A month of sickness - remedies that worked and didn't

Flashback to May! I wrote this post in June after going through the illnesses I describe. I feel a little funny getting so obsessed about being sick, but it's important to stay healthy when pregnant! This is somewhat of a record for me as I progress in my exploration of natural health.


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 One thing that contributed to my illnesses is that pregnancy affected my strength and immunity (the body suppresses some immunity to not attack the fetus). I am grateful I haven't had morning sickness per se, but I did have some food sensitivity, aversion, and lack of appetite. It is improving some, but that was also a change. I also made a wonderful trip early in May to visit my cousin in Idaho. I was with Jedidiah, while at the same time Avinash went to India for his brother's wedding. I don't regret the trip at all, but an unfortunate occurrence was that there was a flight delay that caused me to miss my connection, and I arrived in Houston at midnight, exhausted.

I am pretty sure my body picked up some viruses in the travel, and I was unfortunately susceptible to them. A day after my return I threw up - was this morning sickness? Pretty soon I was sure that it was a stomach bug. I got better, though weak, just in time for my mother's visit with my two younger brothers. That was another joy, and she took care of me while the boys played with Jedidiah. At the end of their visit, though, I started to get a sore throat.  (Read the rest at your own risk - being sick is gross!) That sore throat morphed into quite the cold - phlegm, exhaustion, and an eye infection to boot. When I could feel a sinus infection setting in, I went to a doctor and with my midwife's blessing started taking an antibiotic that helped me get better. I don't like taking prescription medicine, so you know I was sick!

Then Avinash came under the same cold. His symptoms included a lot more painful coughing, and he still has a lingering cough that appears in the evening. He took a lot of OTC meds and also visited a doctor, who prescribed an antibiotic but suggested he try to recover naturally. He seemed to be, until one night he was struck with a new and painful sore throat. Scared stiff that he might be coming down with strep, we hurriedly went to fill his prescription. So far, nothing worse has appeared!

Thankfully, Jedidiah showed only a bit of congestion and coughing, but his symptoms were minor. He did get the eye infection, however. We received help from a friend who is an eye doctor, who said it was bacterial and gave the go-ahead to use antibiotic eye drops on him.

We are thankful to be well now!

Whew, what a saga. The reason I'm writing this all down is that I want to note what natural remedies helped, and what didn't work this time (but might work later), and what I hope will work next time (or prevent a next time). I like the idea of natural remedies (of course, being crunchy), but we discovered first-hand that sometimes allopathic medicine is needed. However, I do believe natural remedies can bring symptomatic relief, perhaps sometimes as well as OTC medicines. If used aggressively at the onset of an illness, they may be able to prevent it.

Some remedies that really worked:

• Neti pot - for nasal congestion - This really helped me with my symptoms. It did not prevent the sinus infection, but it was still a source of relief when I was able to wash the gunk out. Avinash also found some relief from this. We discovered that it is better to use distilled water. (At first I was boiling and cooling tap water. Hm, with the chemicals in tap water and the hassle, that just wasn't worth it.) We used Celtic sea salt, which dissolved easily and was gentle on the nasal passages. Iodized salt would have burned. I learned that it was good to continue using the neti pot at least in the morning and evening even as I recovered.
• Gargling - sore throat and chest congestion - I wish I had started this sooner when the sore throat first appeared. Avinash especially found relief from gargling with salt water and a bit of turmeric (an anti-inflammatory spice). Sometimes gargling made me gag, maybe because of pregnancy.
• Steam detox baths - cough - Avinash's body is unfortunately not good at expelling the gunk. He would cough and cough and nothing would come out. (Walgreens-brand Mucinex did very little to help with this!) His body would start to ache in different spots from the coughing. Poor guy. I would prepare a detox bath for him, mixing 1 c. of epsom salts with 1/4 c. of Redmond clay, then dissolving that in the hot water. (Mixing the two first kept the clay from clumping in the water.) More on detox baths. This really helped his body to relax before going to bed.
• Eucalyptus and peppermint essential oils - cough - I did not have high-quality essential oils, so I did not apply them on the skin. However, while Avinash was in the bath I would also put our crockpot dish in there with boiling water to contribute more steam. I would them add 8-10 drops each of eucalyptus and peppermint oils. This really helped open the breathing passages while Avinash was taking his bath. 
• Steam in the bedroom - cough - In the bedroom we would also put already-boiling water in the crockpot with some essential oils added and the lid off. It did heat things up, but steam enters the air better than what is diffused from a cold-water humidifier. This really helped me keep from coughing, though there were a few nights when Avinash's cough was just too severe.
• Massage - painful cough - On a couple of those worst nights, where Avinash was sore from too much coughing, he felt better when I massaged him with coconut oil and arnica massage oil (Weleda brand that I had on hand).
• Honey, ginger - cough - Honey really seemed to help, taken directly off a spoon. Sometimes so did ginger & honey tea (just ginger cut up and boiled in water, then honey added.)

