There is a nasty cold going around. You get a fever, really runny nose, headache, sore throat, stomach ache, or all of the above. It's hard to know if you have it since this time of year many of those same symptoms hit all the ragweed allergy sufferers. But if it's the cold, we've found some herbs that are helping.
What has really helped my family is to combine licorice, ginger and echinacea with whatever other herbs I'm using to make tea and drink lots of it. Even the kids who don't like the taste of those particular herbs are saying it did help a lot.
Licorice is good for sore throats and coughs and is a natural antibiotic. Ginger helps all sorts of tummy aches. And Echinacea boosts your immune system and helps with the stuffiness. It will make your nose run which is good if you want to avoid the sinus headache and earaches that could go along with the stuffiness. Be prepared with lots of tissues!
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disorder
Many years ago I was experiencing a lot of pain whenever I ate. I also had a lot of aches and pains in my back, shoulders, and one hip. I went to the doctor. They told me those were different and I needed a second appointment to deal with both things so I had to choose which one to do first. (And people wonder why I don't care much for doctors.) I chose the abdominal pain since eating seemed to be more important to my survival than sitting comfortably. I was actually not nursing a baby at the time (the one break I've had in almost 22 years) and I didn't expect to have any more babies ever (boy was I wrong!) so I was able to take medication without worrying about it.
They did a blood test and found there was no way it was an ulcer because I didn't have the h. pylorii (or something like that) bacteria in my blood. So they decided it was Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disorder aka GERD or Reflux. They ran through the usual "try to lose some weight and eat right" stuff with me. Yeah. I weighed 115 lbs. I don't think I had much to lose. Then they prescribed something. I can't remember what it was. I just know it gave me horrible horrible headaches. I have survived migraines for the last 22 years without any pain medication because I don't want to even possibly harm the babies I am carrying or nursing. I give birth without pain medication. I'm not a wimpy person who cannot handle pain. But this was awful. I went back and told them it caused bigger problems so they took me off that and put me on another. This one also had side effects. My stomach would knot up like a rock. You could feel a hard little rock right where my stomach was supposed to be. I stopped taking that and decided I must need to live with this pain and consider Tums to be a regular part of every meal.
Then I was talking to a friend who asked if I would consider doing anything natural. Of course I would! So she sent me to a health food store to talk to the woman who ran it. She said I had a yeast overgrowth and put me on Oregano Oil and Acidophilus and told me no sugar including fruit and milk. I decided to try it and was amazed to find that not only did my stomach pains go away, so did all those other aches and pains I'd never made another appointment to discuss with the doctor! I have to admit though, we gave up fruit, but not milk. And several years later my symptoms came back and I did it again without giving up milk or fruit. It still worked. But other sugars really should go.
Through the years I have helped several other people with similar problems by telling this story. It has helped people with back pain (especially that ache between your shoulder blades, just off from the center) and people with reflux. I never experienced any reflux sensation. Basically I just had a really bad case of heartburn. But it has worked for others who had that reflux sensation.
There are other things that work too. My favorite, because we always keep it on hand and it works for so many other things AND is safe enough to give children and babies, is Nutribiotic Grapefruit Seed Extract. A dose for an adult is 1 tablet. But you can get the liquid and the dose for ANY size person can be calculated by taking 1 drop per 10 pounds of body weight. Never take the liquid straight. It has to be diluted. You can mix it in juice, applesauce, or whatever. It is bitter and seems to taste less strong when cold.
For Reflux, take 1 dose in the morning and another dose at night. Along with that, take acidophilus. We like the yummy chewable tablets and have found we're more likely to remember to do this if there's something yummy involved. But you can take whatever form of acidophilus you want. Just take it when you take the GSE--one in the morning and one at night.
The way it works is that the GSE kills the yeast, the acidophilus adds to the good bacteria, and avoiding sugar starves the yeast.
How long to continue depends on you. If you stop and the pain returns, it was too soon. If you stop and feel great still, you don't need it. Figure at least a couple weeks. I did it for 6 weeks the first time, stopped and needed to re-start pretty quickly. Then I just took it once daily for about a year. I only need it now if I start eating a lot of sugar again. Then a couple doses later I feel great and quit.
They did a blood test and found there was no way it was an ulcer because I didn't have the h. pylorii (or something like that) bacteria in my blood. So they decided it was Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disorder aka GERD or Reflux. They ran through the usual "try to lose some weight and eat right" stuff with me. Yeah. I weighed 115 lbs. I don't think I had much to lose. Then they prescribed something. I can't remember what it was. I just know it gave me horrible horrible headaches. I have survived migraines for the last 22 years without any pain medication because I don't want to even possibly harm the babies I am carrying or nursing. I give birth without pain medication. I'm not a wimpy person who cannot handle pain. But this was awful. I went back and told them it caused bigger problems so they took me off that and put me on another. This one also had side effects. My stomach would knot up like a rock. You could feel a hard little rock right where my stomach was supposed to be. I stopped taking that and decided I must need to live with this pain and consider Tums to be a regular part of every meal.
