An alternative to weed to calm you down

sacred blue water lily

5-htp

meditation and deep breathing. Try this for a quickie relief, really helped me years ago. take a huge deep breath to the count of 4, expand the belly. Hold it to count of 7 or 8, slowly exhale to count of 7 or 8 (I have forgotten, it will not matter). Repeat 2 or 3 times when stressed, the counting alone distracts, but the breath is what works. Man forgets to breathe. And you can do this is a crowd of people at a dinner table and none one will notice. the side effects of repeating it too many times are a light head.

Last Edited by God Loves ALL on 11/25/2012 08:21 PM

Valerian

I don't think it grows where I live, but I'll stick with the ganja anyway.

have cat, pet it while letting it sit near your ear. Purring is an awesome relaxant as is the loving cat itself.

lol yeah no one answer yet

are there any scientific studies?

Lemon balm in vodka for a week . Strain and take a spoonful
to clam down and relax. Or just make a pot of lemon balm tea.
Much better than chamomile.

LOL did anyone see the 2012 poll on the side on that link?

Answer is no. . . but it's about taking off that edge - anxiousness - horrible feeling - if you ever feel that way.

Thanks for this reminder about deep breathing.
I know about it, but always forget to do it.

Hmm thanks, I still am interested

This is known in the biz as making a tincture... Very, very effective for most herbs but not all...

I'll have to try the cornflower.

Lemonbalm is great - one of my faves. Skullcap is GREAT but must be used sparingly due to some vague evidence of toxicity...

A quote:Anonymous Coward 1110734:MV8yMDU4OTc4XzM0NjM0MDI4XzFDQUIwQ0Mz]

Yes, actually taking tooooooo much (more is not better) of St. John's Wort can cause Serotonin Syndrome. Remember that herbs have a potential for abuse. It's believed that the "magical" ointment of Belladona made people "high" and that's why they thought they were flying. Herbs based upon how they are grown have a different amount of phytochemicals and these are why we have standardied doses in herbal products.

Many herbs have a potential for relaxation. I didn't realize cornflowers worn do that. Thanks to the OP.

EDIT: Somehow the quotez got messed up. My post starts here.

As a clinical herbalist, I am often frustrated by common misconceptions about herbs. Usually, these are driven by the ig players in the herb industry.

St. John's Wort is THE most contraindicated herb. EVER. Most of the time, herb contraindications are based on pharmacology, more often on barely present constituents. Not so with this one.
d
As an aside, the genus Pedicularis, which inludes Indian Warrior and Elephant head, can be smoked to induce a distinctly pot-like state. My herb teacher, who shares a name with a documentarian unmentionable here, called Pedicularis the "bag extender." For more info on Pedicularis, google herbalist Howie Brounstein. He's a bit of a kook, but knows his stuff and writes quite a bit about this genus.

Last Edited by Mycelium on 11/25/2012 10:16 PM

Lars have you ever tried Stinging Nettle Tea? Really nice.

Just use gloves when snipping off the leaves dry them and make tea. Very soothing pleasant and chocked full of vit C and many other minerals and vitamins. Good bladder kidney cleanser as well

Nice,but i'll stick to my Kush.

i prefer Sativa (Willie Nelson,) but, hey, to each his own.

lets be real guys, this isnt going to be anything like smoking a bowl of high quality thc

thanks...kava's good,too

As I mentioned earlier, I am a clinical herbalist. You are uite right. Nothing from Nature does quite what Cannabis does. Cornflower is sedative, somewhat. Truthfully, ther are much stonger sedatives. There are also several "mood elevators," as we call them. Honestly, I would choose Pedicularis or American Sweet Flag (subspecies of the more common sweet flag)).

Herbs like this are best used, in terms of our pesent purpose, as "bag extenders." Mixed in with your pot and smoked, the effect is either not diluted at all, or made stronger. Most will do the first, some the second. Pedicularis (my fav for this purpose) can make a sack last TWICE as long. Seriously.

I have a crap ton of lemon balm in what was a mint garden. It took over. I know it's a tasty tea-- didn't know to make a tincture. Is it safe?

