Natural Cures for the Flu

You know it when it comes on. You wake in the morning feeling like a million bucks, but at mid morning you start feeling a little more sluggish than usual, you’re not up to par and that sprightly body of yours is feeling weak. On top of that your usual keen mind is processing slower. A fog is steadily descending from head downward, blocking your ability to rationalize and make decisions quickly and impeding your efforts to move forward with your tasks of the day. By mid afternoon you have lost your usual eagerness to jump on lunch and instead are stuck on the same project you started an hour ago wondering why you haven’t completed it yet. At a whim you brush off your state of lethargy as the unfortunate affect of late nights the last few days, binging on sugar and caffeine in marathon sessions to catch-up on everything you think needed to be done before the next day. By evenings end you wonder what has taken hold of you. You are exhausted and every task is a monumental effort. Communication is out and to the bewilderment of your loved ones the only thing on your mind is to drop into a deep state of tempurpedic slumber. The next morning you wake feeling like you just got slammed by a 50 ton truck and your limp body then dragged down a gravel road for miles on end. You ache all over. Your ears pop, your body shivers and your head feels like it could explode. The minute you stand erect your nose starts dripping like a facet. At that moment there is no other option but retreat. You fall dizzy back into bed, down for the count, sadly only a mere shadow of yourself.

Being sick is crummy. When you got it you simply want it gone. The most obvious key to sickness is first to avoid it at all costs. Preventative measures such as active lifestyle, plenty of sleep, water, good nutrition, less sugar and more laughing than stressing should keep your immune system strong. However, if you are like most of us, you’re not always on this game and are forced to face sickness head on when it hits. When I am faced with the battle of the flu I reach for natural cures. When used properly they don’t harm your body and actually build up the immune system to better fight viruses when they attack rather than synthetic and sugary counterparts that simply mask symptoms and leave your body weaker than before you started taking the medicine.

I tend to rely on the same natural cures for the cold, flu or beginning of bronchial blockages because they work almost every time for me when taken at the onset of the symptoms. Keep in mind, I have tried a number of different types of natural cures and some were effective and others were not. Everyone’s body is different and as such may have different results with the same products. Consult a qualified and experienced homeopathic doctor, herbalist or nutritionist to assist in identifying what works for you.

This is what typically works for me:

• Umka Cold + Flu homeopathic medicine. A Nature’s Way product. I have had amazing results with this product – aches/pains, congestion, cough, fever, runny nose, soar throat, you name it, symptoms subside in hours and disappear within days. My husband is now hooked on this along with all the fellas he works with that he turned on to the product.


• Sinus Relief homeopathic nasal spray. A Similasan Corp. product. This product is very soothing in my nose and helps relieve congestion.


• Myrrh-Goldenseal Plus. A Nature’s Way product. This product is a herbal mixture of myrrh, goldenseal and cayenne pepper. Supposedly, Myrrh releases mucus (be ready for the flood gates to open) which carries the virus out of the body, Goldenseal is a natural antibiotic and cayenne pepper boosts your immune system to fight off the invaders. I have been using this combination for years and have come to rely on its effectiveness in battling the flu. I tried Echinacea, but it always seemed to be very ineffective for me.


• Garlic. I take lots of garlic. The natural form makes me a bit smelly, so I prefer to use either Garlinase by Enzymatic Therapy, Inc. or Bear paw garlic by AIM.


• Ester-C powder by Natrol, Inc. High doses of vitamin C seem to jump start my immune system which in turn helps fight the virus.


• Breathe Easy and Throat Coat, caffeine free, herbal teas. Traditional Medicinals products. I usually can completely eliminate a soar throat in a day by drinking Throat Coat throughout the day. Breathe Easy is wonderful aid to open up the nasal and bronchial passages when congested.

Perhaps, one or some of these will work for you. Check out you neighborhood health food store, such as Whole Foods, for purchase.

Happy natural cures on the road to recovery!

Maria

Aromotherapy Scents

When I said “I do,” little did I know I would not only be gaining a husband but also bunches of candles, scores of candle holders and his beloved aroma lamp. He even has a lavender eye pillow, but you didn’t hear that from me. So the man is a sucker for the flickering of a soft light and the flavor of aromatic scent permeating about. Some call that romantic. I can hardly fault him for that. Although, his choice of scent is a little bit on the manly side for me: Frankincense and Myrrh. Ouch. I prefer a scent with a little less punch, like lavender.

