Passionflower

Passionflower
Passiflora incarnata
 
You finally get into bed at night after a long busy day and expect to fall asleep the minute your head hits the pillow.  What occurs instead however is that your brain can’t stop ruminating about the state of your finances, what you should have said to your boss, what your kids are up to…..An hour later you finally fall asleep only to wake up groggy to your alarm clock at six AM.  Sound familiar?
My favorite remedy for this situation ( in addition to daily exercise) is the herb Passionflower.  The name sounds like something that might keep you awake in bed, but the herb is actually very calming to the nervous system and can effectively shut off the mental chatter, allowing you to fall asleep.  It is available in tea, tincture and capsules.  A typical dose of tincture is two dropperfuls under the tongue right before bed.