Best Herbs And Herbal Tea Recipes For Sleep
The material in this post is for informational/educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please see a qualified health professional for specific health concerns. Herbal remedies are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases.
How has your sleep been lately? Do you fall asleep quickly and feel rested when you wake up? (If so, this post might not be for you!)
Unfortunately, for many of us the answer is we don’t really sleep that well.
Sometimes we just don’t get to bed on time, but other times it might be stress or a busy mind that keeps us lying awake when we’d rather be asleep. Or maybe you can fall asleep just fine but don’t feel like your sleep is restful.
When it comes to helping with stress and getting deeper rest, the world of plants and herbs has a lot to offer!
Here are 5 of the best calming herbs to try, plus some simple herbal tea recipes for better sleep.
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Chamomile Tea For Sleep
Chamomile is one of the more well-known herbs and herbal teas that is used for better sleep.
This herb from the daisy family works wonders on the nervous system to ease stress and promote sleep. The flowers (fresh or dried) can be used to make a pleasant-tasting tea that is gentle on the body but with powerful calming effects.
According to Rosemary Gladstar in her book Medicinal Herbs: A Beginner’s Guide, chamomile tea can also help with general aches and pains that may be causing sleeplessness.
Simple Chamomile Tea: Chamomile tea is easy to make. You just need the fresh or dried flowers, boiling water, and a sweetener if desired. Use 1-3 teaspoons of the dried herb (2-4 teaspoons fresh) and add 1 cup of boiling water. Let it steep for 15-20 minutes before enjoying.
Where To Get Chamomile: If you want to buy dried chamomile in bulk, my favorite place to get it from is the Bulk Herb Store. If you prefer already made tea bags (more convenient!), try Traditional Medicinals Organic Chamomile Tea.
Lavender Herbal Tea For Sleep
Lavender is another herb best known for its calming properties. It has a calming, relaxing, and uplifting effect all at once, which is helpful for fighting stress and falling asleep.
I always associated lavender with something to add to a bath or to put under your pillow at night until I (finally) realized that it also makes a wonderful tea.
If you find you need something stronger than tea (or don’t like the taste), try using Lavender essential oil. (You can read all about Lavender essential oil benefits here.)
Lavender Herbal Tea: Like chamomile, lavender tea is very easy to make. Just add 1-3 teaspoons of dried lavender per cup of boiling water. Let it steep at least 10 minutes and drink before bedtime. You can also try doing equal parts of rose petals and dried lavender to change it up! (Rose is also calming.)
Where To Get Lavender: Again, I typically buy dried lavender flowers from the Bulk Herb Store. Lavender also works well with other sleep herbs. Traditional Medicinals has a Chamomile and Lavender Tea that combines both calming herbs for extra effect.
Lemon Balm For Sleep
Lemon balm is a member of the mint family and has a pleasant, lemony flavor. In a tea, lemon balm can help to calm the nervous and digestive systems.
This herb can be especially helpful for calming and soothing children. It also acts as a mild sedative, which can be good for those who deal with insomnia.
Lemon Balm Tea Recipe: Rosemary Gladstar recommends blending lemon balm with passionflower (which I’ll talk about later in this post) and a small amount of lavender buds. (Herbal Medicine: A Beginner’s Guide, pg. 158)
Make a tea with this blend and drink a few hours before bedtime. Lemon balm can also be used by itself to make an herbal tea.
Where To Get Lemon Balm: Lemon balm is easy to grow and seems to keep its flavor better when used fresh. However, there are plenty of options for dried lemon balm tea.
Republic of Tea has a Chamomile Lemon Herbal Sleep Tea that contains not only lemon balm and chamomile, but also lavender and passionflower. Or you can go for lemon balm only with Traditional Medicinals Organic Lemon Balm Tea.
Passionflower Herbal Tea
Passionflower is a much more exotic sounding herb. It actually comes from a vine that is native to the Southeastern U.S. as well as Mexico and Central and South America.
Passionflower is another calming herb that can soothe a restless mind and help with sleep. One small study of 40 adults found that those who drank a cup of passionflower tea every day for a week had better sleep quality than those who didn’t. (1)
Passionflower Tea: The tea is typically made from the dried leaves, flowers, and stems of the passionflower plant. Just add 1-3 teaspoons of the dried herb per cup of water and steep for 10-15 minutes. Add a natural sweetener if desired and feel free to blend with other sleep herbs.
Where To Get Passionflower: You can buy the dried herb from Mountain Rose Herbs.
Valerian Tea For Sleep
Valerian is a somewhat lesser known herb but powerful when it comes to helping with sleep. Valerian is “considered one of our safest and most powerful herbal nervines, used for all manner of stress, insomnia, and anxiety.” (Gladstar, pg. 208)
The root is the part of the herb that is used to make teas and tinctures. Because of its strong, earthy taste, valerian is usually combined with other (better tasting) herbs when used in tea form.
Valerian Tea + Where To Buy: I would recommend trying valerian in a pre-made blend because it can have such a strong taste on its own. Traditional Medicinals has a Nighty Night Valerian Relaxation Tea that is a nice blend of valerian, passionflower, lemon balm, and peppermint.
But if you want to try valerian on its own or make your own blend, you can get the dried root from the Bulk Herb Store.
Pre-made Herbal Tea Recipes For Sleep
Some of the best herbal tea recipes for sleep are ones that combine several different calming herbs. There are plenty of already made tea blends out there that are convenient and effective. Here are a few:
Republic of Tea: For more sleep benefits and a flavorful blend, try Lady Cora’s Evening Tea from Republic of Tea. It combines all of the herbs in this post: passionflower, chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, and valerian.
Get Some Zzz’s Tea has red rooibos along with chamomile, passionflower, and valerian.
Or try the Get Relaxed Tea that combines rooibos with lavender, rose petals, chamomile, and passionflower.
Traditional Medicinals: For a blend that eases stress and supports your nervous system, try Cup of Calm Tea. This blend has passionflower, lavender, chamomile, and catnip along with mint and rosemary.
Improve Your Sleep With Herbal Teas!
If you struggle with falling asleep or having a good quality sleep, I hope you are now feeling inspired to try some herbs and herbal tea recipes to help improve your sleep!
Chamomile is one of my favorite teas, but I also love having different herbs in one blend. Try out an herbal tea or blend today (or tonight)! Then, go get a good night’s sleep.
Teas + Resources From This Post:
Buy Bulk Herbs:
Single Herb Teas:
Herbal Tea Blends For Sleep:
- Chamomile and Lavender Tea
- Chamomile Lemon Herbal Sleep Tea
- Nighty Night Valerian Relaxation Tea
- Lady Cora’s Evening Tea
- Get Some Zzz’s Tea
- Get Relaxed Tea
- Cup of Calm Tea
Herbal Book For Beginners:
- Medicinal Herbs: A Beginner’s Guide by Rosemary Gladstar
This is such a comprehensive list of teas. You should also consider Magnolia Bark when looking for a herbal tea for sleep. It has the same effect as certain pharmaceutical sleep aids!
Thanks for the suggestion!