Brown Bear Herbs' Herbal Smoking Blends

Take it Easy, Sexy Smokes and Astral in Body are all grounding smokes that work very differently! Take it Easy is wonderful if you have tension around your shoulders, neck and/or head. The herbs tend to relax that area, including dropping you out of your brain. As an alternative to tobacco, it is a great smoke for easing work frustrations, or to clear your head before bed. Sexy Smokes herbs are excellent at bringing your energy into the sensual realm. If you have trouble being too mental or goal focused with sexy time, this blend is great for helping you enjoy the moment. I wouldn't say it is hard to get mental like Take it Easy, you just have other things to focus on. Also it is helpful for improving confidence, which makes it fun to smoke during creative or social times. I think this has a connection with anxiety and mental agitation. It is hard to be too worried when you are feeling confident!  Astral in Body might be an unexpected option for a "grounding" smoke. Socially this blend is a bit of a wild card. However as a solo smoke, when the moon is full or in a difficult sign for you, it is grounding and centering. It tends to bring your awareness to the energy around your body and bring your energy downwards. If you are looking for a slightly eccentric herb experience, while learning more about your body's energy...I would choose Astral.  In general, I find that most herbal aphrodisiacs, herbs for reproductive and lower digestive tract health are grounding. Some examples available on our website include: Lady's Thumb,  ASMR tincture, & Black Cohosh.  Nervines like skullcap, in our Mother's Little Helper tea, are helpful at soothing frayed nerves.  Energetic boundary healing through herbs like yarrow (in Astral in Body herbal cigarettes and Blood and Boundaries herbal bath), St. John's Wort, and Devil's Club is another approach, if you are feeling overly sensitive to the world around you.  Many black gemstones, like black tourmaline, are also very grounding.  I encourage you to learn about different tools for grounding and see what feels best for you. I think one of the most beautiful and powerful things that we can do is share our experiences. So, as you learn, please share too.  Arati

In this video, I discuss my Back Support tincture for lower back issues, like nerve pain and bulging discs. Valerian for muscle spasm, True Solomon's Seal (made properly from the fresh root!) for ligament adjustment, whether too tight or too loose.  Also, Take it Easy herbal smoking blend (you can also drink the loose herbs as a tea) is often helpful for headaches with a neck components that is twisty--like asymmetrical whiplash or a waking with a kinked neck. Black Cohosh tincture is more suited for symmetrical whiplash.  All herbs mentioned above are available on this site!  

Looking for an herbal smoking blend to help you quit smoking tobacco? Brown Bear Herbs has lots of options. Not sure which smoking blends will help you when? Figure out which will help you the most. Smoke some soothing lavender in Gentle and Protective, or use lobelia to help end nicotine cravings with Take it Easy.

From the newsletter,  I am hearing and feeling a lot of grief and frustration related to the shooting in Uvalde, TX, and the threats to women's rights. I find that a combination of self-care, involving plant medicine and mindfulness, as well as taking action helps me feel less depressed and more hopeful.     Some of my favorite herbs for frustrating times include:  Guerrilla Puffs, a smoking blend to help you stay politically engaged and fighting in the face of injustice, mass hysteria and fear campaigns. Clear Mind, a smoking blend for centering.  Mother's Little Helper, is an herbal tea for anyone suffering from prolonged stress. It helps maintain mental clarity while soothing your nervous system. Color Wheel, a flower and gem essence for seeing the color and beauty and not just the madness or bleakness. Both gun control and abortion rights are issues that the majority of the US is unhappy about how the government is handling matters. Even when I am not sure if my actions will cause any positive change, it feels better to take action rather than give up.  Please take some time to contact your senator (202) 224-3121 and ask for gun regulation, to protect abortion rights and to eliminate the filibuster.   I recommend developing a practice of yoga, breath-work and/or meditation. Here is a link to my youtube playlist with some meditation practices. These practices are invaluable to me. I feel they have contributed to a feeling of connection to the world around me, to the healing of my body from twenty-some chronic illnesses and most importantly they allow me to center as needed, even in very difficult times. When you have more inner peace, you have more ability to direct your life.    Since it is Gemini season and it is hard to be too serious, here is my list of videos for dark times. Most are just stuff that makes me laugh :)

from today's newsletter Yarrow, or Achillea Millefolium, is the pink flower pictured above. The typical flower used medicinally is white. Other types of yarrow are used in flower essences as well. Pink is often used for healing the energetic field, which imparts strength and resilience to attacks.  Historically Yarrow was used on battlefields for cuts to the artery. I have seen it save people from trips to the emergency department. It is helpful with moderating blood in general, making it excellent support to people who bleed (especially menstruators). Clear the wound of any debris before applying yarrow on or near an injury. I usually prefer the tincture for this. If you are wounded in the field and see some, you can chew the yarrow and place it next to a rinsed wound. It should quickly slow or stop bleeding. On an energetic level, yarrow is helpful for healing holes in the energetic field which can be caused by various types of trauma, including physical injury. Healing the energetic field gives the person a sense of strength, solidity, and impermeability that makes it much easier to press forward into battle or just our everyday lives without feeling overwhelmed by others. For bleeding or clotting issues, energetic maintenance, and (in the case of Astral in Body) giggles...I recommend yarrow. It is an herb no home should be without.

