Hi all, I’m new to Sofi and looking some some advice. Came off my anxiety medication due to side effects and am now winging it lol. Taking Valerian when needed and started taking magnesium and other vitamins to help ease things, meditating aswell. Sleep can be very erratic which led me to Sofi. Is there anything else you recommend for me to help me sleep and keep me settled.
Kelly
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Evening @kells4 and welcome to the treehouse. The first two target states we are working on are sleeplessness and anxiety and the first ten plants we are looking to activate and test with pioneers dit different and sometimes shared pathways between those two … so I hope you will stay with us for the journey and we can hopefully make some useful discoveries together to help with more calm. I am also burning in @pamelaspence into this conversation in case she can share anything with you in advance of us bringing our formulations. Welcome on board xx 
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Thanks @Kaveh - though burning me in felt a bit uncomfortable 
Hello @kells4 and welcome to the Treehouse. I’m the sofi medical herbalist and it’s lovely to have you with us.
That’s a big change your body is getting used to and well done for using all the other tools you have available. Have you got on well with the valerian you’ve been taking? And how long since you stopped your medication?
I think the key thing is to be consistent. Keep doing the things every day even if some days are not as good as others. It’s consistency that will get you there!
With the sofi herbs we’d love you to get into a good routine so that you are taking your dose every day at roughly the same time. Journalling in your app will allow you to see you progress over time and notice patterns.
The first herbs we are working with support people with both anxiety and sleep challenges so they sound perfect for you.
This is a really friendly and supportive community - so post here if you are struggling. And there’s no such thing as a silly question so please ask away too.
Wishing you a restful night!
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@pamelaspence thanks for the reply. Have been coming of my medication from November while trying others that haven’t worked. Totally of them just over a week. Started valerian to help me sleep so taking 2 tablets at night. I didn’t sleep much better but felt more settled in bed. I am now taking them during the day to make me less anxious and they do work. I have always used plant based products for other things but its a bit of a minefield knowing what to try. It will be great to get some expertise from yourselves.
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Ah thanks for the extra info. So you will still have a little of the medication in your system, it often takes 2-4 weeks before it is totally gone (same as when you start it and it needs to titrate up). You might notice a few bumps in the road in the next couple of weeks as your body gets used to having none at all.
The valerian works on anxiety too, so it can often make you feel calmer and then after a while it begins to positively impact sleep as well, so feeling more settled in bed is already a good result.
There are SOOOOO many herbal remedies to choose from that it can indeed be a minefield! Happy to help. Consistency really is key - so here at sofi we want our Pioneers to test whether they benefit from our doses of valerian in the S1 programme (probably a bit higher than you have been taking to date).
Another good way to get some herbal support is to drink calming herbal teas during the day. Look for anything with a name like ‘Relax’ or ‘Calm’ and reach for those instead of your normal cuppa and that all supports your nervous system too.
Hope that helps!
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Didn’t you know @pamelaspence - Typos are my favourite past time! xx 
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Lol. BTW did you see that the Scottish Government issued an apology to everyone accused of witchcraft on International Women’s Day? The vast majority of them were women. Nothing to do with spiritual belief and mostly to do with knowing how to use plants. It hasn’t always been a safe profession - still isn’t in some places I’ve worked!!
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