Essential oils are not really my forte, but I certainly can identify an essential oil when compared next to a synthetic scent. I have had plenty of experiences, as you may have also, of sitting or standing next to that someone whose fragranced perfume is at war with your senses, engulfing you in a suffocating air of toxic fume that immediately brings on a pounding headache, causes you to sneeze uncontrollably or makes you feel like passing out. Not exactly my idea of therapeutic. How could it be? Perfume or fragranced oils for the most part are an artificial product made of artificial ingredients and synthetic chemicals. It will lack the same therapeutic qualities as essential oils which are pure and extracted from parts of a plant. My preferred scent, lavender oil, is calming and soothing, which helps me relax. I am sure that is one of the reasons why my husband likes the lavender eye pillow, which he started using when he worked night shifts and needed something to help him sleep restfully during the day. If you need a stress relief try Frankincense. Different essential oils will have different affects, but all should have positive results when used properly.

If you are new aromatherapy like me, and would like to know more about the therapeutic properties check-out the links we provided at the side of this page to help you get started. A recommended guide by Armo Web is The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essentials Oils. If you know of another great resource, please share. And check with your husband or man in your life. He may know more than he lets on.

Happy sniffers on the road to you!

Maria

MFR Transformations

My brother had the good fortune to marry into health. In a sense, his wife saved his life. By default of relation, she transformed mine as well. Liz is a talented MFR (myofascial release) therapist – in addition to simply being a really wonderful person. In fact, she is one of the few medically trained MFR therapists in the Orlando, FL area. For those of you who have benefited from this type of treatment I need say nothing more. You know the incredible life changing effect it can have on the quality of your life. For my brother Mark, it was his only way out of years of pain, an ever worsening condition and seeing loads of specialists with no answers. His story is worth the reading and there are many more like his that Liz and others can account for. Let me share with you why this may be your out and road back to health through my own experience.

In one of my past professional lives I was a musician. I started playing at the age of 10 and with many long hours upright, fingers flying, tongue flittering and much air circulating I practiced and played my way through 20 years of memorable ensemble and solo performances as well and an enjoyable music teaching career. All the fun never seemed to weigh heavy on me until those later years when I realized what I loved doing was beating me up, literally, from the inside out. The intensity and sometimes high level of stress in which I played for long hours in unnatural positions caused pain, tightness and lack of circulation to my body, particularly in the chest, back, shoulders, neck, and mouth. Savvy musicians today are conscientious of incorporating massage and relaxing exercises, such as the Alexander Technique, into their daily routine to avoid a long term buildup of body tensions similar to mine. I later became aware of these techniques and practiced them out of necessity, but they never completely eliminated my body constrictions, only prevented them from worsening. The long term damage was already done and I needed a different kind of care. It was never apparent what type of care until Liz.

Not long after Mark and Liz married Mark began to regularly report the incredible results he was having with MFR. He knew of my constrictions and suggested I try. I did and there is no turning back for me. My husband, and skeptic, at first joked about MFR, but now that he can physically see the changes in my body he has been very quiet and observant. MFR is a technique that releases fascia constrictions in the body. A good MFR therapist will insist they are just a facilitator in working with your body to tap into your own ability to heal self. Constrictions in the body result from any number of experiences including extreme tension, repetitive movement, stress and even a traumatic event. Body memory plays a large role in body holding patterns or constrictions resulting from these types of experiences. Even my chiropractic adjustments are not entirely effective without side-by-side MFR treatments. Chiropractic adjustments can manipulate skeletal structure into place but fascia tissue will push it back out to the old holding pattern until those constrictions are brocken down and released.

I am finally at the stage in my MFR treatments where I am physically beginning to see holding patterns and fascia tissue break down. Most apparent, my body is unwinding after years of torked posture and tension. The firsts claimed in many years: My left thigh muscles are developing evenly to my right; I can pull skin away from my neck and no longer see bunched muscles and veins pulsating from top to bottom; I can take a deep breath from the bottom of my gut; my throat opened; I speak with a strong, clear voice; my head no longer pulls to one side, the skin on my back, chest and shoulders move, my shoulder is no longer waded into a tight ball; I regained over all flexibility and movement; I stand taller, feel lighter and have better circulation. There is much more and this work only scratches the surface. While these items may not seem like a big deal to you, they are a world of difference for me and alleviating the troubles I have been suffering through for years.

Obviously, I am an advocate of this treatment but do not take my word. Try it yourself. You have nothing to loose and everything to gain, especially your health and quality of life.

Maria

Help! We Are Allergic To Los Angeles

I have lived in Los Angeles for over three years now, and I can say quite confidently that myself and my family are allergic to this city. How can you be allergic to a city? Well that's pretty easy. Shortly after our move here, my son and I started experiencing severe sinus infections. They came on quickly and never seemed to go away. After many doctors visits, repeated rounds of antibiotics (Yuck) we gave up. After all, you can't change the air quality.

