08/25/2026
Can’t sleep? Valerian may be an excellent herb for you.
Or, it may not…
🌿 Valerian is fantastic for most people who deal with insomnia, as it calms the central nervous system and can be quite sedating. It’s also great if you’re someone who wakes in the middle of the night, since it helps keep you asleep.
⚠️ Though there’s a small percentage of the population that valerian has the opposite effect on. It can make some people more hyper and even elevate the heart rate. That’s a big bummer if you just want to sleep.
But that wasn’t the point of this post. I simply wanted to introduce you to this plant right here, Valeriana sitchensis.
It grows in the wild near where I live. And yes, it’s a wild version of Valeriana officinalis, the popular herb also known as “nature’s valium.”
I wanted to share an example of how we don’t have to harvest every wild medicinal plant we see.
Sometimes it’s just great to sit with it, observe, and let it do its natural thing.
Then, go off and support our organic medicinal herb farmers.
They’re the ones tending to the plants and the land, pouring loads of love into the medicine and the earth, which results in better medicine and more of it for future generations.
⚠️ Of course, no one herb is for everybody, and valerian has its share of contraindications. Don’t operate heavy machinery or use it alongside sedatives or other hypnotic pharmaceuticals.
Wonder what herb farmers to try? There are quite a few wonderful ones.
My favorites in my region are Medicine Garden & Oshala Farm .
Know another? Please tag them in the comments below, and then share this post with your herb loving friends 💚