Then I was talking to a friend who asked if I would consider doing anything natural. Of course I would! So she sent me to a health food store to talk to the woman who ran it. She said I had a yeast overgrowth and put me on Oregano Oil and Acidophilus and told me no sugar including fruit and milk. I decided to try it and was amazed to find that not only did my stomach pains go away, so did all those other aches and pains I'd never made another appointment to discuss with the doctor! I have to admit though, we gave up fruit, but not milk. And several years later my symptoms came back and I did it again without giving up milk or fruit. It still worked. But other sugars really should go.
Through the years I have helped several other people with similar problems by telling this story. It has helped people with back pain (especially that ache between your shoulder blades, just off from the center) and people with reflux. I never experienced any reflux sensation. Basically I just had a really bad case of heartburn. But it has worked for others who had that reflux sensation.
There are other things that work too. My favorite, because we always keep it on hand and it works for so many other things AND is safe enough to give children and babies, is Nutribiotic Grapefruit Seed Extract. A dose for an adult is 1 tablet. But you can get the liquid and the dose for ANY size person can be calculated by taking 1 drop per 10 pounds of body weight. Never take the liquid straight. It has to be diluted. You can mix it in juice, applesauce, or whatever. It is bitter and seems to taste less strong when cold.
For Reflux, take 1 dose in the morning and another dose at night. Along with that, take acidophilus. We like the yummy chewable tablets and have found we're more likely to remember to do this if there's something yummy involved. But you can take whatever form of acidophilus you want. Just take it when you take the GSE--one in the morning and one at night.
The way it works is that the GSE kills the yeast, the acidophilus adds to the good bacteria, and avoiding sugar starves the yeast.
How long to continue depends on you. If you stop and the pain returns, it was too soon. If you stop and feel great still, you don't need it. Figure at least a couple weeks. I did it for 6 weeks the first time, stopped and needed to re-start pretty quickly. Then I just took it once daily for about a year. I only need it now if I start eating a lot of sugar again. Then a couple doses later I feel great and quit.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Morning Sickness
I am 7 weeks pregnant with our 12th child. At almost 43 yrs old, I consider the nausea to be a good sign since I keep hearing of women my age miscarrying. But it's still hard to keep going when I feel so yucky.
I've experienced morning sickness with every pregnancy, but other than the time I had the flu at this stage, I've never thrown up so I know this isn't nearly as bad as other women get.
I've found a couple of aids so far. We went on a long drive to go meet our first grandson. Each time I'd start to feel nauseous I'd fall asleep. When I woke up, the nausea had passed. So sleep is apparently a good help. This was the ONLY day out of 12 pregnancies that this was a possibility though. Life doesn't let many people just doze off and on all day.
I know that peppermint is supposed to be good for upset stomachs. So I bought some Altoid mints. The curiously strong ones. I LOVE mints, but these aren't my favorite. They're so strong they hurt my tongue. In other pregnancies I tried mint candy and mint gum and they work okay and taste good. The Altoids are working great so far. Why does it have to be the one I don't care as much for? But relief is relief.
I will say, nothing seems to take the nausea away completely. This just helps it be more tolerable. Ginger is supposed to work well, too, but I haven't tried it yet. Maybe I'll make some ginger tea this weekend and see how that works. I'll keep you posted if I find anything.
I've experienced morning sickness with every pregnancy, but other than the time I had the flu at this stage, I've never thrown up so I know this isn't nearly as bad as other women get.
I've found a couple of aids so far. We went on a long drive to go meet our first grandson. Each time I'd start to feel nauseous I'd fall asleep. When I woke up, the nausea had passed. So sleep is apparently a good help. This was the ONLY day out of 12 pregnancies that this was a possibility though. Life doesn't let many people just doze off and on all day.
I know that peppermint is supposed to be good for upset stomachs. So I bought some Altoid mints. The curiously strong ones. I LOVE mints, but these aren't my favorite. They're so strong they hurt my tongue. In other pregnancies I tried mint candy and mint gum and they work okay and taste good. The Altoids are working great so far. Why does it have to be the one I don't care as much for? But relief is relief.
