Mind Your Magic

Mind

Blue vervain, Verbena hastata, is a powerful nervine for those of us whose minds are always going, always dreaming, always ruminating, always working, always processing. Some describe this as a remedy for Type A folks, which I certainly can understand. But some of us are just prone to using our mind as the way we know, discover, experience the world. It is our primary “clar-sense”. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but running too much through anyone one system can result in fatigue. For some a tired mind results in shutting down and sleep, for others it looks like ramping up and going on overtime. Just think of the child who is exhausted but keeps running in circles, or refuses to nap. This is the type of experience and behavior that Blue Vervain is so perfect for! It calms and clears, brings down the frayed wires and nervous overwhelm so common in our current world. If you are a “GO! GO! GO!” type, a little blue vervain tincture or flower essence can go a long way to help you create a sense of calm, especially when putting down the list of “To-Dos.” This ally pairs beautifully with motherwort and milky oats, offering a nourished and smooth peace in the mind. And a peaceful mind is a magical mind.

Blue Vervain has been an ally of mine since it popped up at Weathertop Farm, the organic herb farm I worked on in upstate New York. It was growing around the edge of the pond so I climbed in and waded through the waist deep water picking out the medicine. The bees were all around. I made an oxymel by leaving the fresh plants in a mix of vinegar and honey. Everything was local. It felt so good! I gave it to everyone who needed to sleep but was plagued by circular thoughts, to-do lists that wouldn’t quit and bad memories, So I used a lot of it! To this day it is one of my favorite go-to sleep and anxiety remedies. - Bethany

I first learned about Blue Vervain from Mattew Wood, where he described Blue Vervain’s nervine qualities. This is usually how I work with it. To help with musculoskeletal pain or just pain in general. The taste is a little bitter but the results are worth it. It is a magical herb that can be seen cross-culturally all over the world. For altars, dreams, romance, immortality and so much more. - Cody

Body

Maybe your busy mind stems from a busy body, or maybe the other way around. No matter! Blue vervain acts as an antispasmodic and is especially useful for those that hold tension and stress in the neck and shoulders. Larken Bunch describes this as an ally for hot/excess/tension states of the tissue. For these folks just a few drops can bring a whole body release! It clears anger, emotional lability, spasms, and all manor of “hot” states of being. Blue vervain can be useful for PMS mood and physical dysregulation, as well as moving patterns of stagnation through the physical body, including in the digestive tract due to its bitter quality. Pairing this with other tonic digestives or nerviness will only add to the body easing beauty of Blue Vervain.

Cooling and bitter, Blue Vervain is a beautiful plant to help release tensions in the body and create balance within. In times of uncomfortable heat and tightness, Blue Vervain in small doses or as an accompaniment to other herb blends can truly help ease back into natural flow and a feeling of calm. It is such a lovely plant to see out in nature, growing around swamps and ponds, its delicate blue-purple flower clusters alone ensues a feeling of peace and lightness. The first time I steeped and sipped Vervain, I remember being shocked by its intense bitterness, and still to this day consider it one of the most bitter plants to formulate with. Because of its strong and soothing action, it holds a special and distinct place in my medicine cabinet. To me, the spirit of Blue Vervain says “breathe, let go, be free”. -Tasha

Blue Vervain is a beautiful medicine with many different applications. For those with anxious depression, it can be incorporated acutely or in tonifying formulas.  Blue Vervain contains iridoids, which are very helpful in protecting and supporting the liver. Blue vervain can be used topically for skin inflammations and itchy conditions, it is astringent and anti fungal, and antibacterial. Blue Vervain is contraindicated for those who are pregnant and lactating. -Amy

Spirit

Just the way Blue vervain eases the mind and the body, so to does it ease the connection to spirit. The purple flower delights our third eye and helps our crown flow more freely. Like the upright stalk, standing tall and moving with flexibility, our spirit expands into a more centered flow. Blue vervain helps us dance in the dawn and dusk - the liminal space, in the what was and what is becoming, in the “in-bewteen” or cross-roads. Vervain guards us as we stand at these places, not helping us to make any certain choice, but protecting our ease in whatever choice we make. There is no right or wrong with the plant medicine, there is only more or less resonant. There is no need to let your spirit get weighed down in analysis when Blue vervain is present, simply take a deep breath and let your deep inner knowing guide your unfolding.

Blue Vervain is one of the most sacred herbs of the Irish Celtic Druids. I often include Blue Vervain in incense blends to invite the sacred and the healthy ancestors. It is believed to deepen the sense of the sacred and to bring love, health, weath, protection and good fortune. I enjoy Vervain in tincture form and she is lovely when paired with Rose. I take this tincture when feeling anxious and in need of relaxation or grounding, as Vervain is a wonderful nervine. I'll always remember the first time I drank Vervain tea in my first Spiral Path Herb class; not one of us got a refill made or got very far into our first cup. Vervain can be emetic, as we all learned very quickly with slight nausea rising up as we drank. As so, I add Vervain as an activator in tea blends ⅛ to ¼ part only. -Lilli

Blue Vervain moves stagnancy in watery parts of my being. Where emotions are stuck in the mud of my stubborn body, Vervain comes along with a comb and picks out the knots. Easeful of anxiety and muscle tension, it can be a helpful ally for those who have cold constitution, along with muscle constriction and unprocessed emotions. -Bright