Fighting the Flu

Note: None of this is meant as medical advice; I'm just sharing what works for me. You should always consult a trained medical professional about your health.

I've had the joy of dealing with the flu this past week and a bit. I don't handle illness super well, but this time the misery was compounded by bad weather and an unexpected allergic reaction to medication! But more on that in a bit. I've been sick enough times in my life that I've ended up with a list of go-to remedies to help myself through it. Here's what I've found works for me...

Zinc

This is more a preventative, but I've found that since I started taking zinc supplements (50 mg chelated zinc, every other day), I've caught far fewer viruses. I'm prone to zinc deficiency because I have a harder time absorbing zinc in the first place, so I need to supplement. Someone without this issue, who gets enough zinc in their diet, wouldn't get much benefit from supplementing.

The berries of Sambucus nigra, aka Elder

Elder

Although it doesn't do much for the common cold, Elder is fantastic for the flu. I personally prefer to use syrup made from the berries (available at health food stores and some pharmacies, or homemade). Elder zaps a fever, eases aches, and generally makes the flu more tolerable. During this recent bout, I used it twice during the worst of the illness, and afterwards didn't feel bad enough to need it again. If I can't find the syrup, I'll have elder berry or flower tea instead.

 

By Kimchifan, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20653196 

Greek Mountain Tea 

Also known as Sideritis (S. syriaca and S. scardica are two of the most commonly used species) and Ironwort, is the perfect tea for what ails you. It's soothing, tastes pleasant (it's the only tea I liked as a kid), and any Greek (Bulgarian, Albanian, Turkish...) grandma will tell you it'll help you feel better. If you don't live where it grows, you can find it in Greek bakeries or European grocery stores (let me know if you've also found it elsewhere). You can find more info and instructions on making the tea here. Serve with honey and/or lemon, if you want.

 

Warm Liquids 

I love my coffee and tea iced, but when I'm sick, warm fluids are the only way to go. While I think Greek Mountain Tea is the best, any kind of tea is good, especially with some honey in it. Soups and broths are a must. Anything warm is soothing, and helps with the chills too. 

 

Ibuprofin 

The flu generally comes with all kinds of aches and pains. Ibuprofin is anti-inflammatory, as well as analgesic. You can get it under various brand names, or as generic ibuprofin. Whatever it's called, it has made my life easier. 

 

Daytime and Nighttime Cold and Flu Meds

I used to be opposed to taking any kind of medication-- I'd suffer through with natural "remedies" that didn't really do much. Nowadays, I'd rather sleep through the night and be able to breathe. I can't stand the taste of medicine, so I'll get this stuff in pill form (I like Buckley's, which is Canadian) and it's a lifesaver.

 

Fresh Air 

Maybe it's an old wives' tale, but I feel better when I can get some fresh air when I'm sick. If I have the energy I'll go for a short walk, but it's also okay to just sit outside or open a window. Unfortunately, this flu coincided with some of the coldest temperatures and biggest snowfalls we've had in decades. Luckily it warmed up this past weekend, so I managed to get some walks in, and (after the first one, which wiped me out) I feel stronger and more energetic for it. Coincidence? Placebo? Maybe, but it works for me.

Throat Lozenges 

This flu started with a sore throat, and I was extremely grateful for the existence of throat lozenges with benzocaine, which I've never used before. These lozenges are numbing and kill the pain of a sore throat. Awesome, right? Well... When I started having a few minor signs of an allergic reaction, I thought it was just part of the flu. But when I ended up covered in hives on my torso, I did some reading and found out benzocaine is chemically similar to another drug I'm allergic to (bactrim, an antibiotic), and can cause cross reactions. I obviously stopped using those lozenges, and the hives are mostly gone now (I've also been taking allergy pills to help minimize the reaction). Sadly, there will be no more numbing lozenges for me. Stupid allergies.

 

The Flu Shot! 