I will say, nothing seems to take the nausea away completely. This just helps it be more tolerable. Ginger is supposed to work well, too, but I haven't tried it yet. Maybe I'll make some ginger tea this weekend and see how that works. I'll keep you posted if I find anything.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Cough and Sore Throat tea
We survived a virus that caused everyone to cough and have sore throats. Some of the kids had a dry, hacking cough and others got wheezy with it. At least 3 of my children lost their voices. (Sadly, that didn't seem to create a quieter atmosphere here since it was only one at a time.) The first to catch this virus was my son Samuel. He seems to end up with asthmatic symptoms whenever he catches any cold. One morning he was struggling so much he couldn't even make it up the stairs to his bedroom. I had to leave, but made him some tea and instructed Grace, his babysitter for the morning, to push the tea. She said she had him sip it every time she could--maybe every 15 minutes or so. When I returned 4 hours later, he was fine and went to play outside.
So what was in the tea? I will share my list of ingredients. But if you don't want to make it yourself I have now made a HUGE bag of it and would be glad to share. $5 for a 2 ounce bag. In about 3 weeks I'll have a tincture made from it and will want to test that on somebody. :) I'll need a local person with a cough to test so let me know if you feel bad about 3 weeks from now. Not wishing it on anybody, but just letting you know I'll be glad to share my tincture free for the first person who is sick and willing to test it out. FYI it will be alcohol based.
My cough and sore throat formula is this: 1 part each of mullein, licorice root, echinacea, peppermint, spearmint, stevia, dried elder berries. 1/2 part lobelia. Sometimes I throw in an extra part of mullein. It doesn't seem to make a difference though.
So what was in the tea? I will share my list of ingredients. But if you don't want to make it yourself I have now made a HUGE bag of it and would be glad to share. $5 for a 2 ounce bag. In about 3 weeks I'll have a tincture made from it and will want to test that on somebody. :) I'll need a local person with a cough to test so let me know if you feel bad about 3 weeks from now. Not wishing it on anybody, but just letting you know I'll be glad to share my tincture free for the first person who is sick and willing to test it out. FYI it will be alcohol based.
My cough and sore throat formula is this: 1 part each of mullein, licorice root, echinacea, peppermint, spearmint, stevia, dried elder berries. 1/2 part lobelia. Sometimes I throw in an extra part of mullein. It doesn't seem to make a difference though.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Oil Cleansing Method
I've been on a quest to find ways to cleanse my hair and skin without using commercial products. So far I've tried baking soda and vinegar for my hair which I didn't like, coconut oil as a moisturizer or lotion which I like, coconut oil as deodorant which I like, and oil to wash my face which I LOVE.
I mixed 1 T castor oil and 3 T olive oil. You can find castor oil on the bottom shelf with laxatives in the pharmacy section. But this won't work as a laxative. I promise. I saw one website suggested them at the opposite ratio, but I think this would actually dry out your skin. The ratio I gave you is great for me and my teenage daughters. I think the person who suggested more castor oil and less olive oil just got mixed up.
I put it in a little plastic container I got over by the sample size stuff in Health and Beauty Aids at Walmart. $1 I think. The castor oil was maybe $3? Olive oil I already had in the kitchen.
Each night I use about 4 drops. I put it on my wet hands and rub together. Then I massage it over my whole face. It removes make up too. Get a washcloth wet with water as hot as you can stand it. Lay this over your face and hold it until it cools. Then wipe off the oil. Do this again. It takes me about 3-4 rinses.
In the morning I just rinse with warm water. That's all it takes. Sometimes I forget and wash my face in the shower out of habit. Then I need to moisturize. I use coconut oil for that.
My daughters and I have been doing this for a couple months now and still love it. Their acne is improved. My dry patches and blotchy spots are gone. I even had a mole disappear and another one shrink! I'll be trying straight castor oil on my moles and let you know if that works.
I mixed 1 T castor oil and 3 T olive oil. You can find castor oil on the bottom shelf with laxatives in the pharmacy section. But this won't work as a laxative. I promise. I saw one website suggested them at the opposite ratio, but I think this would actually dry out your skin. The ratio I gave you is great for me and my teenage daughters. I think the person who suggested more castor oil and less olive oil just got mixed up.
I put it in a little plastic container I got over by the sample size stuff in Health and Beauty Aids at Walmart. $1 I think. The castor oil was maybe $3? Olive oil I already had in the kitchen.
Each night I use about 4 drops. I put it on my wet hands and rub together. Then I massage it over my whole face. It removes make up too. Get a washcloth wet with water as hot as you can stand it. Lay this over your face and hold it until it cools. Then wipe off the oil. Do this again. It takes me about 3-4 rinses.
In the morning I just rinse with warm water. That's all it takes. Sometimes I forget and wash my face in the shower out of habit. Then I need to moisturize. I use coconut oil for that.
