Once I’d finally escaped years of benzos at bedtime, I knew I’d need a replacement.
At the very least, I needed something to help me sleep.
The entire Tyrd site has been an inadvertent homage to that – capitalizing on all the many remedies I’ve tried to calm my noggin and sleep deeply after relying on pharmaceuticals for too long. My holistic aisle herbal experiments in that first year were diverse. But, among the very first I tried along my journey was none other than one many don’t even know about: Kava. Kava comes from the root of the Piper methysticum shrub and it’s classified as a “depressant”. It slows down messages to your brain, calming and relaxing you all the while. (I can personally confirm.) And it’s been utilized for ages in faraway lands – not in our watered down tea and tincture forms, but actually chewed or brewed in South Pacific ceremonies and rituals. Mind you, it doesn’t exactly come without risk – and I knew that before giving it a try – but when used sparingly, it gets the job done. And how do you take it? Well, while it comes in many available forms, I’ve only tried a couple. (That’s all I needed really to find what I needed.) It came down, for me, to the tea versus the tincture. And I’m here to share my experience with both.
First up, let’s spill the tea on the tea…
(Yes, that’s me… enjoying my sacred tea time. You can follow @missashleyprimps for reviews)
Kava by Yogi tea is the only brand I’ve tried – because it’s all I needed.
And I could define this one the way I do a fine wine: With cinnamon and cardamom scent on the nose, the heat of the drink already causes and aromatherapeutic effect before your first sip. And when you do take it, you’re welcomed immediately with the warm spice on the palate, a slight numbing sensation, and pleasant surprise of sweetness (I think it’s stevia sweetened) on the end which lingers. (Intentional, likely, seeing as kava itself is a bit bitter – like myself, after a long sleepless night.) I like sitting with this one cradled in my hand, just below my face so that it’s like I’m getting a spa treatment of herbal steam between sedative sips. Before halfway through the mug, I begin to feel that cozy-toed calm, which slowly spreads over my body. The world takes on a more welcoming hue. My filter of reality feels kinder and calmer. And, if I’ve made the mistake of remaining anything but perfectly vertical on the couch, my mattress a few rooms over will start to sing its siren song.
Now, I’ll admit, I am a “blend” kindofa gal. I like wines that are blends and I do the same with my tea. So, my more current regimen will also include Tulsi Tea’s goodies (keep posted for reviews) as well as some other fun ashwaganda based bags. However, I can reflect fondly on my simpler days before my polyamorous tea bag lifestyle, when I practiced herbal monogomy. Indeed, I’ve had exclusive relationship with kava. And, I can confirm, it’s very effective all on its own. Don’t want to mix herbals but just want a bigger effect? Sometimes I’ll steep and reheat (letting it marinate for a while and then heating it back up – I’m sure some tea afficionado is rolling over in their day grave reading this); however, another option for non weirdos like me is obvious: just use two bags. Only caveat? Sometimes I want all of that – but don’t have the time to sit around and drink a full jar of dream juice – not to mention the time it takes to steep if you’ve decided to drink it last minute.
Oh, that’s you too?
No worries then… because this snooze time root also comes in other forms…
Click here to read my kava tincture review.
