Sereni-tea

So I’ve gone over how tea can be great for waking you up and weaning you off of coffee, but tea is also great to relax and even help you sleep. This is mostly the case with herbal teas. Meaning, blends that don’t contain the Camellia sinensis plant, which naturally contains caffeine.

Herbal teas can be made with an infinite number of different ingredients, sometimes however, they contain only one ingredient. Peppermint and chamomile teas are probably the most popular one-ingredient herbal teas, and rightfully so. Peppermint tea is fresh tasting, delicious, crisp, and smooth, and as a bonus has a bunch of health benefits, from relieving nausea to aiding digestion. Another thing that a lot of people may not know about peppermint is that it helps you relax. It is a natural sedative and its anti-inflammatory properties can help reduce blood pressure and body temperature. Next is chamomile tea, which is probably the most popular “night time” tea. It is proven that chamomile can help you sleep with its mild sedative effects and can even relieve nightmares. What you may not know is that chamomile can also help relieve anxiety, fight colds, relieve menstrual cramps, and more!

Though these two ingredients are widely popular, they aren’t the only ones that can help you relax. Many sleepy-time teas contain valerian root. Valerian root has been used traditionally as an anti-insomnia and anti-anxiety medicine, so naturally it is found in teas that aid in restful sleep. It is also said to reduce morning grogginess and may be effective against obsessive compulsive disorder.

People who are familiar with aromatherapy may already know about the calming effects of lavender, but did you know you can put lavender in tea too? Personally, one of my favourite teas is a lavender and strawberry tea from David’s Tea called Serenity Now. Like these other ingredients, lavender aids relaxation and can help with anxiety, insomnia, stress, and depression. Many of these benefits come directly from the aroma associated with lavender which is brought out when steeping it in tea. It also doesn’t hurt that it tastes great!

A simple Google search for relaxing or sleep-aiding ingredients in tea will reveal almost infinite options, that you’re guaranteed to find something that will work for you. Of course, you can always visit your local tea shop and speak to someone knowledgeable that will likely be happy to help. 

Photo Credit: Ruxandra Moldoveanu

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ROXANNE PEPIN

I’m Roxanne Pepin and I am a Professional Writer, blogger, realist, cyclist, and cat lover at large studying at Algonquin College, in Canada’s capital city. I am an aspiring fiction writer and copy editor who writes for my fellow fiction lovers, music lovers, book worms, cycling enthusiasts, tea devotees, and real-time, high-on-life junkies.

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The Easy Way Out

People have many reasons to want to quit drinking coffee, but as everyone knows this is easier said than done. Unless of course you already have a pretty serious love for tea and happen to get a job in a tea shop. Then it’s super easy. But in general, it’s easier to replace it with something than to quit cold turkey. Quitting coffee also doesn’t necessarily mean ditching caffeine either.

After about six months of not drinking coffee, I can say I definitely don’t regret stopping. Sure, I’ve had a cup here and there and have enjoyed the half of it I was able to drink. However, that joy was short-lived. The taste was great, the adrenaline boost was great, the jitters and the crash were not. After having gone a number of months drinking at least one, sometimes two, cups of coffee per day, I’m not afraid to say I was addicted to caffeine, much like most people I know.

What I found from the withdrawal was that the headache and the fatigue were easily combatted with a much the lower amount of caffeine found in tea. There are plenty of articles suggesting why tea may be better for you than coffee too. But of course, both coffee and tea have health benefits, take a look at the infographic below!

But, just like this article suggests tea is more hydrating and keeps you going for longer, both of these things that I have found to be completely true. A cup of tea will satisfy my need for caffeine, but won’t cause me to crash only a couple hours later. I’ve also noticed that it helps me study and write more efficiently. Coffee made me jittery, which in turn made me distracted. Tea gives me a sort of relaxed alertness that allows me to concentrate on my work, especially yerba maté. My mother, the dental assistant, would also be happy to know that I’m conscious about the fact that tea is much better for your teeth!

So if you’ve been considering quitting coffee for whatever reason, visit someone in a tea shop or do some research. If you say you’re not a tea person, I say you just haven’t found the tea for you yet! There are plenty different types and flavours out there and there’s guaranteed to be one you like. 

Photo Credit: PolicyExpert

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ROXANNE PEPIN

I’m Roxanne Pepin and I am a Professional Writer, blogger, realist, cyclist, and cat lover at large studying at Algonquin College, in Canada’s capital city. I am an aspiring fiction writer and copy editor who writes for my fellow fiction lovers, music lovers, book worms, cycling enthusiasts, tea devotees, and real-time, high-on-life junkies.

