Yeah, that’s right, it’s tincture time! A staple in herbology, tinctures are a liquid, concentrated dose of herbs that pack a serious punch.
To the surprise of many, tinctures are actually a form of extraction — concentrating herbs into their most potent form with the use of alcohol (similar to how vanilla extract is produced).
A simple dropper full of tincture can do amazing things for anxiety, sleep, focus, pain, immunity boost, allergies (the list goes on). Tinctures are a simple way to replenish and infuse your body with herbal power.
Tinctures are versatile — they can be taken directly under the tongue or mixed into your favorite drink for a more soothing experience.
Alcohol-based tinctures are the standard in most herbology practices because of their long shelf-life of several years and the effective way alcohol strips all the beneficial goodness from herbs. However, there are plenty of alternatives to alcohol extraction. I personally love glycerin tinctures because they’re sweet like honey, making them a great addition to tea. Apple cider vinegar can also be used as an alcohol substitute. For a tasty compromise, many herbalists combine alcohol and glycerin to take away some of alcohol’s bite in their tinctures. If you’re avoiding alcohol but want to make an alcohol-based tincture, you can use the tincture in hot drinks or foods so that the alcohol evaporates off before ingestion.
Herbal Tincture Recipe
What You’ll Need:
A clean glass jar with a lid
Enough herbs of your choice (see below) to fill half of the jar
Consumable alcohol that’s at least 80-proof (Vodka or Rum work great, as do Apple Cider Vinegar and food-grade Vegetable Glycerine if you’re avoiding alcohol)
Cheesecloth
Dropper Bottles
Let’s Talk Herbs…
This tincture is designed to reduce anxiety, so we’ve selected herbs that are known to be calming. A tincture is really a blank canvas, you can add any herbs you want to achieve your desired effect. Check out this article about herbs to help you sleep and this article about herbs to help you focus, then try them out in your tincture recipes. It’s fun to experiment because you can’t really go wrong!
Anti-Anxiety Herbs:
Valerian is an incredibly calming herb used to treat PTSD, anxiety, and panic attacks.
Skullcap is an effective, tension-relieving herb that helps reduce restlessness and racing thoughts.
Passionflower helps melt stress and anxiety while restoring healthy, productive energy.
Kava is one of the most potent anti-anxiety herbs in the world. It is typically consumed as a tea but can be added to tinctures for stress and anxiety relief.
This recipe can be made with or without cannabis, but all of us here at Marijuana.com can attest that adding cannabis will take your tincture to the next medicinal level.
Cannabis is an incredibly powerful medicinal herb. However, when it comes to anxiety, things can get a little tricky. Marijuana has the notorious reputation of instilling a sense of paranoia, and thus, anxiety. High doses of THC without the proper counterbalance of CBD can produce feelings of anxiety, and in some cases, induce a panic attack. This is why it is important, especially for an anti-anxiety tincture, to source high-CBD cannabis. This will make all the difference. High-CBD cannabis is classified as a 1:1 ratio of CBD:THC or higher. Marijuana that tests in this range is very effective at reducing and eliminating anxiety.
Step One:
Fill your jar halfway with herbs, without packing them down. You can mix your herbs in any ratio you please to fit your specific needs. I wanted mine to be cannabis-dominant so I’m going to add 1 cup of CBD cannabis flower (hash works great as well, just add about half). I carry a lot of my anxiety as shoulder and neck tension, so I’m going to add ½ cup of skullcap which is great for reducing muscle tension. And to finish off my jar I’m going to add ¼ cup of valerian to calm my racing heart and thoughts.
Optional step: Add boiling water, just enough to dampen the herbs in order to activate and release more medicinal benefits.
Step Two:
Fill the rest of your jar with alcohol (or a substitute). Remember, you can always do a combination of alcohol and glycerin (or honey if you don’t have glycerin on hand). I’m going to add a couple tablespoons of honey to ensure some extra sweetness in my rum-based tincture. Stir with a clean utensil to mix all that goodness together!
Step Three:
Tightly close the lid, place the jar in a cool and dark location, and patiently wait. Make sure to give it a little shake every couple of days. In 4-6 weeks it will be fully infused and ready for the final step!
Step Four:
Here we are, 4-6 weeks later and your tincture is fully infused and looking beautiful. It’s time to strain out the herbs and collect the tincture. Use a cheesecloth to strain the herbs as you pour out your liquid concentrate. You can either pour your tincture directly into a dropper bottle or into another airtight container to transfer into dropper bottles later. The used herbs make great compost or chicken snacks.
Now, it’s time to finally enjoy your tincture! For dosing, take 1-2 droppers full at the first sign of anxiety. For me, an alcohol-based tincture is a little too much to put under my tongue so I typically place my tincture into a hot cup of tea which will evaporate the active alcohol.
credit:marijuana.com