In this video, I discuss my favorite blend for social engagements, the social smoke! Made with organic yerba santa, mullein, California poppy and violet leaf. Enjoy :)

This new moon is also a solar eclipse. It happens in the Earth sign Taurus, close to the planet Uranus. Uranus has a more objective handle on things and is not afraid to disrupt everything to offer fresh alternatives. Keep an open mind...if something unfortunate or unexpected happens, shout "plot twist" and observe for silver linings or unearthed gold. 

A closer look at, along with a brief explanation of flower and gem essences!  Find more info, along with flower and gem essence products we offer on our website, here :)

Clear Mind is a beautiful and gentle smoke. It is made with organic spearmint, gotu kola, linden and mullein. I created this herbal smoking blend for writers and other creatives who smoke while they work. This blend helps clear out emotional debris which can interfere with performing. Gotu kola is a great herb for mental clarity and memory. I think this is why it is a favorite smoke for actors, on or off the set.

Great for centering and clearing heart and mind: Clear Mind, Gentle and Protective and for moon work: Astral in Body.

In this video I discuss, in this order, Sweet Dreams Tea, my new Warming Elixir for digestive issues related to COVID-19, Lomatium and Baikal Skullcap. All of these products are (depending on season) available on the site!

In this video, I will be discussing, The Social, Sexy Smokes, and...oddball contender, Astral in Body!

Check out this insightful video, or read this article for more information on the legal endangerment of children by Big Tobacco in the USA. 

Brown Bear Herbs offers community herbalism, individual herbal consultations, herbal blends, and education to support health empowerment, quitting tobacco, and life after addiction. To get involved with our community projects around resilience and empowerment, email hello@brownbearherbs.com for more information!

Brown Bear Herbs offers community herbalism, individual herbal consultations, herbal blends, and education to support health empowerment, quitting tobacco, and life after addiction. To get involved with our community projects around resilience and empowerment, email hello@brownbearherbs.com for more information!  

Do you have questions or concerns about herbal side effects or how to deal with allergies? Here are some of my tips from years of practicing herbalism! Hope this helps :)

It can sometimes seem overwhelming to think of how one person can make a difference with all the problems in the world today.  By lucidly dreaming or even through dreams of clarity you can gain solutions to obstacles--from health issues to auto mechanics. Check out the Sleep, Dreams and Magic section of the shop for teas and more information.  Though dream work is delightful and inspiring, creating a better world in the waking time takes hard work and determination.  Brown Bear Herbs started working with Baja Mandala, an organic farm in Baja California Sur a couple years ago. Hoping to expand our collaboration with the farm, I took a visit.  I was so happy with what I found. In addition to super cool organic farming techniques I discovered the team had clean and healthy working conditions, fair wages, year round housing and medical insurance.  In addition to good working conditions, their side project: Los Sagrados horse sanctuary, is really heart warming. The sanctuary is a source of healing for horses, many of whom have been ill-treated. The horse rescue also offers healing to humans. Los Sagrados offers a space for mindfulness work with the horses for victims of domestic violence, neurodivergent folks, and at risk youths. Beyond workplace rights this is a place for workers and family members (as well as those in the community at large) who are ready to receive healing through mindfulness and serving the rescue horses.  Here is me with my favorite buddies, Pluto (my #1) and Cosmos.  I am so excited to be working with Baja Mandala (@bajamandala) and Los Sagrados (@lossagradoshorserescue). I applaud them for doing the hard work to better their community. If you are seeing healing progress in your world, please share the beauty you are witnessing. -Arati PS To read my new and full moon astrology updates, learn about promotions and more, add yourself to our email list.

Today is November 1st. This is a time of year when the veils are thinner between the spirit world and the material world. Some tips and herbs to support ethical spirituality and magical practices. Find our herbs, including mullein, Gentle & Protective, Clear Mind and Guerrilla Puffs on our website!

Quick overview of what makes our Clear Mind herbal smoking blend so popular! This blend is great for taking a moment for yourself before you meditate, before beginning a project, when you're getting ready to brainstorm, or when you're just feeling the vibe on a nature excursion! Enjoy :)

Quick info on our Sexy Smokes herbal smoking blend! Made with organic and/or wildcrafted damiana, blackberry leaf, hibiscus, rose and mullein, this blend is a great social smoke, but its properties can also be enjoyed alone, in intimate settings, or in groups. Enjoy :)

A quick look at what makes up our Gentle & Protective herbal smoking blend! Calming and grounding, this blend is great in times of stress, or as part of your evening wind down ritual! Enjoy :)

My favorite weeds are Lady's Thumb, Blackberry, Hawthorn and Wild Rose (not exactly thought of as a weed but, it grows with such vigor and thorniness maybe it should have that honor). These herbs are wonderful for enjoying life even through hardship. Weeds are amazing examples of undiscovered medicine and robust life. If you have been treated like a weed you might want to share your hard earned medicine and give yourself some recognition for thriving in spite of it all.   Find on the Site:  Wildcrafted Lady's Thumb tincture Blackberry in Sexy Smokes Rose in Sexy Smokes, Take it Easy organic herbal smoking blend, Tulsi and Rose tea (no longer available in 2024), Blood and Boundaries bath, wild rose in Color Wheel flower and gem essence, and Hawthorn in Humanity tea.

I went to Larch Mountain the Columbia River Gorge. The plants had a lot to say about conservation. Here are some of their communications. 

  If your libido is low due to vata imbalance or prolonged stress OR you just want to reactivate your sex life with an ASMR/White Tantra/Tender vibe, try this tincture and watch this video!