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DTY- Do Tea Yourself

The once frowned upon has become mainstream. Being thrifty is now in! But that’s not news to most people. DIY has become so popular in the past years that it’s common for “nice scarf,” to be followed directly by “did you make it yourself?” or even reciprocated with “Thanks! I made it myself!” Up until very recently I figured there was no downside to the DIY movement and I was all for it. But then I read this article published in The Dartmouth about the potential downsides or dangers of this ever-growing fad and now I’m not so sure. Andrea Nease makes many good points about the reasons people are doing and making things themselves and brings to light the real reasons we should, or shouldn’t, be doing them. I agree with her that we are more likely to be attached to something we paid close attention to producing, like that scarf you took five hours to make, than to something you didn’t even have to leave your apartment for and purchased online only to have it arrive on your doorstep a few days later.

This mainly applies to things like sewing your own hats, crocheting a pair of mittens, or refinishing your dressers among plenty of other things. A million websites are ready to supply you with easy-to-follow instructions on how to do almost anything. I feel safe in assuming that Pinterest is one of the most popular websites for today’s DIY adventurers. But did you know Pinterest is also great for recipes? Okay I’m sure you did, but did you know you can also find tea recipes and make your own blends?

Of course, you don’t need recipes for tea unless you’re trying to recreate something specific, or to find some magical cure for something, and then again it’s mostly the ingredients you need to know about. One of my favourite tisanes (or herbal teas) to make at home lately is fresh gingerroot with lime and a few grains of rock sugar or drops of honey. You find the best combinations by just exploring. I’ve found that peppermint goes quite well with this combination, believe it or not. You can always use recipes as guidelines if you don’t know where to start. If you want to try it out, Bulk Barn is a great place to get dry ingredients and spices. Yes, you can put spices in tea. 

Photo Credit: Meghan Anderson-Colangelo

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ROXANNE PEPIN

I’m Roxanne Pepin and I am a Professional Writer, blogger, realist, cyclist, and cat lover at large studying at Algonquin College, in Canada’s capital city. I am an aspiring fiction writer and copy editor who writes for my fellow fiction lovers, music lovers, book worms, cycling enthusiasts, tea devotees, and real-time, high-on-life junkies.

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As The Tea-sons Change

Many things change with the seasons; it’s a fact. One of them happens to be tea! Iced teas are for summer, unless you spend your time in the depths of a dungeon, or heavily air-conditioned basement. Hot tea is for the winter, unless you’re one of the few people who just don’t like hot drinks. Of course, this is partially subjective and it could depend on your mood, but for the most part, it’s fact.

Tea temperature is not the only thing that changes with the seasons; there are myriad flavours and blends that come with the changing leaves, flowers, wardrobes, and accessories. This being said, there is one key ingredient that takes over, not only the tea world, but also the coffee world, the food world, and even the decorative world. Think you know what it is? You probably guessed it.

Pumpkin has taken over this fall, as it has every year since I can remember. Starbucks announced the return of their famous Pumpkin Spice Latte, DAVIDsTEA brought out four new pumpkin teas in their fall collection, and pumpkins are taking over supermarkets, recipe websites, and food and décor magazines. And me and my love for pumpkin everything are okay with that.

Since I was a kid, the sight of pumpkin in the supermarkets meant I would soon get to indulge in my mother’s famous pumpkin soup. Every year I would bring a jar to my favourite teachers and every year the ones who got some the previous years came around asking if my mom would be making her delicious soup again. When I moved away for post-secondary education I was forced to learn the ropes on my own, not willing to let go of this yearly tradition, after many phone calls and emails to my mom complaining that it just didn’t taste the same as hers, I’ve figured it out.

When I’m not indulging in my favourite soup, I’m taking advantage of those delicious pumpkin teas. I sip Pumpkin Chai and Pumpkin Pie Matcha in the morning to get my caffeine fix. I steep naturally caffeine-free Spiced Pumpkin after 6 p.m. to ensure I’ll be getting sleep at night.

For those of you who say you’re not a fan of pumpkin, I beg you to try some new recipes, drinks, and treats. There is something out there that will change your mind, you just have yet to find it. Unless of course you have allergies to this glorious squash, then for everyone's sake, please stay away.

Photo Credit: Brandon Blinkenberg

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ROXANNE PEPIN

I’m Roxanne Pepin and I am a Professional Writer, blogger, realist, cyclist, and cat lover at large studying at Algonquin College, in Canada’s capital city. I am an aspiring fiction writer and copy editor who writes for my fellow fiction lovers, music lovers, book worms, cycling enthusiasts, tea devotees, and real-time, high-on-life junkies.

Instagram | Wordpress

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