Enchanted Calm: Stress Relief Series- A Tea-Tastic Event

Has life always been hard? I think it has. Even back when the days were simple, life was still hard. But as long as there has been life, there have been potions & remedies to help reduce the stress of it and make it more enjoyable. After all, we are here to enjoy life, are we not? 

Stress can be caused by any number of things. A stressful job or lack of one, a big test, a bad grade, relationship issues, fear of the unknown. Even some things that we love & that are good for us can cause stress on our bodies like playing basketball, jogging around the block or trying something new for the first time. When we get really excited about something, that causes stress on the body too. Not all stress is bad. But when your body is constantly stressed, having some remedies in your tool box can help. 

In this series, Enchanted Calm: Stress Relief, we will dive into some simple ways to reduce stress. Today’s topic is TEA! Have you seen a theme here? I am a big fan of tea. I wish I had some anecdotal “first tea” story to tell you, but truthfully, as long as I can remember, I have had a love of tea. 

In the world of herbalism, tea is called an infusion. Tea is the act of infusing herbs into water, usually just below the boiling point for a specific amount of time. Depending on the herb and what your desired result is, this could be as little as 2 minutes or in some cases overnight or even longer. Though most teas will be steeped for 2 to 10 minutes.

We don’t know exactly how long we have been drinking tea, but it is believed to be a tradition that is over 4,000 years old, beginning about 2700 BCE in China. Tea was further popularized in Europe in the 17th century and it is still a big part of many European’s cultures today.

There have been numerous studies suggesting that tea can fight inflammation, boost your immune system and reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer. Do a quick online search to see all the other benefits from various studies about tea and to find some recommendations that might help with a specific issue. (After all, there is a tea for everything!)

So what kinds of teas are there and what should you drink? There are so many kinds of tea. White, green, red, black, herbal and within that group there are literally thousands of varieties. I would suggest drinking the kind that you like! If you like citrus, you might like something like a mandarin orange tea. If you need a pick me up with caffeine, maybe a black vanilla caramel tea would do. If you like a little spice in your life, then a chai tea would be great! Once you have decided on the type of tea, you can customize it even further by adding milk or cream and sugar or honey. One of my favorite teas was mentioned in a previous blog, Lavender London Fog. It's an earl gray tea that I mix with oat milk and lavender syrup. 

Tea can be as simple as grabbing a tea bag from the grocery store and popping it into a cup of hot water or as elaborate as the Japanese tea ceremony called Chanoyu (or Sado). It's up to you how deep you go with this relaxation tool.