05/20/2026
Haha, I never posted this 🙃 but I’ve been drinking lemon balm all week and man, I’m feeling so much better! Let me tell you why:
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is probably my all time favorite herb, even as a small child I loved its sweet, surprisingly citrusy smell and textured leaves. I was drawn to it like a bee. Speaking of bees, they love it too, that’s actually where Melissa officinalis is derived from, with Melissa being the word for bees! It was planted around Artemis’ temples as she was a lover of bees and her priestesses would plant it to honor her and keep the sacred swarms around.
Lemon balm is a wonderful nervine, it supports the nervous system through soothing anxiety, calming the the heart and helping with relaxation. It can also support focus during the day by eliminating anxious thoughts and allowing focus. I suggest drinking a bit every day several times a day for a few weeks, though medical professionals and myself would agree that I feel soothed and calmed within the first 30 minutes of drinking the sweet “elixir of life.” (Wonderfully named by Swiss physician, alchemist, and occultist Paracelsus who believed the herb to be such)
My favorite way to prepare it is while it is fresh as a tea. Luckily for us lemon balm is easy to grow (it is in the mint family) and will quickly fill just about any bed you plant it in (so be cautious!)
