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It was a muggy, stormy, grouchy day over here.
I had a lot of reading to get through, so I did that.
But I am a compulsive ridder-of-things/organizer, and so each time I walked past our closet where our first aid/medicine basket lives, I got a bit anxious.
So I pulled it off of the shelf, and I took everything out:
Then I got a bit frustrated with myself.
You see, I was sick for an entire month this past winter. And I spent a good $50 on OTC chemically icky medicine.
But...the only things that brought any real comfort were teas, neti pots, and the eventual trip to the doctors that landed me with an antibiotic prescription (Yes. Antibiotics are over prescribed. I only take them if I'm absolutely positively miserably sure that I need them.)
I was also frustrated with myself because I am not a medicine woman and I don't have apothecary jars filled with herbs and things that I would need to grind up with a mortar and pestle.
Just added THAT to my career to-be list.
Anyway.
My goal is to not get that sick next year. I think that being around young kiddos made it easier for me to pick up exciting new colds/coughs/sniffles, etc. So now I'm obsessive (even more so than when I worked in a nursing home) about hand washing.
I re-organized my basket. It's not quite at the stage of Medicine Woman status, but here it is:
I debated for five minutes whether or not to get rid of my ibuprofen.
No. I like it.
But anyway, if you're looking for good suggestions for natural sinus relief- try Celestial Seasoning's Sinus Soother. I like it.
Headaches? Tension Tamer tea is my middle name (when I have a headache).
My other must-haves include a neti pot with saline packets, band-aids, emergen-c, throat coat tea, Vaseline, tea tree oil, witch hazel, antibiotic ointment for those nasty situations, and a thermometer (to prove to Brett that I really have a fever and that I cannot do anything useful for at least a day).
I'm thinking about adding some rubs for headaches and muscle aches from Badger.
Do you have any suggestions for a 70% natural first aid/medicine basket for a Medicine Woman like myself? Does that make me less of a MW for asking? Probably.
I've had a lot of health problems the past year, and when I saw my aunt recently she recommended something called CoQ10. She said she had a friend who survived breast cancer and whose doctor recommended taking that for improving her immune system. After hearing that her friend had barely had a cold in three years, my aunt started taking it, and said that in the 6-7 years she's been taking it now, she's hardly ever gotten sick. So for whatever that's worth...
ReplyDeleteAlso, funny you mention Celestial Seasonings. I was just in Boulder, Colorado (which is where I saw my aunt, actually), and we went to the Celestial Seasonings factory because my aunt and my mom apparently have a deep love of factories. I found out that Tension Tamer tea has catnip in it, which is part of the mint family (spearmint, peppermint, and catnip), and has the opposite effect on humans that it does on cats. Weird, huh?
Oh, I'll have to look into the Tension Tamer tea. Never heard or thought of it. But if you say it works, I'll take your word for it! I'm also a HUGE fan of Neti Pots. Did you know you can make your own saline solution? http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/neti-pot-solution/AN01879
ReplyDeleteI'm not big on drugs either - I'm with you, I only take them as a last resort. I try to stick to advil and tylenol, liquids and rest. So many drugs are just combos of advil and tylenol and antihistamines anyway, with some icky chemicals and colours thrown in. I love tension tamer tea! It's very tasty and relaxing if you've had a stressful day and need to relax. My mom got me a Neti pot last time I had a sinus infection and I have to be honest I was too freaked out by shooting saline up my nose to try it! haha. I have it there though and next time I have plugged sinuses I'll try it. She is a nurse and works in pharmaceuticals and she swears by them!
ReplyDelete@Jessica- I have that stuff! (But I don't take it) Thanks for the reminder! And I am so jealous that you got to tour the CS factory- that's so fun and I love all of their teas- I'd love to do that. I hope you're starting to feel better and hopefully CoQ10 helps a bit. <3
ReplyDelete@Carmen- I knew that I could make it, I was just being ... well...lazy. But after this box of packets runs out, I will most certainly make my own. : )
@Kim-Oh do! Try it even when you're not plugged up! I do it twice a week just to keep things clean! (Wow. Thanks, Emma for the TMI) : )