A Golden Ally for the Overwhelmed & Frazzled
California Poppy, Eschscholzia californica
I’m just going to say it straight: I have wrestled with depression and anxiety.
Not in a dramatic, shout-it-from-the-rooftops kind of way — but in that quiet, heavy way where sometimes everything feels too loud, too much, and too tangled to even know where to start untangling it.
It comes and goes. Like unwelcome houseguests. Some days are smooth sailing, and other times… well, let’s just say I feel like a real-life dumpster fire rolling downhill. 🔥🗑️
And when life piles up — when my nervous system is fried, my patience has packed its bags, and I’m juggling 37 things while 5 Frenchies are underfoot — California poppy is something I’ve reached for.
Not because it fixes everything.
Not because it erases my struggles.
But because it gently softens the edges. It offers me a moment to catch my breath and remember that I don’t have to carry it all at once.
I first started using California poppy on nights when my brain wouldn’t shut off — you know, the nights where your body is bone-tired but your mind is hosting a full-blown circus?
I’d make a warm cup of tea with just a pinch of California poppy and sit quietly, and honestly, I HATED the taste.
Within minutes, it felt like the tension in my chest uncurled just a little. My shoulders, which are usually up around my ears, would start to drop. My jaw unclenched. It didn’t knock me out, but it nudged me closer to rest — the kind of rest that feels earned, not forced.
When I felt that particular brand of anxiety where every muscle feels tight and my thoughts are spiraling, I’d rub a little California poppy-infused oil into the base of my neck or shoulders.
It felt like a soft whisper to my nervous system: "Hey, you can put it down for a minute. You’re safe."
Because I am not a fan of the taste, I’d prefer a tincture — just a dropperful when everything felt knotted inside me. It was like it turned the volume down on the world, just enough for me to breathe again.
And you know what else I’ve come to appreciate?
This herb doesn’t just work on the mind. When stress lives in my body (tight muscles, headaches, those little aches that pop up from carrying emotional weight), California poppy has this sneaky way of relaxing the physical tension too. It’s analgesic and antispasmodic, meaning it eases both the mind’s buzzing and the body’s clenching.
Of course — and you know me, I’ll always keep it real — she’s powerful, so you gotta respect her:
I’ve learned not to take too much, or I wake up with a headache or feel sluggish the next day- Yup, that herbal hangover you have heard me talk about before.
It’s also important not to mix her with things like alcohol or other sedatives (because she loves naps a little too much).
And while she’s gentle, don’t use her during pregnancy or for infants.
What I love most is how California poppy carries the wisdom of rest.
Native California tribes knew it, using her to calm anxiety, ease pain, and soothe sleeplessness.
She teaches that slowing down — truly, deeply slowing down — is not weakness.
It’s a kind of strength most of us forget we’re allowed to have.
On my hardest days — when depression or anxiety tries to convince me I have to keep going, keep pushing, keep DOING — California poppy reminds me that the bravest thing I can do sometimes is to stop.
To breathe.
To rest.
To tell the world, “I’ll be back after a nap and a cup of tea.”
If you’ve ever felt like a dumpster fire too (and let’s be honest, who hasn’t?), maybe this is an herb you’ll want in your corner. Not as a magic fix — but as a soft place to land when life gets sharp.
Here’s to resting when we need it — no apologies, no guilt.
Still rooted. Still real. Always resting when needed.