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St. John's Wort is well known for its depression and anxiety alleviating properties. More about that further down the page, along with some notes and warnings. Some federal website resources are also listed. And after the St. John's Wort herbal tea recipe is a list of other natural ways to reduce or eliminate depression or constant feelings of stress and fear. All of them are effective, simple, and easy to do.

Klamath Weed aka St. John's Wort ( Hypericum Perforatum )

The Make Your Own St. John's Wort (or Valerian) Tea Recipe

St. John's Wort tea and other herbal teas are expensive. There is absolutely no reason to buy them when you can make your own for less than one-tenth the cost. So, forget those messy teabags and all the preparations that go with them. Here is your incredibly inexpensive, best, quick, and easiest way to make your own.

This really shouldn't be called a recipe. The word, "recipe", implies preparation and work; there is none of that here.

Be forewarned; the herbal supplements industry is generally unregulated. Buy only reputable brands from reputable stores. Find the St. John's Wort supplements in powdered, capsule form. As with the other herbs, probably all the brands will be in this form. But do check to be sure. If you don't already have a favorite brand, it is worth an extra few minutes to do some price checking. There can be a wide variance in unit pricing when it comes to the relevant ingredients, i.e., milligrams, number of capsules, total price.
Open the capsule and sprinkle the powder into the microwavable coffee cup. Fill with water to the same level as you would when making instant coffee. Rapidly stir it. Never taken apart capsules before? It can be a challenge for the inexperienced. But in fairly short order, it will become nothing more than a 2-second task. A quick how-to for newbies: wash and completely dry hands first, otherwise, slippery fingers can make the task impossible; gently twist the two capsule halves back-and-forth against each other and gradually separate over the cup; twiddle the capsule halves over the cup until all the powder has come out. If you happen to come across a particularly obstinate capsule, simply snip off the tip of the larger end of the capsule with a pair of scissors.
Microwave as you would instant coffee. Never made instant coffee? Depending on the wattage and age of the microwave oven, zap it for 2-3 minutes.
Stir, let cool, stir again, enjoy. If you want it cold and there is enough empty space in the cup, add two ice cubes.

And that is all there is to it.

And as an interesting side note, this recipe works equally well when making Valerian tea. Valerian is known for its anti-anxiety properties as well, though it works in the Valium way as opposed to the St. John's Wort serotonin reuptake inhibitor way. As with St. John's Wort, the tea form of Valerian is considerably stronger than the simply ingesting capsule method.

A reminder that tea eventually stains teeth.

How Many Capsules?

Routinely, I use just one capsule. However, if particularly stressed or depressed, I will use two. More than that can sometimes cause digestive problems.

With Instant Coffee

There is certainly nothing wrong with sprinkling St. John's Wort capsule powder over the instant coffee flakes when making the second cup of morning coffee... Don't go overboard with the stuff. Too much of anything is almost always not a good idea.

This medicinal plant has helped many people overcome depression and anxiety.

Some General Opinions – Notes – Warnings

Saint John's Wort does indeed work as to alleviating depression and anxiety. It does this by increasing a person's serotonin levels. Consuming St. John's Wort in tea form, as opposed to just taking the capsules with food, can greatly increase its effectiveness. Though one will sometimes feel immediate side effects with that first cup of tea, it can be several days before a consistent mood change is noticed. Needless to say, your results may vary.

Reputable websites advise St. John's Wort mixed with certain other medications do not always work well together; this is especially applicable to certain prescription drugs. If you are taking St. John's Wort, whether by supplement or by tea, let your doctor and pharmacist know. And be sure to read the warning/caution label on the St. John's Wort container. And particularly read all the documentation included with any prescriptions to see if St. John's Wort is mentioned. Not kidding about telling your doctor and pharmacist. As an example, note item three in the list below. You just never know, but your doctor and pharmacist will.

Here Are Four Federal Website Pages One Should Read Concerning St. John's Wort and Its Properties

Don't forget about the information included below, referenced at the beginning of this page. With or without the tea, the items listed will make you feel better. Information is from various federal medical websites. They work.

This concludes the St. John's Wort Herbal Tea "Recipe" segment.

List of Natural Ways to Feel Better and Feel Good

The human body naturally produces a chemical known as serotonin. Medical science has generally agreed that one's level of brain serotonin affects mood. The higher one's natural level of serotonin; the better one normally feels.

How to Naturally Increase Serotonin Levels

The primary environmental factor that affects serotonin levels is light; the more light the better. So do open those drapes and curtains first thing every morning. If you do not already go out into the world every day, then make it a point to go outside in the sunlight for a while; even just 15 minutes can make a difference. Not much sunlight where you live? The NIH link further down the page has some comments and an indoor answer for that.
Exercise radically affects serotonin levels. Even just a little exercise can do wonders. But generally, the more of it the better. So, if you mostly sit all day, get up frequently and do other things; housework and chores definitely qualify as exercise. There's the obvious solution of jogging or some other exercise regime, but why not do something that is productive instead?
Good nutrition of course is also a factor. The B-Complex vitamins are particularly important as to emotional stability. As an example, a vitamin B-1 deficiency can cause unwarranted feelings of fear; a vitamin B-12 deficiency can cause unwarranted feelings of guilt; folic acid is another B vitamin that is vital to mental well-being. Personally, I take a B-50 Complex vitamin supplement with food a couple times a week. And I chew it so it doesn't just pass through the digestive tract untouched; same with the general multivitamin supplement I occasionally take. Sometimes negative emotions are caused by nothing more than low blood sugar, simply eating something can do wonders in such cases.
Tryptophan is an amino acid in protein that raises serotonin levels. There is a lot of false nutritional information out there as to which foods will increase your brain's tryptophan levels. The NIH link below covers this in detail. Some of the information is quite surprising as a matter of fact. Chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) and dairy products appear to be the only foods that have a chance of increasing the brain's serotonin levels.

The US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health has an article on how to increase serotonin in the human brain without prescription drugs. It pretty much tells you everything you would ever want to know as to increasing serotonin levels and feeling good.

May we all have increased happiness in life.

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How to Make St. John's Wort / Valerian Tea from Herb Capsules - Quick, Easy Recipe