Oh, Anxiety!

I just tried the first cup of hot tea I've ever liked.  Why?  Because I found out I've been having panic attacks.  Rather than take a drug that can be habit forming and has the potential to make me relapse after I stop taking it, I decided I'd give herbal tea another try.

Chamomile can help with panic attacks because it's a calming herb.  From what I've read, Valerian root, St. John's Wort, and Kava can be helpful too.  Note: Chamomile can be classified as a ragweed-type plant, so you may be allergic to it if you have a ragweed allergy.

Also found in my research, Kava can be hard on the liver and should be taken under the supervision of a physician or certified herbalist.  The herbalist I know has given me a way to drink it in a specific type of milk, but I forgot it.  I'll ask again, and update this post.

Valerian should not be taken concurrent with an anti-anxiety medication like the Xanax that my pulmonologist prescribed me, and this herb can show up as an opiate on a drug test but it is legal in the United States. Valerian is a mild tranquilizer and can be habit-forming, so if you do take it to help with anxiety, take small doses and only when you have no other option.  My primary doctor informed me that Xanax is also a tranquilizer; Valerian is merely a natural one.

St. John's Wort can make the person taking it sensitive to sunlight, and shouldn't be taken alongside any other prescription medications before first consulting a licensed physician or pharmacist.  This herb is also used to treat depression and in some studies it has been shown to help reduce symptoms of OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) as well as generalized anxiety disorder.   Because I have some OCD tendencies, I may consider taking this herb instead of the drug my doctor prescribed me.

All of this information was taken from this book: Best Remedies: Breakthrough Prescriptions that Blend Conventional and Natural Medicine.  I'm also interested in going back to the bookstore and getting Eyewitness Companions: Herbal Remedies.  The first book I bought because the book is organized by malady so it's easy to look up a remedy for a specific situation.  However, the second book would also be a good resource because it's organized by herb and talks about all the traits of each herb (each herb can be good for more than one thing!).