that claim to help promote sleep. It is also said to help calm the body down, and even useful for a variety of sleeping disorders. So if you struggle to fall asleep and stay asleep, this tea may just be part of what you need to help promote a good nights sleep. Supposedly, it can help relax ones muscles, as well as ones nerves. That sounds great to me! So it is definitely worth a try.

Passionflower (incarnata) is a native to North America. This surprised me as it has always looked so tropical. It can be found in the Midwest and Southeastern part of the United States. If you look back in history, it has been used as more of a folk remedy. It has been used to help treat sleeplessness, or insomnia. Some of its other uses include helping with anxiety, and even may have some aphrodisiac properties.

People struggling with general restlessness and nervousness, can sometimes benefit from using passionflower. There are many teas that include it in their tea, so that is a great way to get a little into your diet. Some have shared that it helps with a cough, which if true could also help promote restfulness at night when someone has a cough. Do consult your doctor with any questions on this or any of the herbs mentioned in this article.

Over the years, I have tried many different kinds of teas and herbal teas. I have used many brands from Lipton to Teavana, and probably close to everything in-between! I can recall back in college, when many of us began to drink coffee more and more. At night, so as to not be kept awake from that, we often had our favorite teas in our dorms and little cottages. It was a lot of fun. Celestial Seasonings has been a big one that has been consistent all that time, but there are many others. You may have also heard of The Republic of Tea, Tazo, Mightyleaf, Lipton, Bigelow and many more. Here are some of my favorite teas below, and some of the ingredients in each of them. The ones I am sharing are supposed to help with insomnia or sleeplessness, calming, etc.

This tea is actually one I came across on vacation once, in Colorado. That may sound strange, but in a store at the Garden of the God's there, I found this tea! Anyway, it has the best name, "Get some zzz's." It is one of their "Be Well Red Teas." It says, "Herb Tea For Rest," on the packaging.

The ingredients include organic Rooibos leaf, orange peel, spearmint leaf, chamomile flower, passionflower herb, and Stevia leaf. It came with a great tin, which keeps the container sealed well for freshness, and had 36 round tea bags. It calls itself an herbal supplement. It is a great tea to have on hand.

Tazo's Zen tea describes itself as a harmonious blend of green tea with lemongrass and spearmint. For the caffeine level, it has three dots shaded, out of five. So this tea may be better to have a little bit earlier in the day, but can still help with its beneficial herbs.

The ingredients for this tea include green tea, lemon verbena leaves, spearmint leaves, lemongrass, and other natural flavors.

Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime herbal tea is a great tea to try if you never have. It is caffeine free of course, and has several great ingredients in it to help promote a good nights sleep. It has chamomile, spearmint, lemongrass, tilia flowers, blackberry leaves, orange blossoms, hawthorn and rosebuds.

The tea bags are square, and without strings or tags on them, They have twenty bags to a box.

I first heard of Mighty Leaf tea through a friend that recommended it. It was new to me, but they seemed excited about it. I then saw it in a Home Good's store, of all places, in a little tin. So I had to try it. I am so glad I did! It is in the cutest little square tin, and is called chamomile citrus.

The ingredients in this great little tea are orange peel, chamomile flowers, rosehips peels, lemongrass, lemon myrtle, hibiscus flowers, spearmint, natural flavors, and orange petals.

It is caffeine free, and says it is an herbal infusion of chamomile, orange and lemon slices. It is a great little tea!

This is a lovely tea that comes in a tin also, so it stays very fresh. Tazo makes Calm Chamomile, and I love the description on it. It says, "A comforting herbal infusion of chamomile, rose petals, and soothing herbs." That sounds wonderful!

The ingredients that this tea has in it besides chamomile are blackberry leaves, lemongrass, rose petals, spearmint leaves, lemon balm leaf, hibiscus flowers, lavender flowers, and marigold flowers. Wow, what a blend! I have had this tea, but never really realized how amazing it is until I saw the ingredients list. So looking at the above herbs, this one is sure to be a winner for helping to promote sleep.