By Heather, CN Lifestyle Buyer + The Naturalist Contributor
As late September ushers in the Autumn season, our bodies’ ancestral instincts kick into gear, slowing us down as we prepare for colder months. Paradoxically, our schedules speed up: school beginning, work goals and projects, change-of-season shifts, different routines... in my experience, it can feel overwhelming to have such opposing actions occurring in our internal and external environments. The answer? Tea. When in doubt, always begin with tea.
I have learned that for my personal well-being, I need to make sure I have time to slow down in the face of the momentum and frenzy. Whether it be at the beginning or the end of the day (or better yet, both!), I find that taking even just 5 minutes to breathe, drink tea, and have my own little ritual is monumentally helpful for my peace of mind.
Below I have listed a tea to sip, a simple calming ritual, and a Cambridge Naturals Autumn Tea Ritual playlist. If you can, take an hour to yourself to brew this tea, sit and sip, and enjoy the relaxing music. Focus on letting go of the daily and global stressors that surround us all and build up in our bodies. This blend is naturally cooling, and put together with the aim to aid in relief of physical tension. I find it to helpful to sip during my busy day when I crave quiet moments. It can be put on ice or kept hot; a delicious, nutritive drink no matter what temperature fluctuations that September’s transitional weather brings.
Tea blend:
- Tulsi (Holy Basil) - an adaptogen supportive for the body's response to stress
- Lemon Balm - uplifting and aromatic
- Milky Oat Tops - nourishing and trophorestorative (aid nervous tissue function and vitality)
- Skullcap - comforting and tension-relieving
- Red Raspberry Leaf - Steph Zabel, MSc, local herbalist and botanical educator says: "Beyond being a gentle, nourishing herb raspberry has been used for centuries to support respiratory, digestive and reproductive health. In Ayurvedic medicine raspberry leaves are considered to be a cooling herb that is good for reducing heat and inflammation in the body, especially throughout the digestive tract.”
Equal parts of each herb, but follow your intuition - if one herb feels particularly helpful or smells wonderful to you, add more of it!
Short steep: Steep 2-3 teaspoons of dried leaf per cup of hot water for 10-20 minutes.
Long steep: To make a more nutritive infusion with a high content of minerals, steep 4 tablespoons dried herb in a quart of hot water for 6 to 8 hours.
Note: If you’re crunched for time, you can always put water on to boil as soon as you get home so that it is ready for you by the time you settle in and pick your herbs!
Ritual:
Nadi Shodhan pranayama (Alternate Nostril Breathing)
Here is an approachable video for this technique, taught by Adriene Louise, curator of the wonderful Yoga With Adriene YouTube channel. Adriene says, “This breath technique has so many benefits! It is a great way to calm the nervous system and relieve tension and anxiety. It is great for concentration, cleansing, and is a fantastic headache cure!”
CN Autumn Tea Ritual Playlist:
This blog series — Ritual — is for general health information only. This website is not to be used as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment of any health condition or problem. Users of this Web site should not rely on information provided on this Web site for their own health problems. Any questions regarding your own health should be addressed to your own physician or other healthcare provider.