My daughters and I have been doing this for a couple months now and still love it. Their acne is improved. My dry patches and blotchy spots are gone. I even had a mole disappear and another one shrink! I'll be trying straight castor oil on my moles and let you know if that works.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Bug Bites and Thorns
Plantain is good for relief of pain, itch, and swelling. My daughter is about to try it on the beginnings of a black eye. I don't expect it to work well since it's been hours since she got in a fight. But we'll see.
I used it on my 2 yr old when he got into fire ants. I just put a handful of leaves into a washcloth, closed it up with a rubber band so it looked like a big tea bag and then put it into a very hot bathtub. I let it sit for a few minutes while squeezing it to get the juices out, then added cold water to make it cool enough for him. He got in and played and it seemed to help him a lot.
We've had a couple of strange spots on hands and feet where we aren't sure what happened. But it hurts and swells up. Maybe a thorn? Maybe a bug bite? Maybe a spider bite? We don't know. But I ground some dried plantain, mixed it with water to make a paste, then put it on the spot and held it in place with a band aid. In both cases the swelling was gone within 30 minutes. In one case the spot comes back 30 minutes after the band aid is removed. We're now trying immune boosters for that one. I think it was a spider bite.
We've also used plantain to relieve pain from thorns (even Mesquite thorns!), splinters, etc. I had a jar of plantain oil that was a handy way to be ready, but it got knocked off a table and broke. I'm making more now. You simply put the herbs in a jar, cover with your choice of oil (I like coconut or olive oils because I have them around and they are healthy), put the lid on the jar and shake it every day for three weeks. Then you strain out the herbs, save the oil and label it. Put a couple drops on as needed.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
A useful weed--Mullein
I've read about the multitude of uses for mullein, and had used it for several things. I went to order more from the Bulk Herb Store and they were out of stock. So I finally got around to searching for it in my yard. And we have plenty. It's considered a weed, grows nearly everywhere, smells good, and is pretty. So we'll be letting this weed grow.
I found it just in time. I picked some flowers, washed them, then put them in a jar with some olive oil and kept them at low heat for about 24 hours. Then I strained out the oil. Five of my kids had earaches, one or two at a time, and so I got to test this stuff out. I put a couple drops in each ear when they complained about earaches. Three of the kids still needed Motrin to get through the night, but it worked great during the day. The other two made it through the night without any additional pain killers--and the two month old baby was one of them.
Things we've used mullein for and been successful include cuts and scrapes, coughs, colds, sore throats, and ear aches. I tried to get one of the kids to try a leaf in her shoe when she had that bruised heel feeling, but she only wanted to wear flip flops so that didn't work.
I made the mullein oil for earaches. But for sore throats, coughs, and colds, we added it to tea. Mullein helps with pain, but it also can kill germs and help expel mucus from the body. The kids said their tea helped a lot with the cough and sore throat. I didn't just use mullein in their tea, but it helped more when I added it than when I didn't.
With the nice weather the kids have been playing outside a lot. That means they scrape themselves while climbing trees and fall and scrape knees while riding bikes and scooters. I get tired of handing out bandaids and suggested they crush or bruise a mullein leaf and put it on their cuts. They tell me it worked great! It helped it stop hurting right away. Of course, kids think bandaids help scrapes stop hurting too, so I can't be sure how well it worked. I don't fall down much so I haven't been able to test it myself quite yet.
I found it just in time. I picked some flowers, washed them, then put them in a jar with some olive oil and kept them at low heat for about 24 hours. Then I strained out the oil. Five of my kids had earaches, one or two at a time, and so I got to test this stuff out. I put a couple drops in each ear when they complained about earaches. Three of the kids still needed Motrin to get through the night, but it worked great during the day. The other two made it through the night without any additional pain killers--and the two month old baby was one of them.
Things we've used mullein for and been successful include cuts and scrapes, coughs, colds, sore throats, and ear aches. I tried to get one of the kids to try a leaf in her shoe when she had that bruised heel feeling, but she only wanted to wear flip flops so that didn't work.
I made the mullein oil for earaches. But for sore throats, coughs, and colds, we added it to tea. Mullein helps with pain, but it also can kill germs and help expel mucus from the body. The kids said their tea helped a lot with the cough and sore throat. I didn't just use mullein in their tea, but it helped more when I added it than when I didn't.
With the nice weather the kids have been playing outside a lot. That means they scrape themselves while climbing trees and fall and scrape knees while riding bikes and scooters. I get tired of handing out bandaids and suggested they crush or bruise a mullein leaf and put it on their cuts. They tell me it worked great! It helped it stop hurting right away. Of course, kids think bandaids help scrapes stop hurting too, so I can't be sure how well it worked. I don't fall down much so I haven't been able to test it myself quite yet.
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