First thing I do is diagnose my sick children with the help of the All Encompassing Internet Health "Man". Usually they have Small Pox or Meningitis and even if it's only a cold, by the time I walk away from the computer I'm sure that they're the .001% that is going to have serious complications, because the cough sounds "just so".
Then I pull myself together and try again. I stop searching the first sites that pop up when you type in your ailment, because they're usually like "It could be heebiegeevinitis - you need drugs and hospitalization" because they're in bed with pharmaceutical companies one way or another... I swear they play on our mom-fear like John Mayer plays the guitar. Really well.
I hardly ever went to the doctor as a kid that I remember. I mean, yes, we went for sure. But I don't remember going for every little thing. My mom usually threw alcohol and vinegar in our ears and vitamin C and Zinc down our throats and said "you'll be good" (in so many words).
Too, I find reassurance that God made the world (I think so anyway) and has lots of good plants that do good things for all kinds of ailments. So I type in my search "natural remedy for [pick your poison]"
Suddenly we're going to get through this. Nobody is dying today, God willing, and I'm going to use garlic to cure everything!
Well, at least some things.
In all seriousness, I was pretty sure that they had Whooping cough and freaked out after watching the youtube videos and reading the usual articles. That was until my second round of searches where I found this article that calmed my heart and put things back into perspective. In the end it wasn't whooping cough after all, but as a side note, if your kids are dealing with it, please read the above article for some peace of mind.
Natural remedies aren't for the faint of heart, it's usually a bit more time consuming than antibiotics or try-to-say-that-name-pill poppin'. It takes dedication, consistency, wizardry and often, force-feeding. But in my opinion it's generally a better option for your health. Are there exceptions? Absolutely! I'm not saying don't go to the doctor. It can be very relieving to get a swab and have an actual diagnosis, thus settling your nerves. But we live in a world where "First, do no Harm" is dissipating in the medical field. I've been prescribed antibiotic ointment for a hemangioma (a mole caused by a cluster of blood cells), and once the hospital tried to give my husband a spinal tap before giving him stitches on his head?!...come on. I swear our country is on a drugs-cure-all kick, and it's pretty much going to cause our destruction. That is, unless we get on the "natural remedies" train and learn how to work with our bodies instead of killing everything inside them -good and bad- with drugs. Not all docs are bad for the record. Our pediatrician is great. I'm just saying some are all too happy to scribble on a little note pad and send you on your way -_- Sorry not sorry.
I digress.
Anyway, in my house we always first do no harm. This week was RSV week (a cold virus, basically). I'm going to share our sick-house protocol. Pretty much nothing can straight kill this germ, so the best thing is to boost your immunity so it can do its job against those damn germy demons.
Shaloha Mama Sick-House Protocol
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The Greenest Green Smoothie of All
(we actually do these almost everyday!)
*1 time in the morning, daily*
Ingredients:
-Heaping handful of "power greens" (kale, chard, spinach, whatever dark greens you have)
-heaping spoonful of peanut butter (unless you're allergic, then obviously not)
-2 tsp Hawaiian Spirulina
-half-thumb nug of raw turmeric
-pinky-nug of ginger
-1 Tbsp Chia
-2 bananas
-a cup of whatever other fruit you like. We usually do organic frozen strawberries or mix fruit.
-1/2 c. almond milk
-4-5 ice cubes
-water until you get desired consistency
Directions:
-Put in blender and mix.
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The smoothie is not, like, "wow! amazing!" but it is certainly tasty. My 1 1/2 year old chugs it, so it can't be that bad.
Next I do a GSE Shot. If you haven't heard of this stuff, do some research. Here's one article about it.. This link will tell you about it's amazing-ness, but if you're not satisfied, do your own research and decide if it's right for you. However it's always one of my first go-tos when I'm feeling even the slightest possible sickness coming on. It is a great immunity booster and often kicks an incoming cold's butt before it starts, but even if it doesn't a time or two, it's wonderful to provide help to your little germ fighters in there.
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Grapefruit Seed Extract Shot
*Up to 3 times daily, see directions for dosages*
Ingredients:
-Correct dosage of GSE
-shot or glass of water (or any drinkable liquid).
Directions:
-Stir (otherwise it sticks to the bottom)
-Drink
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Since it's so full of goodies and my toddler doesn't drink it anymore, I disguise breast milk with almond milk and add a couple drops in there. If you don't have breastmilk, or boobs, no need... that's just my additional booster. The GSE itself doesn't need to be disguised, it's just kind of...citrusy?
This time around I made serious use of my new essential oils. So much so that I ran out of some. I constantly was diffusing Thieves oil, also diluting it and putting it on mine and the babes' feet to support our immune system. I also took a drop on my thumb and stuck it on the inside of my cheeks every now and again. It burned so good. This is the one I ran out of. It's really amazing stuff, not just for your body, but for keeping your home clean. As the story goes, it kept grave robbers from getting the bubonic plague. So much so that the King threatened their lives unless they told their secret to staying alive. Do read about it in the link above. It's intriguing.
I used the allergy trio (peppermint, lemon and lavender) when I felt the sniffles coming on.
I made a chest rub with the R.C. blend, lemon, lavender, frankincense and coconut oil for cough relief.
I rubbed Purification (also a blend), peppermint and lavender on my throat and behind my ears when I felt a sore throat coming on. No joke, it was almost insta-relief. It didn't last all day, but I reapplied every so often and the impending sore throat kind of just "went away."
On top of all of these things, I definitely force fed myself and my girl plenty of garlic, lemon juice, turmeric, grapefruits, ginger and honey. We didn't do noni this time, but that is also really good for you, and generally easy to come by here on the islands.
When my 2 month old started coughing, we did go to the doc. It was actually my husband that pushed for it, but we both figured it would be good to know what we were dealing with before it got worse. He gave us a prescription for a nebulizer which we used a couple of times when each of them got wheezy to open the lungs a bit, but mostly we just stuck to these remedies. No over the counter syrups or chewables (Not that I judge you if you use them. I have used them before).
Yep. And keep the tissues (or TP) handy, because all that mucus has to come out eventually.
Shaloha!
Disclaimer: I'm not here giving medical advice. Go to a doctor for that. This is just what our family does, if you're interested.
PS. Don't use essential oils internally unless they state they are ok for internal use. For what I use, read halfway down this blogpost.
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