February 2026

The Way Of Tea

• Week 1: Tea Thyme: How To Choose Herbs, Blend, and Prepare Medicinal Herbal Tea.
• Week 2: Plantain – An Humble Herb With Magic Powers
• Week 3: Lemon Balm – A Remedy For Mind & Spirit
• Week 4: Linden – Softening The Edges

Lemon Balm – A Remedy For Mind & Spirit

Part used: Leaves before the plant goes into flower.

Degree: 2nd degree

What’s in a name?

The word balm originated in Middle English and means oily, fragrant, resinous substances, often of medicinal value, exuding from certain plants. The name Melissa comes from the Greek word for honeybee.

Description

Lemon balm is a small plant that can grow to 1-3 feet in height. Like all other plants in the mint family, the stem is square, and the leaves are opposite. Each pair of leaves grows at a right angle to the pair above them. The leaves are oval or heart-shaped, grow to 4 inches broad and 1 to 3 inches long, and are scalloped along the edges. The underside of the leaves might turn dark purple. The flowers have two lobes (lips).

History and lore

Melissa originated in the hills of southeastern Europe, the area that today we call Turkey. Honeybees were sacred in the cosmology of ancient Greek cultures. Honey and beeswax were valued commodities in commerce at that time. Lemon balm attracts honeybees, which made it a sacred plant and designated it as the guardian of the hive. Melissa planted at the entrance to the temple of Artemis, the goddess of nature, hunting, chastity, and childbirth.

Energetic Architecture

Ruling Planet

Lemon balm is under the domain of Jupiter, a massive planet that is mostly made of gas radiating from its center. Jupiter rules the body’s lipids, including volatile oils, a major component of lemon balm medicine.

The association between lemon balm and Jupiter manifests in two of its actions:

The gas connection – As a carminative, lemon balm relieves gas in the GI tract.

Radiating movement – When used as a nervine, lemon balm helps you expand your perspective, gaining direction and inspiration.

Ruling Element

Lemon balm is associated with the air element. We see the association of lemon balm with the air element through its aromatic qualities, ability to release air and wind from the gut, and effect on the nervous system, which is governed by the air element.

Alchemical principle

Lemon balm is placed under the alchemical principle of sulfur because of the volatile aromatic oils. Also, sulfur is the soul principle associated with lemon balm’s profound effect on the soul.

Psychological profile

Lemon balm nourishes the inner child of a person who takes life too seriously. They are driven but forget how to be playful and have fun.

Taste

Lemon balm is a sour remedy. The sour flavor suggests the presence of cooling bioflavonoids, which can modulate inflammation.

Energetics

Temperature: Cooling

Fluids: Drying

Tone: Relaxing.

Tissue States

Heat/excitation – Lemon balm is for excess. When excess thoughts become worry and rumination. When anxiety induces heart palpitations, and when excess food intake causes bloating and gas.

Wind/tension – Lemon balm supports the person whose stress, anxiety, and cravings lead to tension.

Pharmacology

Volatile Compounds – found in relatively small amounts when compared to other mints. The essential oil of Lemon Balm containsaldehydes geranial, citronellal, beta-caryophyllene, neral, and geranyl acetate.

Triterpenes – The most common triterpenes in Melissa officinalis extracts are ursolic acid and oleanolic acid.

Polyphenolic Compounds – a group of secondary metabolites which includes flavonoids ( anthocyanins, flavones, isoflavones) and phenolic acids such as rosmarinic acid, ferulic acid, caffeic acid, methyl carnosoate, hydroxycinnamic acid,

Actions

Foundational actions are associated with the energetic pattern and can be experienced viscerally in the body.

Lemon balm’s foundational action is aromatic – The aromatic volatile oils activate the vagus nerve, therefore calming the mood.

Primary actions relate to organs, systems, or tissues.

Nervine sedative relaxant – A gentle relaxant for the person on the go who can’t stop to relax.

Antidepressant – Mildly uplifting through modulating GABA receptors.

Carminative – Lemon balm is high in volatile oils that increase blood flow to the gut and disperse gas.

Diaphoretic – Lemon balm is a relaxing diaphoretic that promotes peripheral blood flow by relaxing physical muscle and tissue tension that inhibits circulation and sweating.

Aromatic – The aromatic volatile oils activate the vagus nerve, therefore calming the mood.

Secondary actions imply an end result without specifying energetics or the system affected.

Antiviral – Volatile oil (citronellal, geranial, and rosmarinic acid) disrupts viral attachment and penetration into host cells when they come in direct contact.

Antiseptic – volatile oils kill microorganisms on contact by disrupting their membranes.

Organ Affinities

• Nervous system
• Cardiovascular system
• Digestive system
• Thyroid

Clinical Patterns

Nervine relaxant

The first thing that comes to mind when considering lemon balm is its fragrance. The volatile oils are released upon contact and stimulate the olfactory senses, which are directly connected to the limbic part of the brain, which affects emotions, hunger, and sex.

Because the molecules of aromatic oils are small, they easily cross the blood-brain barrier and have an immediate effect on the brain. Since the brain is made of fat, aromatic herbs get a free ticket into the brain, where they can affect mood, focus, and memory.

