For about a month now, I’ve been following a daily ritual: Brains Pure Ashwaghanda and CBD in the morning, and Brains Pure Magnesium and CBD at night.
And I don’t know if it’s just the placebo effect, but it’s helping me feel a lot less anxious — I don’t get that horrible butterfly feeling in my stomach all the time anymore — struggle less with intrusive thoughts that I get due to my OCD, and have been getting much better quality sleep.
While magnesium is a mineral that can also help reduce stress, ashwagandha is known as an adaptogen; a term that focuses on how certain substances affect your body and adapt it to mitigate the negative effects of stress on the body.
How do adaptogens help reduce stress?
Adaptogens can halt how stressed out we get from situations that come in life through a process called general adaptation syndrome (GAS).
According to experts, GAS is a three-stage response our bodies go through when confronted with a stressor:
- Alarm
- Resistance
- Exhaustion
Supplementing with adaptogens can help us stay in the second, resistance stage for longer, and help to completely avoid dipping into the third exhaustion stage, helping you to find balance and moving on more quickly.
Other popular adaptogens that you might see in your local health shop include ginseng, goji berry, turmeric and holy basil, amongst many others.
When it comes to my morning ashwagandha habit, there could be something in how relaxed I’m feeling. Studies suggest that supplementing with the adaptogen can help relieve feelings of stress and anxiety.
In one study with 58 participants, those who took 250 or 600 mg of ashwagandha extract for eight weeks were found to have significantly less levels of the stress hormone — cortisol — in their bodies, and had far less perceived stress, too.
If stress is taking over your life and you feel like you’ve tried everything, it might be worth adding some adaptogens to your routine.
And of course, make sure to talk to your GP if you feel overwhelmed or mentally unwell.
It’s important to speak to a doctor if considering taking a new supplement, especially if you’re already on medication, and some adaptogens, such as ashwagandha are considered unsafe for pregnant people.
But for people with no real health issues beyond stress and anxiety, adaptogens are an easy and quick way to provide some instant calm.