My #1 all time favorite and always reliable home remedy is Traditional Medicinals Organic Echinacea Plus Tea... I SWEAR by it. When I feel a cold coming on I drink 2-4 cups of this tea per day and if it helps kick the cold super quick!! You can find it at Wegmans for sure (in the organic section) I think it’s about $5 per box... and TOTALLY worth it!!
Next in my arsenal is Nana Mary Nana’s Bay Leaf Tea. This tea is my grandmother’s remedy (hence the name I gave it) and is super simple. Boil water and add a bay leaf or two to the hot water. This tea is excellent for relief of an upset stomach, or constipation (add a dash of sugar).
I also am a firm believer in the power of zinc and vitamin C! I picked this one up from my mother-in-law, who always pushes zinc when she doesn’t feel well, and we all know about the power of vitamin C!! Both of these vitamins boost the immune system. I reserve them for times of illness ONLY! I feel that making them a part of your normal day to day minimizes the power.
And how about massage for all that ails you! Especially for us ladies in our 30s there is nothing better than a sweet neck and shoulder massage to relieve headache pain. Or how about this for some serious pain relief... I had pain in my lower back for YEARS went to the Dr. make sure it wasn’t my kidneys and said that it was most certainly muscular. So I get a few massages and the pain I had lived with for 2/3 years was gone!
Another one of Nana Mary Nana’s remedies is Vicks VapoRub! Let me tell you what I love about it : if you have kids under 5 then you know that they can’t take a cough suppressant yet and Vicks has been my savior in this specific department (especially this winter)!! It really does sooth the cough and congestion. Also if you haven’t heard yet let me let you in on a great secret if you rub Vicks on your feet at bedtime when you have a cough and put socks on it helps stop the cough while you are sleeping. I have no physiological explanation for this phenomenon all I can tell you is that it works. Another trick that I picked up from grandma… rub a little Vicks on your temples if you have a headache and it helps!!
While we are talking about coughing let me also let you in on another great remedy for coughs… GUAIFENESIN (http://www.drugs.com/guaifenesin.html)! This is another over-the-counter medication, its cough syrup that is really great at breaking up congestion in adults and children alike. I always take it (as directed) when my chest is beginning to get congested and it really does the trick. I have recently found that CVS carries it in crystal form (for kids) they are little grape flavored sprinkles that you can give to your kids... because to be honest getting a kid to drink the guaifenesin syrup is virtually impossible as it tastes very strong and somewhat nasty.
While I’m on a roll with products that I love let’s talk about ICY HOT (this one is my husbands least favorite bc I usually slather so much on that it clears his and my sinus’ for a week). But WOW!! If you have a sore muscle… ICY HOT rocks!! I prefer the cream form, it’s less greasy!
Well there you have it, my favorite remedies! Hope you find them useful!