Aromatic herbs are known to stimulate the vagus nerve, which, in turn, stimulates the rest-and-digest response. It allows the heart and the mind to settle down and work together in harmony. For me, Seraphio’s quote means not only that lemon balm merrily mellows the heart and mind, but also that it marries them.

Research shows that lemon balm extract (600 mg) improved mood, cognitive performance, and attentiveness in young adults under mental stress.

Antioxidant for brainflammation

The aromatics also exhibit antioxidant activity. Lemon balm specifically has an antioxidant effect on the brain, protecting it from the wear and tear of everyday use. This is especially true when using the fresh leaves, which are higher in aromatic oils.

Lemon balm, skullcap, wood betony, and lavender combine well for the person with stress, rumination, and irritability who can’t stop and take time to rest.

ADHDA

A research project that was done in primary school children with restlessness, concentration difficulties, and impulsiveness, but not fulfilling criteria for ADHD diagnosis, responded to a seven week treatment of a combination of lemon balm and valerian with a reduction of symptoms and of problems in school and at home.

Mood modulation

Lemon balm showed promising effects in treating anxiety and anxiety-related insomnia. It contains rosemarinic acid, which boosts GABA, an important inhibitory neurotransmitter that promotes nerve relaxation. Lemon balm tea or glycerite can be beneficial for children who have a hard time transitioning into sleep because they are afraid of the monster under the bed.

In another study, lemon balm decreased anxiety episodes and reduced benign heart palpitations in patients who were treated with lemon balm in comparison to patients who were treated with a placebo.

For anxiety and heart palpitations, I like to mix lemon balm with Hawthorne, tulsi (sacred basil), and rose.

Brain degenerative disease

A 2009 study found that lemon balm inhibits acetylcholinesterase, an enzyme that breaks down cholinergic neurotransmitters in the brain. By promoting cholinergic neurotransmission and exerting antioxidant effects, lemon balm can help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.

In another study,lemon balm’s constituents were found to reduce beta-amyloid accumulation in the brain. Beta amyloid is a harmful protein that is associated with Alzheimer’s disease. In a 2003 double-blind trial of Alzheimer’s patients, 60 drops of a 1:1 lemon balm extract daily for 16 weeks reduced agitation and improved cognitive function.

Digestive tract

As a carminative, lemon balm relaxes smooth muscles, making it a great ally in relieving stagnant digestion and abdominal cramping. Due to its carminative effect, lemon balm relieves bloating and gas.

Studies suggest that lemon balm can be beneficial for people with IBS, a condition in which stress and agitation cause tension in the smooth muscles of the digestive tract. Lemon balm will help relax these muscles and relieve the stress and anxiety that are the root causes of gut tension.

Lemon balm works well if combined with chamomile and fennel seeds for digestive cramps.

Reproductive system

Due to lemon balm’s effect on smooth muscles, it is also beneficial in relieving menstrual cramping. In a double blind study of college students with dysmenorrhea, lemon balm was found to reduce the intensity and the duration of pain compared to a placebo.

cardiovascular system

The antispasmodic effect of lemon balm extends to the cardiovascular system, where it can reduce blood pressure.

Rosmarinic acid, lemon balm’s s main constituent, has demonstrated vasorelaxant endothelial effects in studies, and its citral components are associated with anti-inflammatory effects. Melissa has also shown hypoglycemic properties. In addition, lemon balm reduced serum lipids and lipid peroxidation, increased antioxidant defenses, and reduced liver enzyme levels, effects comparable to those of statins in vitro and in vivo.

A small study on two women with Graves’ disease found that lemon balm and bugleweed normalised Thyroid-Stimulating Immunoglobulins, reducing immune system attack on the thyroid.

Immune function

Aromatics in general, and lemon balm specifically, are antiviral, antiseptic, and antibacterial. The immune-modulating effects of the volatile oil are primarily dependent on direct contact with the pathogen.

Lemon balm is especially beneficial for viruses that are triggered by stress, such as shingles and herpes. It can be used topically in a bath and internally in tea or as an extract. It can also relieve the itchiness that accompanies chicken pox and eczema in children.

Lemon balm may be helpful for a child with a fever who is irritable and restless, unable to rest or fall asleep.

Preparation and dosage

You can use lemon balm in tea, glycerite, tincture, sitz bath, as an essential oil in a diffuser, in a sleeping pillow, in pesto, in wine, and in cooking.

Hot infusion, steeped 30 minutes; 8 ounces 1-4 times daily.

Cold infusion: steep 4-8 hours; 4-8 ounces 1-4 times daily

Tincture: fresh leaves 1:2 (85% A, 10% G), dried leaf (1:5 65% A, 10% G);

Dosage: 2-5ml (0.4-1 tsp) 3 times daily

Glycerite: fresh leaf (1:6, 80% G sealed simmer method); dried leaf (1:6);

Dosage: 2.5-10ml (0.5-2 tsp) 3 times daily.

Safety

Safe. A family-friendly herb appropriate for kids.

Avoid concentrated lemon balm extracts in hypothyroidism.

Avoid concentrated extracts of lemon balm during pregnancy.

How you ingest your tea is just as important as the herbs you use. Tea drinking is a whole body sensual experience. It is an opportunity to practice mindfulness. Sit with your tea and listen with your whole body to the scent, taste, and feelings that arise when you sip.