Lavender oil pills for anxiety and stress?

November 1, 2023 1:02 PM

Hello all, I purchased some organic lavender oil pills for anxiety and stress. I was wondering if anyone has found it useful or aidful for their own anxieties and stress overall? Or not at all? Did it take a few days or a week to notice a difference, or did it happen right away?

I am wanting to try more natural supplements before considering antidepressants (getting out of a verbally and emotionally, and somewhat physically abusive relationship of 11 years) and being through a lot of traumatic events and being premature, I think I need some sort of supplement for my anxieties and depression.

posted by RearWindow to Health & Fitness (10 answers total)

I had success with the Silexan variant (marketed as Calm-Aid); only problem being "lavender burps" which frankly just made me feel like maybe I was a slightly bothersome wizard in a Terry Pratchett novel.

So, check your dosage (always!!) but I'd say go for it. Mine were 80mg, and in my case I could tell they worked pretty quickly (same day).
posted by aramaic at 1:13 PM on November 1, 2023 [3 favorites]

I've found lavender very helpful in combination with hawthorn and lemon balm - in particular the hawthorn regulates heartbeat in a way that's magic at breaking me out of panic attacks or dissociation spells. It works pretty much instantly, but doesn't have long-term effects. I've taken SSRIs for a while that let me do trauma therapy and learn techniques to manage my mental health, but I still keep the herbal pills on hand for stressful situations like health crises.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 1:46 PM on November 1, 2023 [2 favorites]

Try SAMe which can be bought at a health food store. It helps lift the darker blues. Take in morning on empty stomach.

For smells, whatever works for you. For example lavender helps calm me but when I smell patchouli I just get an oasis of relief. Don’t know why, presume it’s association. So maybe just go to the health food store and sniff around?
posted by St. Peepsburg at 3:23 PM on November 1, 2023 [1 favorite]

My psych doctor assigned me to take Calm Aid, which she told me was clinically proven and has worked well for me, replacing propranolol and gabapentin in turn. Last time I shopped I noticed that none of the other lavender pills had the same active ingredient, so I dunno if there's a patent there or market-cornering, but I have it now on Amazon subscription so I don't have to get offended as a shopping consumer again.
posted by rhizome at 3:46 PM on November 1, 2023 [1 favorite]

There's a useful discussion of Silexan here:

https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/lavenders-game-silexan-for-anxiety

I know that Scott Alexander is not exactly Metafilter's favourite person (and for good reason!) but he is a psychiatrist so he knows a thing or two about this topic.
posted by HoraceH at 3:55 PM on November 1, 2023

Lavender oil is also fabulous at soothing itchy or dry skin.

When my children had chicken pox, I probably used about a gallon of the stuff.

A bath with lavender oil in it has to be one of my favourite preparations for a good night's rest.
posted by Barbara Spitzer at 5:37 PM on November 1, 2023

Lavender seems to be a hormone disruptor - affects estrogen (which is also tied to mental health). Might want to read into it to see what level of use feels right for you personally.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 6:41 PM on November 1, 2023 [1 favorite]

Just note that while Calm Aid does contain Silexan, which is derived from Lavender, it also contains the anti histamine Diphenhydramine, which can also have a calming effect.

I'm just mentioning it because the OP is specifically asking about lavender, and Calm Aid's effect might not be solely atrributed to that.
posted by Zumbador at 9:31 PM on November 1, 2023 [2 favorites]

I took CalmAid for a few months. I didn't have the effect I'd hoped for. Be aware, that it does thin the blood a bit, so if you need surgery or something, you need to discontinue it beforehand.
posted by ruddlehead at 4:49 AM on November 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

My husband used Calm Aid and swears by it. When I tried it, I found the flower-burping unbearably obtrusive.
posted by tomboko at 6:18 PM on November 3, 2023 [1 favorite]