This year brought a very difficult flu season and this was the beginning of an escalation of frustration with our family doctor. I had my first visit to an emergency room in a very long time with breathing problems that required breathing treatments, steroids and an antibiotic. My son was put on inhaled steroids, nasal sprays, antibiotics, and inhalation treatments. This was awful. My doctor just did not understand my belief that masking all of his symptoms with medication did not solve anything, and that isolating the cause of the problem could be a better plan. I angrily agreed that I would allow my son to be put on inhaled steroids for a longer course as long as he allowed him to see an allergist if this did not work. Who would have thought that I would have to barter with my doctor for comprehensive care.

My son continued to have problems and developed petechiae on his face several times and presented with an eosinophil count of over twenty percent. This count is a marker of an ongoing allergic response in the body. At that time my sons platelets where normal. The doctor reluctantly signed the referral to send my son to the allergist, but not without insisting that this was more for me then him. You know, the hysterical mom syndrome. I promptly left the office, and disregarded his advice to wait an additional thirty days, making an appointment on the spot.

His appointment time came and, after three days of test we have discovered that he has both environmental and food allergies. We are now in the stage of trying to remove these allergens from both his diet and environment as much as possible for thirty days to see if he has any visible improvements in his symptoms.

As a parent, anytime a doctor wishes you to give your child multiple medications, I feel like it is our job to research these meds and be as educated as possible with their use and side effects. Even if your doctor feels offended by your educated questions, remember, this is your child and in no way is it wrong to ask all the necessary questions. The allergist made the immediate decision that my son was over medicated and took him off of everything except for Asmanex. If he should have petechiae again he said to go back to our primary doctor and demand another blood test. What is the harm in ruling out all the terrible things that can include this as a symptom.

Finally, a doctor that allows me to be proactive in my child's health. And even if he is allergic to Los Angeles, in the end we can learn some good coping skills to cut down on the health problems. This is how health care should be. While he is not looking forward to weekly allergy shots he to is willing to be an advocate for his own health, rather then just continuing the cycle of illness and antibiotics indefinitely.

Chiropractic Connection

I have been going to the chiropractor on and off now for over a decade. Surprisingly, I don’t remember why I first found myself there other than I went with my mother and brother who were also being treated. After an initial consultation and nutritional evaluation it was determined that my hips were unlevel, vertebrae at the neck was in danger of becoming fused and my adrenals and thyroid were out of whack. The fix was regular adjustments, a hanging ball weight to stretch out my neck, temporary heel insert until my hips stabilized and an assortment of vitamins to get my system back into balance. The result; I regained lost movement in my body, my neck flexed again, my hips leveled off so my right pant leg was no longer shorter than my left and I experienced a renewed energy with my system balanced; an example of the chiropractic connection at work.

Time passed and with all recovery there can be a relapse without maintenance as it was for me. A number of years later in grad school I started marathon training and overtraining. My body was achy, strained, stretched to the max plus tired and undernourished. All that in addition to wearing trendy, flat, plush shoes led to a nasty bought of planter fasciitis. Who knew flat shoes for a high arched footed person added extra strain on feet fascia tissue that was already wound too tight. The pain was intense. So intense, I walked on my toes for period of time, especially up and down stairs, and could only wear high arched, hard-soled shoes. The simple act of flexing my foot flat put enormous strain on my heel. Running was out of the question and at that point I was happy with the simple prospect of being able to walk normally again. Fortunately, I had started care with a chiropractor in Illinois, Dr. Brian Crawford, who made that wish come to fruition more quickly than it would have taken without chiropractic assistance. I originally sough from him regular adjustments to level my hips which ensured an even gate and injury free legs when running high mileage. As luck would have it, he was also a closet orthopedist. He knew what my condition was on the spot. After ditching all my flat shoes, little to no running for some time, getting regular adjustments and massage to my feet, the planter fasciitis healed. The chiropractic connection was again a success.

More time passed and a couple years without adjustments led me full circle to the same ailments; uneven hips, tight neck that pulled and an unbalanced system. One of the first things I did when jumping back onto the road to recovery was re-establish regular visits to a chiropractor. The time was right. I had just moved back to Florida in a location nearly backyard of the first chiropractor I had seen over a decade ago, Dr. Claire Schill. After consultation/ nutritional evaluation and back to regular adjustments and nutritional supplements I feel better than ever.

This time I plan to seek regular chiropractic adjustments as a strategy towards preventative care and overall maintenance of my body. What is your strategy?

Maria