 | Herbal/natural help with chronic upper respiratory health issues |
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Hello herbalists, witches, pagans, teachers and friends. I have always suffered from upper respiratory illnesses (i.e. chronic ear infections, sinus infections, strep throat, tonsillitis, and sometimes bronchitis) that usually require me to spend anything from a weekend, to a several miserable days in bed, in pain, trying to sleep, hydrating like my life depends on it, and taking regular hits of my now standard cocktail:
I don't know what to do to treat or prevent these illnesses, other than what I have described above. I am only just learning about herbalism. Other than knowing about echinacea and it's positive effects on the immune system and common use for sinus infections, I have no other natural tool to fight or prevent this (other than common sense - wash hands, drink lots of water, etc). I have used the product Airborne before, which utilizes a lot of natural ingredients to boost you immune system, but it seems to be useful only in mild cases and at the very beginning of colds. Any suggestions? I am interested in hearing about any natural tool or method that may help me conquer and control my body's inability to fight these infections. I'm not opposed to medical methods either, it's just expensive, and I'm looking for proactive solutions that may lead to my body's healing of itself. Thanks you guys! Sincerely, Coughing in California, seriously* *Case in point: I am now suffering from badly infected tonsillitis. Spent a week and a half fighting a bad cold/sinus infection, then this whole weekend in bed without being able to speak or swallow. Looked at my tonsils today, they're now ping-pong-ball sized, pitted, and have gross pustules on them. Going to the doctor tomorrow. I've already been sick twice this semester, so this makes three-and-a-half so far. Help? |
 | Re: Herbal/natural help with chronic upper respiratory health issues |
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I would be interested in knowing about herbal remedies also. Much the same as you I tend to suffer from upper respitory conditions also. When I was 21 I got an Upper Respitory Tract Infection with a Secondary Bacterial Infection (mouthful I know) that required hospitalisation twice, since then I also suffer from infections that I can't fight off. Since I stopped working in a supermarket 3 years ago, it has improved somewhat because there is less people contact. I hope this isn't too personal, but do you suffer from chronic period pain? It could be endometriosis, which is an auto-immune disease (can't figure out why but anyways) because I think this contributes to my body's inability to properly fight infections. It's just a thought because I find that viral infections affect me from head to toe and unfortunately over the years I have built up an immunity to antibiotics fixing the problem, but given that for 2 years I took them fairly regularly I also now get the nasty side affects - sometimes I am convinced Doctors don't always make us better. I feel bad you have to spend so much at the Dr's, here in Australia our health care is pretty much free and our meds are cheap because of Medicare. |
| Re: Herbal/natural help with chronic upper respiratory health issues |
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Thank you Lady Nepthys. No I do not have chronic period pain. (In fact, I barely get menses at all, but that's another issue.) I had chronic ear infections as a child, and no one knew until the family doctor noticed that I had scaring on my ear drum a slight hearing loss as a toddler. I think that these kind of viral infections caused permanent damage, and that is why I have a hard time fighting off subsequent infections. I get more and more vulnerable to tissue damage every time. For instance, my last two ear infections last year were so bad, that I can now "feel" my eustachion tubes (the channel from middle ear to the pharynx - back of the throat) even when they are healthy. I too don't want to be in the doctors office and put on anti-biotics, ever. That is always a last resort for me. I wish there was a way to treat these infections proactively by natural means so that it strengthens my system long term. P.S. So, yet another reason Australia rocks! Hehe. |