Not sure if these helped or not:

• Chestal honey homeopathic cough syrup - We gave this to Jedidiah some, though his cough was not severe. I also took it some. I think it helped, but honey alone may have been just as good.
• Homeopathic eye drops for Jedidiah's eye infection - did nothing
• Supplements - My midwife had given me a "Ward off virus cocktail." I believe these may help, just like vitamin C, if taken preventatively or at the onset of symptoms. They didn't seem to help with kicking the infection, however.

Remember next time:

A friend suggested treating the eye infection with a bit of raw honey. Another suggested cleaning the eye with a cotton ball dipped in room-temperature black tea.


Coming soon:

My exploration of essential oils begins! Further strategies to hopefully stay well in late pregnancy, which coincides with flu season!

Homemade Detergent Update and Elimination Communication Update

Two quick updates!

I am enjoying the homemade laundry detergent I made. It cleans equally well, if not better, than the cheapo detergent from Walmart that I was using (and now have little motivation to use up.) I like it that it is unscented, except for the slight scent from the Zote soap. It takes poop stains out of the diapers pretty well.

Also, at 11.5 months Jedidiah's elimination communication (which is mostly about pooping in the potty, not so worried about pee) is going ok but not great. He does not come to me or signal when he is about to poop in his diaper. If I notice him pooping and take him to the potty quickly enough, sometimes he poops there but sometimes the interruption stops his urge and he doesn't go. He doesn't mind pooping in his diaper, though after he does so he does want to be changed. I have been intending to call an EC mentor about this. I think I need to be more alert based on timings, as I was when he was small, especially after waking up and after eating a meal.

I love sleeping with my baby

Jedidiah whimpers in his sleep. We are already lying on our sides, facing each other, so I barely rouse myself and reach for him, un-clipping my nursing tank. I pull him toward me and he swivels his head slightly, homing in on the right spot to put his mouth. We nestle together, my left arm above his head, my right arm holding him close, his legs fitting into my lap, with one leg resting on my thigh.

I feel the gentle pulling of his sucking and my milk starts to flow. The peace of the night and the white noise of the air conditioner are enlivened with his tiny swallowing noises. Without waking up, without crying, he is comforted.

My right hand touches his silky hair, the solid curve of his skull. His delicate, intricate ears, his soft, padded cheeks. Down his back my hand goes to his full, chubby thighs and his toes, pushed up against the joint of my thigh and pelvis.

I am comforted too, and sleep comes to us both.

Sweet Potato Hummus

I adapted this recipe of Sweet Potato Hummus from  this recipe I found online. My recipe makes quite a lot, but somehow between the two of us and through sharing it with friends, it always seems to disappear! It is a good dish to take to parties. You could halve the recipe if you don't want a large quantity on your hands. Another note about the recipe is that homemade hummus requires a food processor. I have tried making hummus in an ordinary blender in the past, and blenders don't seem to handle it well. Perhaps one of the fancy blender brands such as Vitamix could handle it. The measurements in the recipe are not exact. I usually eyeball them, so adjust to taste!

Ingredients

•  1 lb. dry chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
• 2 large sweet potatoes (or 3 medium), in large cubes
• 4 medium lemons, juiced
• 6 tablespoon tahini
• 6 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 jalapenos, tops cut off and de-seeded
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• salt
• pepper
• chile powder

Suggested accompaniments

• pita
• crackers or chips
• cucumber
• carrot
• jicama
• red bell pepper
• tomato 
• celery
• cilantro
• lettuce or spinach
• avocado or guacamole
• use your imagination

Steps

1.  Soak the chickpeas for several hours in water. (This can be sped up by soaking them in hot water for less time.) Add the sweet potatoes, making sure water just covers the sweet potatoes. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Boil until the chickpeas are done, approximately 30-40 minutes. Let cool. (Do not throw out the cooking water.)
2. As the chickpeas cool, prepare the other ingredients. With a slotted spoon, ladle half of the chickpea mixture into the food processor.  Add roughly half of the other ingredients. Process, adding the cooking liquid until desired consistency and smoothness is reached. Err on the side of slightly more liquid, since the hummus will thicken with time. Adjust flavors by adding more salt, more lemon juice, salt or chile powder etc. Repeat with the other half of the ingredients.
3. Serve warm or chilled with cut up vegetables and pita.

Have You Tried Homemade Laundry Detergent?

Today I made homemade laundry detergent for the first time. This post has nothing that the blogosphere does not already contain. It is simply my record of what I've figured out from reading multiple sites. If you google "homemade laundry detergent" you'll come up with oodles of recipes.

By all accounts, the concoction works well, even for cloth diapers. It is more eco-friendly than regular detergent with its various chemicals and big plastic containers, and more cost-friendly than the fancy eco-friendly detergent you find in stores.

The tricky part was wading through all the different recipes. They all have borax, washing soda (by the same Arm and Hammer company that makes baking soda) and laundry soap such as Fels-Naptha, Zote, or Dr. Bronner's soap in them. The simplest recipe had two parts of the borax, two parts washing soda, and one part grated soap.

