I hate being sick! When I get sick I can’t remember what it feels like to not feel sick. And, I feel like I will feel sick for the rest of forever. I am sure that I am not alone in feeling this way.
It seems like every spring right as the weather starts getting good I come down with a cold. My solace is that everyone I talk to has had this same sick this year. So at the very least I am not alone.
Over the years I have built up a long list of go to remedies. With my latest ailment I have once again added to that list.
- Drink Lots of water –Drinking water is my go to solution for just about anything. I am a big believer in flushing out whatever ails me. When I get sick I try to drink as much water as I can. My mom always told me that I know I’ve had enough water when I just can’t stand the thought of drinking more.
- Zycam – Works best before you’re really sick. I have not had many experiences with Zycam… because I am cheap and I don’t like to pay to be not sick. However, the times that I have used Zycam I have either avoided coming down with something. Or, I feel better quicker. Either way its a win… and the tablets taste good 😛
- Vitamin C – I prefer to get my vitamins from the food I eat. I recognize that I fail at this all the time. So when I get sick I will often take vitamin C. It tastes good, and everyone says that it helps you if you’re sick. So, why not take a vitamin C?
- Herbal Stuff – This last sick I took some elderberry syrup and an echinacea tincture. Both tasted worse than feet and neither seemed to make a difference. Though I will say the syrup burned on its way down. I do believe in herbal medicines, after all modern medicine is built upon natural herbal remedies. Yet, I have not had seriously good experiences with any herbal remedy in a bottle. They seem to be way too expensive to not guarantee some sort of positive affect.
- IB Profin – I strongly prefer Advil to Tylenol. In the past I have always noticed Advil easing my pain and reducing swelling. I cannot say the same for Tylenol. When my sinuses swell up Advil is generally my go to. However, a few years ago I had a tooth problem that ended with a root canal. After taking Advil every day for a month I notice it wasn’t as effective anymore. Since then, I have been much more prudent in my doses. Hoping against hope that my go to drug will work when I really need it to.
- Sinus Flu/Cold Drugs – I avoid drugs if possible. They are expensive and generally don’t make what I’ve been sick with go away any faster… I’m looking at you penicillin! Anyway, when I am in the throws of a cold and just want to sleep without fear of suffocating in the middle of the night I have an will turn to cold/flu medicines. I hate how I feel in the morning, but as long as I slept and didn’t suffocate I really can’t complain.
Now for the ones that I am actually excited about. I believe that the above list is everyone’s standard book of spells grade 1. Now I would like to share what I feel like is book 2… or 5. I dunno, I just really like the following for when I am sick.
- Activated Charcoal – Credit here goes to my wife. A few months ago I came down with the flu right after her. She took pity on me and came home with activated charcoal. It’s not a wonder drug that cleans every impurity out of your body. Yet, it did stop me from losing every once of fluid from my body, nuff said.
It works because activated charcoal has an extremely high surface area for its size. This gives it plenty of room for all the bad stuff in your body to bind with it. That’s why it is the same stuff that is used in water filters, all the water impurities stick to the charcoal. The caveat here though is that once an impurity hits your bloodstream activated charcoal is not going to do a thing.
- Neti Pot – My dad introduce my family to the wonderful neti pot. It is more or less a teapot that allows you to pour water up one nostril and out the other. You need to get the saline mixture just right or it will burn like crazy mad though. I love the neti pot because I can flush my sinuses out before bed and start with a clean slate! Obviously it won’t work if your nose is swollen shut.
My wife is super paranoid that using tap water will introduce a parasite into her sinuses that will attack her brain… I don’t doubt that it’s possible, but I’m not gonna store a jug of distilled water just so I can flush my nose.
- Humidifier – I have long known that a humidifier can help when you’re congested or not feeling good. But, I forget sometimes. Even though my humidifier falls on my face every time I open baby girl’s closet. I used this again last night and love the results. Yesterday, I nearly lost my voice due to all the buildup in my throat. Now today, after a night with the misty air, my voice sounds nearly normal! Scientific test proves that humidifiers work brilliantly!
No one likes to be sick, and it is even worse to see the ones that we love being sick to. My wife is sick and pregnant right now and I feel really bad for her. I am so grateful to her for putting her body through a very rough 9 months. From the initial nausea to the later added weight of the baby ending with a head cold is not fun.
Which brings me to some advice. Even if a remedy works for you every time. That does not mean it will always, or ever work for anyone else. So, I advise you to be patient with the advice you give to sick people. Often, we know what we need to do because either we have already done it… like twice. Or, there is some compelling reason we haven’t. Seldom do sick people forget anything that will help them feel better.
As a bonus I will share my trick to get rid of hiccups. I am yet to meet anyone else it works for. But, maybe I’m not the only fortunate soul who has a failsafe remedy for hiccups.
- Orange Juice – Just a few sips of orange juice and BAM! hiccups are gone.
Spring time is finally here. The trees are beginning to blossom. It is becoming far too beautiful to feel sick.
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