Yes, I got the flu shot back in October, and still got the flu. The way flu shots work, every year the shot is chosen based on which strain is likely to be prevalent in the upcoming flu season. Sometimes, an unanticipated strain ends up spreading. The flu I got this year was one of those. But because I got the shot, I wasn't as sick as I could've been, and that's huge. I haven't always bothered to get the shot, and the last time I caught the flu when I hadn't had the shot, it was miserable, and wiped me out for weeks afterwards. That was the year I started regularly getting the shot. Zero regrets. I've had the flu a couple of times since, including this year, and it has never been as bad as it was the year I didn't get a shot. Influenza (the flu) isn't like the common cold-- it can hit you hard and it can kill you. I don't know about anyone else, but I'm not getting taken out by a virus.

 

Rest 

I know there's pressure to never take a break, never take time off, work through the pain, always be doing something. That's a great way to get sick and stay sick (and spread the illness to even more people too). To get better as quickly as possible, your body needs rest. Whether that's more sleep than usual, or just lying on the couch and doing as little as possible, do what you can to do nothing. It's more important than we realize (or want to admit).

 

If you're up for it, reading is a great way to pass the time when you're not feeling your best. Distract yourself with my books (links follow)!

 

What works for you when you're sick with the flu? Share in the comments...

 

Cheers,

Aspasia 

My Book Links

Love Lies Bleeding

Bleeding Heart

Blood Magic

Tooth & Claw

(Links take you to all available stores. Love Lies Bleeding and Bleeding Heart are also available in paperback.)

 

PS: Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com. 

 

 

Review: Home Herbal

I love herbs. I grow them, cook with them, heal with them, study them--I've even written about them for magazines. I've also watched them become mainstream, which is great except that as the popularity of herbs grows, so does the misinformation about them. I've seen posts online claiming that marshmallows soothe sore throats (clearly someone got confused between candy marshmallows, which are merely tasty, and marsh mallow aka Althaea officinalis, which has multiple medicinal benefits, including soothing sore throats). I've also seen more than one recommendation to apply straight essential oils to skin (essential oils always need to be diluted, with the possible exception of Lavender oil). I've even had a herb newbie claim that small doses of cyanide must be good for you because apple seeds contain cyanide and anything natural has to be good. The mind boggles.

Instead of trusting random information from the internet (come on now, do you really need to be told that hobby blogs and wikipedia aren't authoritative sources?), anyone who plans to make herbs a part of their life needs at least one (preferably many more) good reference books on the subject. I'm happy to say that Home Herbal is just that.

I was excited to read DK's Home Herbal even before it was offered to me for review. For a start, the book--written by several herbalists employed at Neal's Yard Remedies in the UK--is both accurate and useful. That alone makes it worth having in your collection, but there's more.

The first section of the book is devoted to individual herbs. Each entry is impressively detailed. I particularly like that there's info on where to get each herb: grow, forage, or harvest. This is also where you find out basics on what the herbs can be used for, how to prepare them, what they look like (the pictures are excellent), and any precautions you need to take. I can see myself consulting this book repeatedly.

The next section of the books covers specific uses of herbs. Say you want to know which herbs are good for healthy skin or for first aid--under each category you'll find the relevant herbs, as well as recipes using those herbs and what page they're on. Very handy, both for those who know nothing about which herb does what, or for those looking to find new herbs to try (or for those in a hurry who don't want to waste time browsing, although this book is ideal for that).

Next come the recipes--and there are a lot of recipes. Not only for foods and smoothies, but also teas, cordials, syrups, flavoured honeys (I'm definitely going to have to try Sweet Violet & Ginger Honey when the violets are up here), purees and tinctures. For external use there are recipes for lotions, scrubs, body oils, splashes, powders (including a talc-free baby powder), soaps, toners, balms, hair treatments--the list goes on.

The book ends with more-detailed info on growing and wildcrafting herbs, as well as some other basic info. In the end Home Herbal is a fantastic resource for those who are new to herbs, as well as those of us who know the difference between cat mint and spearmint. I'm experiencing a major resurgence in enthusiasm for my garden and in part it's due to books like this. I'm already well into seed-starting, including a number of new herbs to add to the ones I'm already growing. Come harvest time, I plan on keeping Home Herbal and its many recipes and information handy. And honestly, I can't wait.

If you hurry over to DK now, they're having sales in honour of Earth Day (on until 25 April)...

Home Herbal by Susan Curtis, Louise Green, Penelope Ody & Dragana Vilinac. Published by DK.

