LISTEN!
In this episode, you'll learn...
How a focus issue might present itself for the side hustler
Herbs that are known to help with focus.
Non-herbal substitutes we might consider
All right. So there are lots of different herbs that are out there to help with improved memory, improved brain function, things like that. My mind thinks about Gingko Biloba and I can't remember the commercial and how it went. And it's funny because there was a catchy commercial, I just remember the name of the herb ginkgo Biloba that has been a popular one for ages in terms of improving brain function. I've always heard about that one.
Ginseng is another one that's come up a lot, but there are a couple as I was doing some research here that you don't hear about as often, but they sound like they might be a good option to consider. Now I have not used either of these, actually one of them I think I have used. So one of them is valerian and I think this also comes by the name valerian root. I'm actually not sure if those are two different things, but valerian root, I know I have used years and years ago and used it as an herbal supplement in a pill form. And let me tell you a little bit about valerian. This is a quote from Black Enterprise, "Valerian may help relieve sleep difficulties, thereby naturally improving cognition, memory, and concentration". So this valerian was really coming about in the 1820s, and it's known to have these tranquilizing slash slightly sedative effects and known to be associated with not only improving concentration but also in relieving stress. So valerian is one that I would check out.
And so I'm anxious to get to the herb store to either take this in a tea form, in a pill form, and I'm not sure what other forms it may come in, maybe a crushed form that you could use for cooking or something along those lines.
Now, the other one that you don't hear a lot about is called lemon balm. And I know that this one often comes in a tea. Again, I've never had it, but there's something about trying things that people don't talk about very often. Well, I guess I should say this on one hand that could be risky, right? Because people don't talk about it. Fear the unknown. Why would you do that? Only stick with the things that people talk about. However, I like to go against the grain and go outside of the ordinary even as it relates to things that I'm going to put in my body. As crazy as that sounds. So lemon balm, I haven't heard people talking about it a lot but it's also an array that's known to help improve cognitive function.
And here's a clip from the site called "Very Well Mind". And by the way, I will have the link in the show notes for you to check out. Very Well Mind talks about a study that happened relative to Alzheimer's disease and it says from a study published in the journal of neurosurgery in psychiatry, in 2003, 42 patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease took either a placebo or lemon balm extract for four months. At the end of the study, those given lemon balm showed a significantly greater improvement in cognitive function compared to those given the placebo. So there are some good effects hiding around here in lemon balm and this sounds like one that I'm going to put on the must-try list. Now I'm not really going to expand beyond two because we are doing a little bit of testing and learning here.
So knowing that valerian and lemon balm make the list first off if any of you out there have ever used either of these to help you focus a bit more, I would love to hear from you and I would love to hear how it's going. So while I'm doing my experiment I would love to hear from your experiences and we can share that with all of the listeners as well. So feel free to drop me an email or drop me a DM on Instagram and let's talk about it now. The other thing to consider to help you focus beyond the herbs, beyond any medications, I'm certainly not going the medication route. But the other thing to help you consider is the non-herbal substitutes. And when I'm talking about the non-herbal substitutes, I'm really talking about good old fashion rest, good old fashion relaxation.
Just sort of stopping all of the activity that you're doing and slowing down a little bit just to allow your brain to have more focus and concentration on one thing. Maybe a couple of things at a time. Now I realize that as I say this, first off, if it was super, super effective for me, I wouldn't be recording this episode. So since it is not, it maybe is because I haven't given the proper time to really slow down and do the things I need to do from that standpoint. But there is a reality piece here especially if you are working in 9-to-5, you're building a business, you're a mother, you're a spouse, you're all these different things. It's hard to really just focus on one thing and have a nice sort of carefree existence. That's the reality. So at least for now, I'm going to go ahead and check out valerian and lemon balm, do my own experiments, and you let me know if you decide to give this a try or let me know how it goes.
It's hard to really just focus on one thing and have a nice sort of carefree existence. That's the reality. (Click to tweet)
Check Out:
Follow Me!
Instagram:
Facebook:
LinkedIn:
Twitter:
Youtube: