Just to make it clear, I’m not a crazy hippie who is against vaccination. But I do not like the flu shot and never took it. Neither did my husband or kids. And so far, thank God, we are pretty healthy (hope I didn’t just jinx us).
I do go to see the doctor when necessary, and I’m grateful for modern medicine and its achievements. However, I’ve always had a tendency to look for natural ways to cure illnesses, instead of filling my body, and more importantly, my children’s bodies, with chemicals that may or may not help and have all kinds of side effects.
I’ve studied different natural and holistic approaches in school and on my own, read books and researched information about the way Eastern cultures treat illnesses. I also grew up looking at what the older people around me used to do when someone was sick or injured. I practice many of these remedies in my own home and for years they haven’t failed me. So, although I’m not a doctor and I do not intend to prescribe anything to anyone, I thought I could share my experience and let you decide what you would like to do with it.
Right now, I’m sitting on the couch in my living room, enjoying a cup of hot tea with lemon and raw local honey, recovering from a bad cold or the flu, I’m not sure. It all started exactly a week ago, on Sunday. I woke up and discovered that I lost my voice. Nothing hurt or bothered me, I just couldn’t talk much. I went to work all week, took 1000 mg vitamin C, once a day, and enjoyed not having to talk much. As Thursday and Friday came by, my voice came back, but I could feel that my body was weak, and my throat was a little sore. So immediately I got on my regimen of elderberry syrup and oregano oil taken orally three times a day.
By Friday night, all hell broke loose. I started coughing relentlessly, my chest and back were hurting from the coughing and I could feel the raw burning pain in my trachea (the tube connecting the throat to the lungs). I also began to feel the congestion building up in my sinuses, as well as the headache and the earache which resulted from it. So, I added Tannenblut cough syrup to my remedy cocktail. In case you wonder, I did not have fever. I never have fever when I’m sick. Even when I’m very sick. When I served in the army, I never got time off for being sick because I never had fever… That wasn’t fun…
Back to our story… Saturday morning, I woke up miserable after barely sleeping all night, and decided to go see a doctor, just to make sure it wasn’t some kind of bacteria that got me. I was even ready to start taking antibiotics if I had to (something I try to avoid as a general rule). I tried to call to make an appointment but got disconnected twice, so I showed up at the clinic. I was told it would be two hours before I could be seen by a doctor since I didn’t have an appointment. After sitting there for ten minutes, I couldn’t take it anymore. Between the soreness of my body and the thought that I could definitely catch something worse spending two hours with all the sick people in the waiting room, I decided to go home and cure myself, even if it was a bacterial infection. And I went for it with all my arsenal:
- Fresh garlic – great antibiotics. 1 clove chopped (so you can swallow) with some water, 3 times a day.
- Turmeric – amazing anti-inflammatory. 1 pill a day, with food.
- Oregano oil – strong antiviral, anti-inflammatory, boosts the immune system. 5 drops in some water taken orally, 3 times a day.
- Pure elderberry syrup – amazing antiviral. 2 teaspoons, 3 times a day. I add it to the water and the oregano oil. It makes it more palatable.
- Tannenblut bronchial syrup – all-natural Swiss herbs. The only cough syrup that actually works for us. I can only find it online. 1 tablespoon as needed (4-5 times a day).
- 1000 mg vitamin C – to boost the immune system. 1 pill in the morning does the work.
- Eucalyptus, lavender, and tea tree essential oils – 3-4 drops of each in a hot tub, once a day. This way, you get to inhale the oils and also absorb them through your skin. Eucalyptus is a great oil that works on the respiratory system, lavender is calming and anti-inflammatory, and tea tree is a strong antibacterial, antiviral oil. Besides, a hot bath is a great way to soothe the cough and the aching body.
- Lots of hot tea with lemon and honey. You can actually drink any tea, or even just hot water. Just make sure it is warm. In addition to flushing the body of toxins, the warm drinks help loosen the phlegm, so your body gets rid of it easily, which means you cough less.
- Avoid fried food, dairy products and citrus fruit (except lemon), as they all increase the production of phlegm.
Today, Monday morning, two days later, I’m a new person. Except for some occasional cough here and there. I decided to stay home today and rest some more while continuing my whole regimen. I will continue with this regimen (minus the bath) for the next few days, while I go back to work, to make sure I eradicate the disease, whatever it is.
If it worked for me, I’m sure it can work for many other people. But don’t take my word for it. Go investigate and explore, and may you find a way to keep yourself and your loved ones healthy and happy, naturally.