From anything I've ever heard, read or experienced personally it's one of the easiest, safest and most effective tinctures...

cool :) me thinks me found another magic mushroom friend

This stuff works...


[link to smartnutrition.info]

--when the smoke of weed is made, home it comes in grand parade, to my unwilling nostrils laid, prostrate by past exposures--

Lemon balm is a wonderful tea, and I use it in many formulas to improve taste (most herbs taste like shit). It is, however, best used fresh, and is one of few herbs that can make an effective fresh plant tea. It is somewhat calming and relaxing. It is best used for anxiety with an upward energy, meaning it feels like bile or acid rising in the throat, indigestion or heartburn from anxiety or when nrvousness causes outright vomiting. As an aside,, Catnip is for anxiety moving the other way... use your imagination on that one.

It makes a wonderful tincture. It is best mae with fresh, not dried, plant. To do this, the Folk Method, is a great choice. Chop the flowering tops, leaves, and the thin, soft stem tops very finely. Fill a jar with the chopped plant and cover with the highest proof alcohol available in your area. Pack it moderAtely tight. Make sure there is a half inch or so of alcohol above the level of the plant material. Everclear is best. Seal the jar and put it somewhere dark; a kitchen cabinet is perfect. Light will break down the fragile aromatics and such. After two or three weeks, when the plant meterial is pale and a little crispy, pour it through a cheesecloth-lined seive into a jar. Then wring, squeeze and squish every last drop out of it that you can. This is the strongest extract. You will never be able to get out all that you put in, no matter what. Tincture makers use a hydraulic press, and still cannot get it all. Because alcohol is hydroscopic (absorbs water), and all the plant constituents are suspended in water in the fresh plant, this method will yield the most complete profile of plant constituents.

Dose is as litle as ten drops, but most of my clients wind up using between 30-60 drops, in a little water, four times per day, but overuse is not harmful. Remember that, with herbs, more is not necessarily better.

Lemon Balm also "cools" the thyroid a bit. This makes i useful for the kind of anxiety experienced by folks with subclinical, or even full blown, hypERthyroidism. Watch out on dosage for folks with hypothyroidism, though it seems to "know" and has never caused problems in my practice. It is great for overexcited, angry, or hyperactive children. For them,, put the tincture in a little berry syrup or juice. Follow Young's rule for dosage. Better google that. For my own kids, I just use a squirt with the dropper.

It also adds interesting flavofr when dried and added to smoking mixtures. Tastes a little like lemon peel. It won't help as a bag extender, but is good in kinnickinnick type mixes, in small amounts.

One of my favorite plants... grows wild in my area and is often naturalized anywhere white people have settled.

Panda, if you're still in this thread, I can't reply to the message (not a paid member).

Everyone should know, though.

Anxiety from Cannabis use is common and getting more so (folks' consciousness expanding.... not needing Cannabis?). I'm not talking about paranoia like "Dude! The cops are gonna catch us!" or "The neighbors might smell it!" I am talking about a more generalized anxiety. A need to move around, cleaning when the house doesn't need it, etc. are more along the lines of what I'm talking about. For this, herbalists use Anemone pulsatilla (Pasque flower). Sometimes, if it is wildcrafted, other species in this genus are used. It is moderately poisonous in large amounts, so don't overdo it. Most herbalists recommend 3-10 DROPS under the tongue.

This plant tincture can be a little hard to find. You might try PoppySwap.com like an Etsy for herbs.

If the anxiety is bad enough to stop using cannabis, you might try Pedicularis. I finally found a stand large enough to collect from this past Summer and, since I've got the anxiety, too, began to prefer it to Cannabis. You should know, though, that it is a fairly strong muscle relaxer and large doses can make it...... hard.... to move. Everything gets heavy and it can be a little frightening, but not harmful. You couldn't smoke enough to hurt you and would have a VERY hard time taking enough tincture to do so, though I wouldn't recommend trying.

hope it helps.....

If anyone else has questions, set up a callout thread or something, cuz I can't respond to messages.....for now.