Fanicer recipes add Oxi-clean, baking soda, Purex crystals, or essential oils. I ended up following this one from askannamoseley.com. I liked how she reviewed the different cleaning powers of the ingredients.

I didn't follow her recipe exactly, since from seeing all the blogosphere variations I concluded that is not too important. I used less baking soda and Oxi-clean. I would prefer using less Oxi-clean anyway, since it is not a natural ingredient, though it is much nicer than bleach.

• 1 box borax
• 1 box washing soda
• 1 14.5 oz bar of Zote laundry soap
• 1 lb. baking soda
• 1 lb. Oxi-clean (or actually Clorox' Oxy-Magic). 

By mistake I thought I needed two big bars of Zote soap. Actually, I would have needed two small bars of it. One big bar was enough, so now I have one left over for next time.

I plan on using 1-2 Tablespoons per load, depending on the size of the load and since my apartment doesn't have a High Efficiency washer.

I'm excited to do the laundry and see how it turns out, especially for the diapers!

Five Minute Friday: Broken

Broken

I used to live under the illusion that I was shielded from brokenness. Sure, I was a sinner and had acknowledged that and believed in Jesus and been forgiven, but --thank God-- I was not from a "broken family."

I lived under that illusion until my family broke.

It was not divorce between my parents, thankfully, but conflict and acrimony and confusion and bitterness appeared and I had no idea what to do with them. And it happened because of me. I fell in love with and came to admire and trust a man. And my father did not. Conflict is a sure sign of brokenness.

And brokenness began to trail after me like a tail. It appeared in my inability to fall asleep at night, worrying and wondering what I had done wrong and what I could do to fix the brokenness between Baba and me. It appeared in my ready tears, whenever a friend asked seriously what was going on. It appeared in the deep confusion of my heart. The story is too complicated for five minutes to tell.

I despaired of fixing the situation, and instead I broke out of it and married my husband. Condemnation sometimes says I did the wrong thing, that the holy thing would have been to commit myself to obeying and fixing no matter the cost to myself and my sweetheart, even though that might have broken our relationship.

I taste the confusion again, just by thinking about it. So easily the wounds reappear.

The mornings in the days before my wedding I would sit at my hotel window, with a view of the Organ mountains and the hospital where I was born, and pray. And I felt the assurance of my heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's love. That amidst my sin and the perplexing confusing mess of brokenness, he loved me. My marriage would not be cursed because of the brokenness it emerged out of. My marriage might have its own forms of brokenness. There is no guarantee against it. But God was surrounding me and my husband with his own Father's blessing.

My Father's love is the raft on that can carry me through the valley of the shadow of death and sin. It is the blanket that hugged me when I writhed on my bed in tears. It is the only thing in life that can never break.

Not the most lovely photo of the Organs,
but that tall building is the hospital where I was born
so that's why I chose it.

Five Minute Friday (on Monday): Belong

I have been seeing the Five Minute Friday challenge recently, from one of my favorite bloggers Ali, who lives on a Mercy Ship of the coast of Africa, and from Jen, who is in the Peace Corps in South Africa.

So however un-eloquent this may be, here it is:

Belong:

When I first saw this writing prompt, I thought something vague, true, and probably cliched about how I belong to a family, and belong to God.

It took me a couple days to getting around to write. Yesterday at church, I had a new visual aid about belonging. I was helping in the nursery and Jedidiah (now 9.5 mo old) was with me. A friend brought in her 8 month old son, who was a bit fussy. When I tried to hold Canaan, Jedidiah got such a look of jealousy and worry on his face. How dare I hold Canaan! I belong to him, to Jedidiah!

It is a sweet thing to have a baby, but one problem is that I don't belong to myself anymore, as far as he is concerned! I know it is not really true that I belong to him. And I have every right to hold a different baby once in a while! But on the other hand my impression, that he belongs to me, is my baby, isn't so true either. He belongs to God, and is a gift from God to me, to care for as I must steward all God's blessings to me.

I started to think about other misconceptions that I have about belonging. Is it possible that I think, in an illogical, babyish instinct that is far away from my grown-up mind, and yet truer to what I really believe, that God belongs to me? There is a bit of panic inside me when I think that God might do something I don't like - like allow me or my loved ones to suffer or potentially take away someone dear to me. Or what if I feel God "favors" someone else above me, just as Jedidiah thought I was favoring Canaan? God might give a blessing to a friend, that he does not give to me. Uh oh, I can't control God! And do I hold on to God's blessings in a way that would lead to acute "separation anxiety" if they are taken away?

I pray that I can grow up. That I can get more and more mature in my mind and spirit to trust my heavenly Papa.  He will work all things for good to me because I love him. Even though twinges of fear easily strike my heart when I wonder if he might take away earthly blessings from me, I want to know deeply that he will never leave me or forsake me. Because of Jesus' love for me, I belong to him. My husband and Jedidiah belong to him. And nothing can snatch us out of his hand.

Jedidiah and "his" mommy!
Photo by Stan Kwan at Captivate Images

[now that took a lot longer than 5 minutes. You can't just leave a thought unfinished! but it was fun!]