.jpg)
Photo: AP/Darko Vojinovic
If you, like many people this beautiful late fall season, have come down with the cold-allergy-sinus-I-don’t-know-what-it-is-because-I’m-not-sick-enough-to-go-to-the-doctor-whoosi-whatsit-itis going around, never fear! You can help yourself feel better with some excellent self-care in the comfort of your own home!
Nourish yourself
When you are sick, eating can sometimes seem unappetizing. However, it is really important to eat regularly to keep up your energy. It is also really important to eat lightly. Your body needs energy to heal, but it also needs to have energy to spare to heal, which means you need to keep your body from diverting all available energy to digestion. The trick here is balance. Eat easily digestible yet nourishing food, like soup and toast.
Stay hydrated
Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Sufficient hydration helps flush toxins from your body. Drink lots of water and natural fruit juice. You can also use hydration to boost your immune system through decoctions of garlic or ginger and infusions of lemon and honey.
Mind your mind
Ban stress, fear, anxiety, anger and other similar emotions. Negative emotions are proven to destroy your immune system. If you struggle with these emotions, try using visualizations, meditation, affirmations or Reiki to refocus. It is also important to stop thinking as much as possible – as with digestion, you want to keep your energy focused on healing as much as possible.
Bring on the self-care
- Take an aromatherapy steam shower by dripping eucalyptus and tea tree essential oil around the tops of your shower walls. Eucalyptus will open your sinuses, while tea tree will fight the infection.
- Massage your sinuses. Get your showerhead as hot as you can stand it and allow it to spray on your face in the area of your sinuses. This will open your sinuses and nasal passages.
- Use your neti pot after your sinus massage. Your nasal passages are more open after your shower and sinus massage and the water will flow more easily.
- Hydrate your house with a boiling pot of water and eucalyptus oil on the stove.
- Rest! This is possibly the most important self-care technique.
- Overload on Vitamin C. You can take up to 1,000mg of Vitamin C an hour to help support your immune system.
- Take 1-2 tbsp. of apple cider vinegar diluted in 8 oz. of water daily to thin mucus and support your overall wellness.
- Although it seems counterintuitive, when your nose is so stopped up that you cannot breathe, stop blowing it! Constant nose blowing causes nasal passages to become inflamed and contributes to breathing blockages.
- Make your own medicine! Use this tutorial from Hot Knives.
Comments