June was full of quintessential Summer adventure! Our garden has been bountiful and giving us more squash, green beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes than we know what to do with. We cleaned out the shed, cooked a lot of homecooked meals, went to 3 concerts, and…we got (what we think was) the flu. I have to say, it’s not so fun to be feeling like this when it’s 90° outside.
I came down with it first, and within 2 days Ross was right behind me. Fever, chills, body aches, sinus pressure, and a constant headache. Thankfully most of it passed in a couple days and we never lost our appetites. But when I think about the way I had a headache for 7 days with no relief, I’m so glad it’s over.
Thankfully, over the past few years I’ve built up my supplies to get well soon and support my body. Below is the list of tips I have seen work for me in times when I’m feeling under the weather. These tips will help you go from fever to feeling better in no time.
Before I run through this list, I want to talk about a few ways to reframe your thinking around being “sick”. First off, start investing in your health on a daily basis so that if you come down with something you are already in a place for a quick and smooth recovery. Second, the person who coughed on you didn’t get you sick. You were just run down enough to not be in a place to fully fight it off. But guess what? Those symptoms you have, those are your body doing its job in fighting off whatever has infiltrated your immune system. Trust your body! And third, give your body time to heal! We expect to feel better in 48 hours, but in reality that’s really not enough time. All the medications we like to throw at symptoms actually just prolong things all together. I’m not saying do nothing. What I’m saying is to support your body THROUGH it. Let it do its thing and don’t fight what is already there.
And now for the ways I support my body when I start feeling under the weather. We’ve all heard to take Vitamin C and Zinc supplements, so these tips are a bit more out of the box than that. These are best done from the moment you feel something coming on. For me, it was on a Saturday when I felt some body aches coming on. While I still had energy, I actually hit the grocery store to stock up in case we needed to hunker down. That was the best decision I made in preparation for the week!
- Lemons – Start drinking your water with lemon and Himalayan salt. This will help with any sore throat as well as provide proper electrolytes to your cells, not to mention a huge Vitamin C boost. Sip on this regularly throughout the day.
- Whole food diet – If you haven’t already, ditch the processed food. If you have any appetite at all, be sure to eat food from the earth and not food from a manufacturing plant. If you don’t have an appetite, bone broth is a great liquid to sip on with essential proteins, amino acids, and electrolytes. My go to in times like this is my Chicken & Rice Healing Soup.
- Grounding – I hope you’re doing this every day. But if you’re not, at least do it on the days you’re sick. Get your bare feet on the ground outside for at least 30 minutes and let the energy from the earth radiate through your body. There are countless studies done on this around shortening recovery time. Take advantage of this free healing modality.
- Sunlight – Sunlight and grounding are a two-fer. Knock them both out at once. Expose as much of your body to the sun as you can for at least 30 minutes per day. Vitamin D is an essential nutrient for healing and the purest form is from the sun.
- Gentle Movement – If you are able, stretch and move your body. This can help expel toxins quicker and not allow anything to get stuck in your lymphatic system.
- Gargle – Warm up a very small glass of water, sprinkle in some himalayan salt and 3 drops of this. Gargle 2x/day. This helps loosen any mucus stuck in the sinuses and seals up any red spots in the throat. Another great option is Colloidal silver throat spray.
- Rest up – This one goes without saying, but one of the most important things you can do is to ensure you’re getting more sleep. 9-10 hours/night and naps if you need them. Trust your body and lean into the amount of sleep it’s asking for.
- Out of the box hydration – Start drinking organic coconut water. Coconut water, or coco water as we like to call it, has many essential nutrients and electrolytes. This will help ensure you don’t get dehydrated. Just make sure there are no added sugars or preservatives – it should have one ingredient. Another option is organic herbal tea. My favorites for this type of situation are peppermint and oregano. Peppermint can help soothe a sensitive stomach and oregano has antibacterial and antiviral properties. I like to drink 2-3 cups/day when under the weather. Add some local raw honey for added benefits.
- Eliminate added sugars – I hope you’re making an attempt to do this on a daily basis, but when not feeling well, all added sugars do is slow down your healing. It can take up to 3 hours for added sugars to clear out of your system and allow your metabolic processes to resume. Organic maple syrup and local raw honey are not added sugars. In fact, I like to use these both to accelerate healing as they both have nutrients that are essential to healing.
- Ginger – Ginger has been a miracle worker for me. My favorite way to consume it is in candied form. I know I said no added sugars, but I make the exception for 2 cubes/day of candied ginger. Thrive Market has an excellent one that I buy on a monthly basis.
- Get your sweat on – I have found that sweating is one of the easiest ways to eliminate toxins, including infection, from the body. If I have a fever, but it is not super high, I will actually get in my sauna to sweat it out a little faster. Bonus points if you can get access to a red light sauna as this is extremely healing to the body. Just be sure to stay hydrated if you are going to go this route.
- Castor Oil Packs – I have found castor oil to be widely applicable to many issues. I like to do castor oil packs on a regular basis to flush out toxins, but when not feeling well these can help accelerate the expulsion of toxins. Make sure to start slow and only do what feels good for you. If you haven’t ever done a castor oil pack, I don’t recommend the first time being when you are sick as it can release toxins that have been held for a lifetime.
- Aromatherapy – My nose was completely stopped up. I was unable to breathe out of my nose, even when I got in the shower. I ended up using Eucalyptus and Peppermint (alternating) in my diffuser and also on a hot rag. For the hot rag I would microwave a wet rag and drop a few drops of my aromatherapy oil of choice, put it over my entire face and alternate breathing in my nose/mouth. This was very helpful in clearing out the gunk that was causing the sinus pressure. Peppermint is also the only thing I’ve found helpful when a headache comes on.
- Get Adjusted – By now you know I head to my holistic chiropractor in any health situation. But when you’re not feeling well, your body needs even more of a boost. I personally get adjusted twice as often during this time.
I hope you enjoy my quick tips for a less toxic and healthier life. I’d love to hear about how it goes if you choose to implement any of these in your daily life!
Disclaimer: The content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional regarding any medical concerns or conditions.
