My history with stress and anxiety is long, but insomnia has been a relatively recent challenge in my life. I spent the first three months of 2025 in Brazil and, during that time, I had trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. You only really start to value sleep when you lose it – it’s despairing, not being able to get a proper night’s rest. You start to become the most miserable version of yourself.

That’s when Sara, an acupuncturist who was seeing me while I was there, told me about Mulungu tea – and a whole new world opened up to me through this incredible natural sedative.

I felt the effects for myself. Chamomile and melissa teas have never had much effect on me, so I was curious to see how this one would do. And I was impressed. It didn’t take long for me to feel the calming effects. No wonder this tea is considered “nature’s rivotril”. I’ll be blunt: it’s really good.

Mulungu is a Brazilian tree, also known as Erythrina mulungu or coral tree. The most commonly used part is the bark, although the roots and flowers are also known for their calming properties.

Mulungu has been used in Brazilian folk medicine and indigenous practices for centuries. Its most common use is as a natural sedative, sleep aid, anxiety reducer, mild analgesic and tonic for the nervous system. It is also sometimes used in spiritual or ritualistic contexts for its calming and introspective effects.

Preliminary research and traditional knowledge suggest the following benefits of mulungu:

1. Calms the nervous system
   Traditionally used for insomnia, anxiety, stress and nervous agitation.
   It can help with emotional trauma and restlessness.
2. Muscle relaxant
   It can help relieve tension or muscle spasms.
3. Mild analgesic
   Some people use it for headaches or body aches in general.
4. Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant
   It contains flavonoids and alkaloids with potential antioxidant effects.
5. Supports liver health (anecdotic)
   Some traditional uses suggest that it can help with detoxification.

Among its main active phytochemicals are erythravine and hypaphorine (alkaloids with a sedative effect), flavonoids and triterpenes. These compounds are believed to act on GABA receptors in the brain – in much the same way as some anxiolytic drugs work.

As it’s an herb, you’ll find it in health food stores or online pharmacies, especially those that sell South American herbs – personally, I wouldn’t buy it from Amazon or similar sites. Always buy from reliable sources to guarantee the sustainability and purity of the product.

How to prepare mulungu tea?
As it is a bark, it is best prepared by decoction:

• Measure out about 1 to 2 teaspoons of dried mulungu bark per cup of water.
• Boil the bark in water (don’t just infuse) for about 15 to 20 minutes.
• Strain and drink.

The best time to take it is before bed, due to its sedative effects, but you can also take it at night to slow down, or in periods of high anxiety, stress or emotional overload.

The taste is bitter, very earthy. It reminds me a bit of tobacco (even though I don’t smoke!) – many people mix it with other calming herbs (such as chamomile or lavender) or add honey. I was satisfied with straight tea. I think my focus was more on the effects than the taste, I was happy to drink something so promising.

However, some precautions are necessary:

In some people, the sedative effects can be intense – so avoid driving or operating machinery after consumption.

It can interact with medicines, especially

• Antidepressants
• Benzodiazepines
• Other sedatives or sleep inducers

Not recommended for:

• Pregnant or breastfeeding people
• Continuous daily use (without breaks)

High doses can cause:

• Drowsiness
• Low blood pressure
• Slow heartbeat (in rare cases)

Remember that each person can react differently. Even though it didn’t give me a deep sleep at the time, it still made me sleepy and very calm – which helped a lot, as I was developing anxiety about not being able to sleep. I was gradually creating a mental stigma around bedtime. Fortunately, Sara told me about mulungu, and that helped me get through this moment.

What about you? I’d love to hear about your experience with mulungu tea. Have you ever used it? Did you know about it? Or are you going to try it?

Until next time,