Wednesday, October 29, 2008

How to make your own medicine & another giveaway (now closed)

One thing I always dread about winter is the colds. It seems that no matter how healthy we start off, we'll be down at least two or three times in the course of the winter. Considering that we have four preschoolers, I guess that's not too bad. But I still really dread those times.

We have the first one right now -- a super nasty cold that hit everyone at once. On Saturday night, three (count-em) three kids had croup. By Monday, the other kid and Mom were sick too. Oh, joyful times.

Chop your garlic
So now that you're all scared off from reading my blog because of the potential germs, let me share with you some all-natural ways to deal with those nasty colds. My wonderful Mother-in-law deserves credit for all of these. She has thirteen kids, (I'm married to number two, the last is now ten years old), and over the years developed a lot of methods that worked for her kids. She passed them on to me, and now I'm passing them on to you.

Garlic oil is my best trick in the bag. Warm it up ever so slightly, then rub it under sore ears (right along the back of the jaw) to soothe a minor ear infection, (if your kids will let you, drip it in the ear to kill that infection quickly). Rub it on your chest and back for a cough, rub it on your feet for almost anything that ails you. It'll smell bad, but it feels so much better immediately.

To make garlic oil: Chop 3 or more cloves of garlic into small pieces -- I do about 1/8 inch sized pieces. Chopping is better than crushing because you want to be able to strain the pieces back out. In a glass jar or cup, add 1/4 cup or more olive oil. Cover and shake, Then let set for two days, shaking every time you think of it (a few times a day). After two days, strain off the garlic and put it in a clean bottle or jar. If you keep it in a cool cupboard, it'll last about a year. I usually end up running out in a few months and making more.

To use it, I usually just put the whole bottle in the microwave for 12 seconds or so. But you can also drip a bit out on to your hands and rub them together to warm it.


EPY Tea:
This is the best for keeping kids' immune systems healthy and strong. But you're not used to loose teas, it can take a bit of effort. To make the tea, combine 1 Tbsp. Elderflowers (E), 2 Tbsp Peppermint leaves (P) and 1 Tbsp. Yarrow (Y). You can buy each of these loose at a good health food store. I make up bigger batches (with more like 1/4 cup E and Y and 1/2 cup P). To make the tea, add 1 Tbsp. of the mix to a cup of boiling water. Cover the cup with a towel to steep for 5 minutes, then strain off the herbs. You can drink it hot or refrigerate it. My kids require it to be diluted before they'll drink it. This is a great wintertime all-purpose drink, and it really does make a difference in congestion. EPY ice cubes are great in water to make a weak tea in either the winter or the summer.

Removing Germs from the air
:
Every winter, my mother in law makes up a spray bottle of water with 10 drops of tea tree oil, and sprays all the rooms in her house (just spraying it in to the air). The moisture attaches to germs, and brings them to the floor, and the tea tree oil kills them. Or so she says. I use it too, and figure it can't do any harm.

Herbal tinctures
Finally, herbal tinctures are really what makes natural medicine work. Just like with "normal" medicine, you have to be careful not to overdose. But when used rightly, they are much more effective than the medicines you get from the pharmacy.

To learn how to make your own herbal tinctures, and to get my secret favorite herbal mixtures, you'll have to keep reading! I'll post about herbal tinctures next week.

So there you have it. My favorite herbal remedies. These work for me - they might for you too!
And, If you're still reading, you have a chance to win some of my EPY tea (Pre-mixed) and some home-made tea bags to go with it. Just leave a comment (and make sure your email address is in it). I haven't made the tea bags yet, so I can't post a picture, sorry! But I'll make them tonight, the draw a name on Saturday, November 1st. I'll contact the winner and mail out the tea and bags on November 6th (or before).

33 comments:

  1. Please enter me and thanks for the giveaway!

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  2. Thanks for the ideas, I'm going to make up some tea tree oil spray right now, we have 2 sick people here right now...What a treat to win! Thanks! cross_home2001 (at) yahoo (dot) com

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  3. Please enter me! This is an amazing giveaway! I love homemade remedies!!

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  4. I would love to have this! My family does a lot of herbs and I am always looking for ways to make them myself!

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  5. This be great to have for the winter coming up!

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  6. I need to find some tea tree oil to deal with the mold in one of my closets. Good stuff.

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  7. @theaestheticelevator:
    Wally world carries tea tree oil!

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  8. This is a really neat idea. Thanks for your health suggestions.

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  9. I'd love to win some. Did you know that yarrow tea REALLY helps with stomach flu and food poisoning as well? Tastes bitter though. :)

    Lalycairn (at) gmail.com

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  10. We just did the Garlic oil for ear infections yesterday and today..we put it right in the ear..ear ache clears up within the hour...awesome stuff :-)

    amitymatthia[at]hotmail.com

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  11. Great ideas! We do the old standbys of echinacea tea and vitamin C pills.

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  12. I love this and I love your blog! I have it bookmarked!

    thanks so much for sharing!I use tea tree oil with my vinegar cleaning solution but great idea on a air spray! Do the nozzles ever get clogged?

    karissag at gmail.com

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  13. I use lots of natural and homeopathic remedies, but not really any that I've made myself. I wish I had remembered about the garlic when I had a nasty cold for the past 4 days. Ugh. Please sign me up for your goodies for sure and I'll be sure to stay tuned for info on your herbal tinctures!

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  14. Cool. We have our first nasty cold of the season too, and I've been letting my kids run amuck during activities (harder to isolate now that we're hosting things)! I'd love to try these ideas, as I prefer to avoid conventional medicines.

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  15. I would love to win this. Thank you so much!

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  16. always willing try anything when the family is sick - thanks for the giveaway

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  17. spraying the lysol wearing a mask....

    ok now its safe--hope you all get better... mrs.mommyyatgmail.com

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  18. @lalycairn: Thanks for the tip on Yarrow tea -- I didn't know that.

    Part of the reason that I use twice the peppermint as yarrow and elderflowers is to sweeten up the taste, since elderflowers are also bitter.

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  19. @kagey10: I've never had nozzles of sprayers get clogged due to tea tree oil added to the water. You're really adding a tiny bit compared to the amount of water (I use 10 drops tea tree oil to 2 cups water).

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  20. These are great ideas! Thanks, MIL!

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  21. Thanks for the giveaway. I love learning about more home remedies that I can make.

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  22. i hate having colds.
    thanks for the giveaway!
    specialk[dot]roxygirl[at]gmai[dot]com

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  23. Thanks for the recipes. Count me in the giveaway! Thanks.

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  24. wow...and i JUST got over my cold!

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  25. Count me in! We use all natural remedies to combat colds & such too!

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  26. This is a great one! Thanks for the chance to win :)

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  27. Interesting ideas
    KawaiiNeko2008 (at) aol (dot) com

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  28. wow - cool! I'd love to win those.

    thanks for the chance

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  29. I would love to win some Epi tea!

    onlycancan at hotmail dot com

    www.MomMostTraveled.com

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  30. Thanks, my email is sbcashortie (at) hotmail (dot) com

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  31. Neat!

    lilacbutterfly [at] earthlink.net

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  32. I'm sitting here with a stuffed sinus and a throat that feels like it's being bitten by sharp teeth from the inside. I have a yucky cold. And I want some of your tea, right now! *sad puppy eyes*

    Truly, thanks for the giveaway, and the tips. Crossing my fingers!

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