[Edited to update link. Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com]

How to Prevent the Zombie Plague

My head is pounding, my throat hurts, and I am super cranky. But let me go back a bit...

Yesterday was a busy day for me. I ran all over the city, walking, taking the subway, going to a hospital, a coffee shop, a restaurant, a couple of stores, and a mall. And everywhere I went everyone was coughing or sneezing. I was perfectly healthy yesterday. Now--see above.

I know people are busy and have important things that need to get done. Apparently taking a sick day would bring civilization to its knees or something. But before you decide to be "brave" and go into work or school or out to run errands even though you're sick think about some of the other people you're affecting:

• You could be coming into contact with people who have lowered or suppressed immunity. People with serious illnesses, the very young, or the elderly. What is an inconvenient cold to you could easily become pneumonia in them with consequences that are a little more than inconvenient.
• The person you give your cold to might be the caregiver for someone with suppressed immunity. Whether they accidentally pass on your germs to that person or end up having to avoid the person who relies on them until they're no longer contagious, their lives just got a whole lot more difficult.
• You might end up giving your cold to a pregnant woman. I don't know too much about this subject but I'm pretty sure cold medications aren't allowed during pregnancy. The woman who was already dealing with plenty now has to go through the misery of a cold with little to no relief.
• You might affect someone's health in a different way. For example, diabetics have a hard enough time keeping their blood sugars at a reasonable level in order to avoid the serious consequences that come with out-of-control sugars. There are a lot of things that can throw it out of whack, including stress and illness. You know what causes a diabetic stress? Getting sick and watching helplessly as their sugars go crazy. I know because I've been diabetic since I was eight years old.
• In Toronto we have a downtown hospital district. The place is rife with medical staff and students, as well as researchers. I know they take every precaution to keep healthy (except maybe for quitting smoking--what's up with that, guys?) but it doesn't take much to catch someone's cold. And they don't have the option to just go into work anyway. Take a second to think about how many people that ends up affecting.
  

Even if any of these people manage to avoid getting sick directly they might end up picking it up from a spouse, roommate, or child. We all know that this is the time of year for nasty bugs--why add to it by leaving the house and forcing others to come into contact with you? (I've lost track of the number of times I've gotten together with someone who didn't bother to warn me and I don't find out until it's too late that they're sick. I'm sure you've been in the same situation. Be honest--don't you want to wring their necks? Or at least put on a heavy duty surgical mask?)

These are just some of the examples of how a cold can be much more detrimental than you may have thought. So please, the next time you're sick and contagious--stay home. The world won't come to an end, your job won't suddenly disappear, those errands can wait. Honest. In the meantime rest, drink juice, eat soup, watch soaps and read trashy tabloids. Sleep works wonders. It also doesn't hurt to take extra garlic, vitamin C, zinc and echinacea. Get better and show some consideration for your fellow humans.

2023 Edit

As I write this, my SO and I are slowly recovering from one of the worst colds we've had. Last week, after three years of avoiding crowds, I took the subway. I wore a mask, despite the current lack of mandates, because the COVID 19 pandemic is still raging, even though the majority have decided to pretend it's not a thing. Because of rampant head-in-the-sand syndrome, hardly anyone else was wearing a mask, which is likely why I picked up this horrible bug and passed it on (I'm just grateful it's only a cold).

Everything I wrote in this post in 2012 goes triple now, thanks to the flu and especially COVID. Illness and germs don't care how healthy you think you are, what you want to believe, where you live, or what political party you vote for. An entire segment of society has launched itself over the cliff's edge of selfishness and wilful ignorance, choosing to believe any ridiculous conspiracy rather than trust science, with the result being the worldwide deaths of millions of people, not to mention the long-term debilitation of countless others. Sorry if you don't like what you're being told, but-- like illness and germs-- science doesn't care how you feel.

Too many people still need to learn to stay home when they're sick-- and employers need to get over themselves and support employees in order to preserve everyone's health and safety. Public health comes first: it's not up for debate. 

Besides staying home, everyone needs to do their part and:

• wear a mask in public
  
• avoid crowds as much as possible
• wash your hands frequently
  
• GET VACCINATED, including boosters

Nobody deserves to get sick or die because other people just can't be bothered. End of rant.

Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com

 

Photo by freeimages.co.uk