Yesterday I mentioned essential oils as part of a "crunchy" natural lifestyle. There are however, many different natural remedies that work as well, if not better than many of the more modern alternatives that we have come up with over the years.
I once was a mama that ran to the pediatrician for almost everything. That was with child #1. What I got out of that was a whole lot of co-pays, too many antibiotics, and dissatisfaction. I began asking other mothers, especially ones who had a number of children, what they did for certain problems. I was beginning to open my mind to the fact that there are other ways besides just modern medicine that can be very effective, cost less and carry fewer side effects. The problem is that in today's society we are inundated with medications, there is literally a medicine for EVERYTHING.
My confidence in questioning how modern medicine handles things was slowing growing, but it did take a long time. We are taught for the most part that doctors have all the answers and we are to listen to and do as instructed, we are not encouraged to question or ask for other more natural ways of doing things. We live in a medication driven society.
If I had to put my finger on it, for me it began after my son had a set of tubes put in his ears but he continued to have problems with ear infections. When he finally outgrew the tubes and began swimming on a swim team we headed back down the road of perpetual ear problems. Funny thing was many of the seasoned swimmers had their own natural remedies and I started listening. I began using a natural product, an ear drop, after swimming to dry the ear canal. I also looked into the benefits of chiropractic care on draining of the eustachian tubes. I was beginning to be my children's own best advocate. So when my second son was starting down the same road I was armed with knowledge. I knew that there were natural things I could do to aid in draining the ears, natural products I could buy at a healthfood store to ease his pain. We were able to successfully eradicate at least two ear infections without the use of antibiotics, I even went back to the pediatrician who by now, though skeptical, was starting to be curious. Now when I went to the pediatrician I asked questions, I also wanted to know if they had any other suggestions I could try before some of the traditional medications were being prescribed, and sometimes, they had suggestions.
I found that this was empowering. No longer did I feel helpless and at the mercy of doctor office hours but I found that often, I had a front line of defense I could use to alleviate problems and I wasn't having to go to the doctor or pediatrician nearly as often.
This is where we often fail to recognize the abundance of knowledge that the older generations have. I was guilty of this myself. Ask any old timer what the best remedy for chicken pox or poison ivy is and they will likely either tell you to use jewel weed or an oatmeal bath. Ask about digestive issues and you will likely hear to use peppermint tea. Ask about stomach problems and you may be told to use ginger. There are so many things that were done in times past but that information is beginning to be lost as we move towards placing less and less emphasis on the knowledge of older generations. But what we don't remember is that there was a time when you could not run to CVS or Walgreens and you didn't have the resources to run to a pediatrician for every little thing. During that time, people survived and they knew natural ways of dealing with issues life throws at you.
I will be going through a few of the natural remedies that we use at our house and for what ailments, if you have "crunchy" friends, you may already know some of these remedies, if you have others, please chime in. But, if you have a grandmother or great grandmother, strike up a conversation and begin asking what they used for medicine, the answers may surprise you.
Here is the ear product I still love today, we keep it on hands and it is a staple in my "medicine cabinet." My 4 year old knows that it makes his ears feel better so he will ask for it when needed. (NOTE: This is an affliate link so if you purchase from Amazon through my link I do have the potential to make a bit of commission to help with the time I spend blogging)
I once was a mama that ran to the pediatrician for almost everything. That was with child #1. What I got out of that was a whole lot of co-pays, too many antibiotics, and dissatisfaction. I began asking other mothers, especially ones who had a number of children, what they did for certain problems. I was beginning to open my mind to the fact that there are other ways besides just modern medicine that can be very effective, cost less and carry fewer side effects. The problem is that in today's society we are inundated with medications, there is literally a medicine for EVERYTHING.
My confidence in questioning how modern medicine handles things was slowing growing, but it did take a long time. We are taught for the most part that doctors have all the answers and we are to listen to and do as instructed, we are not encouraged to question or ask for other more natural ways of doing things. We live in a medication driven society.
If I had to put my finger on it, for me it began after my son had a set of tubes put in his ears but he continued to have problems with ear infections. When he finally outgrew the tubes and began swimming on a swim team we headed back down the road of perpetual ear problems. Funny thing was many of the seasoned swimmers had their own natural remedies and I started listening. I began using a natural product, an ear drop, after swimming to dry the ear canal. I also looked into the benefits of chiropractic care on draining of the eustachian tubes. I was beginning to be my children's own best advocate. So when my second son was starting down the same road I was armed with knowledge. I knew that there were natural things I could do to aid in draining the ears, natural products I could buy at a healthfood store to ease his pain. We were able to successfully eradicate at least two ear infections without the use of antibiotics, I even went back to the pediatrician who by now, though skeptical, was starting to be curious. Now when I went to the pediatrician I asked questions, I also wanted to know if they had any other suggestions I could try before some of the traditional medications were being prescribed, and sometimes, they had suggestions.
I found that this was empowering. No longer did I feel helpless and at the mercy of doctor office hours but I found that often, I had a front line of defense I could use to alleviate problems and I wasn't having to go to the doctor or pediatrician nearly as often.
This is where we often fail to recognize the abundance of knowledge that the older generations have. I was guilty of this myself. Ask any old timer what the best remedy for chicken pox or poison ivy is and they will likely either tell you to use jewel weed or an oatmeal bath. Ask about digestive issues and you will likely hear to use peppermint tea. Ask about stomach problems and you may be told to use ginger. There are so many things that were done in times past but that information is beginning to be lost as we move towards placing less and less emphasis on the knowledge of older generations. But what we don't remember is that there was a time when you could not run to CVS or Walgreens and you didn't have the resources to run to a pediatrician for every little thing. During that time, people survived and they knew natural ways of dealing with issues life throws at you.
I will be going through a few of the natural remedies that we use at our house and for what ailments, if you have "crunchy" friends, you may already know some of these remedies, if you have others, please chime in. But, if you have a grandmother or great grandmother, strike up a conversation and begin asking what they used for medicine, the answers may surprise you.
Here is the ear product I still love today, we keep it on hands and it is a staple in my "medicine cabinet." My 4 year old knows that it makes his ears feel better so he will ask for it when needed. (NOTE: This is an affliate link so if you purchase from Amazon through my link I do have the potential to make a bit of commission to help with the time I spend blogging)
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